India’s tourism industry is preparing for a significant expansion. Hotels are entering new markets, pilgrimage destinations are attracting investment, and wellness tourism, meetings and conferences, and experiential travel are widening the industry’s scope. But there is a problem beneath this growth story: who will be available to deliver these experiences?

According to a September 2026 report by CBRE Research, India’s tourism industry could face a shortfall of approximately 11 million workers by 2035. The report identifies gaps in specialised skills, employee retention and training capacity, particularly in Tier-II and Tier-III cities.

The projection raises a question for an industry focused on expansion: is workforce development keeping pace with the creation of new hospitality infrastructure?

More Hotels, But Where Are the People?

The challenge extends beyond recruiting front-office executives, chefs and housekeeping staff. As tourism diversifies, the industry needs people trained for specialised roles in wellness, MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions), cruise tourism and guided heritage experiences. These segments require capabilities that may not be adequately covered by conventional hospitality training programmes. 

Geography adds another complication. Hotel development is increasingly moving into smaller cities and emerging destinations, while much of the established training infrastructure remains concentrated in traditional centres. This creates a mismatch: new properties may open in locations where the local talent pool is not yet equipped to meet their staffing requirements.

For hotel owners, the implications are practical. Recruitment can take longer, training costs can rise, and service consistency can become harder to maintain. In an industry where guest experience depends heavily on frontline employees, staffing is not simply an HR concern; it can influence operational performance and a property's reputation.

Why Is Hospitality Struggling to Retain Talent?

The problem is not only about producing more trained workers. It is also about keeping them in the industry.

The CBRE report identifies long working hours, modest pay and perceptions of limited career prospects as factors pushing trained employees towards other sectors, including aviation, retail and business process outsourcing.

This presents hospitality businesses with a difficult cycle. Hotels invest in training employees, but when working conditions, compensation or career progression fail to meet expectations, those employees may leave. Businesses must then spend more time and resources recruiting and training replacements.

Can the industry close its skills gap through training programmes alone if the working conditions that influence retention remain largely unchanged?

The question becomes more significant as operators expand into markets where experienced hospitality professionals may already be scarce.

Is Training Keeping Pace With Expansion?

Policy initiatives offer a starting point. CBRE's report highlights proposals under the Union Budget 2026–27 to upgrade the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology into a National Institute of Hospitality, alongside a pilot programme to train 10,000 tourist guides across 20 iconic tourist sites.

However, the scale of the projected workforce gap calls for coordination between educational institutions, hotel operators and policymakers. Training must reflect the skills businesses actually need, reach emerging hospitality markets and offer career pathways that encourage employees to stay.

For hotel companies, this could mean strengthening internal training, developing local recruitment pipelines and making progression from entry-level roles to supervisory and management positions more visible.

India's tourism opportunity is substantial, but expansion alone will not guarantee better guest experiences or sustainable business performance.

If the industry is building more hotels and creating new tourism destinations, workforce planning must become part of that expansion strategy—not a problem to solve after the doors open.

Festive consumption in India is evolving beyond conventional shopping, beauty purchases and holiday bookings, with consumers increasingly looking for products and experiences that offer personal value, wellbeing and meaningful connections. From ingredient-conscious beauty routines and flexible corporate gifting to shorter, experience-led holidays, industry leaders are observing a shift in how people approach the festive season.

Insights from Nat Habit, Decathlon Sports India and Delta Corp point to a broader change in consumer priorities, with discovery, personalisation and experiences becoming important considerations alongside price and convenience.

Festive Beauty Moves Beyond Makeup

For beauty and personal-care brands, the festive season is increasingly about preparing for celebrations rather than focusing exclusively on the final look. Frequent styling, back-to-back social occasions and greater attention to hair and skin health are driving interest in pre- and post-festive care.

Swagatika Das, CEO and Co-founder of Nat Habit, observes that consumers are investing more in healthy-looking skin and nourished, protected hair. She also points to growing interest in targeted hair-care solutions, including hair-fall products, scalp treatments, ingredient-led offerings and Ayurvedic formulations.

At the same time, consumers are seeking simpler routines built around clean, natural and familiar ingredients. This creates an opportunity for brands to move beyond seasonal promotions and demonstrate how their products can address specific concerns over time.

Festive purchasing behaviour is changing as well. According to Das, consumers are increasingly evaluating reviews, ingredients, recommendations and overall value before making purchases. Thoughtful and useful gifts are gaining relevance, suggesting that brands need to focus on product discovery and trust rather than relying solely on discounts to drive sales.

Corporate Gifting Finds a Role in Everyday Wellbeing

The shift towards personal relevance is also influencing corporate gifting, where organisations are looking for ways to make employee appreciation more meaningful.

Raghwendra Singh, Wholesale Director, Decathlon Sports India, sees an opportunity to move beyond standardised gifts and encourage employees to discover sports and wellness activities that suit their interests.

Through its ‘Gift a Sport’ initiative, Decathlon enables organisations to offer employees a choice of sports and wellness products, alongside gift cards. The approach gives recipients greater flexibility while connecting festive appreciation with active lifestyles.

Singh also highlights the potential of sports-based celebrations and team activities during Diwali and Christmas to bring colleagues together through shared experiences.

With Decathlon's B2B business serving more than 20,000 entities across India, the company sees corporate gifting as a way to extend its focus on making sport and wellbeing more accessible across workplaces.

The underlying shift is towards gifts that offer continuing utility beyond the festive period. Rather than serving only as tokens of appreciation, such initiatives can encourage healthier habits and create opportunities for employee engagement throughout the year.

Travel Demand Shifts Towards Experiences

Travel is undergoing a similar transition, with shorter breaks and long weekends encouraging more frequent domestic holidays. Travellers are increasingly looking for destinations that offer a combination of leisure, dining, entertainment and time with family and friends.

Arindam Basu, VP – Marketing and Communications, Delta Corp, notes that domestic travel is moving towards multiple shorter vacations throughout the year, supported by demand for local destinations and experience-led holidays.

He argues that the hospitality sector needs to look beyond accommodation and develop offerings that give travellers more reasons to visit and spend time at a destination.

At Deltin, destinations such as Goa and Daman bring together entertainment, leisure and dining for travellers seeking distinctive experiences. The emphasis is on creating memorable occasions, whether through short getaways, celebrations, weddings or time spent with family and friends.

This approach places greater importance on the overall destination experience. Hotels and leisure operators may need to consider how their dining, entertainment and activity offerings complement accommodation to appeal to travellers who want more from a short break.

A Common Shift Towards Personal Value

Although beauty, corporate gifting and travel serve different consumer needs, the three sectors reflect a shared trend: festive spending is increasingly being shaped by relevance, personal choice and the value an offering delivers beyond the immediate occasion.

For beauty brands, that means helping consumers make informed choices and build routines that continue after the celebrations. For corporate gifting, it means offering flexibility and encouraging meaningful engagement. For hospitality and leisure businesses, it means creating experiences that give travellers a reason to choose a destination beyond the room itself.

As festive competition intensifies, discounts and seasonal promotions remain part of the market. However, brands that understand what consumers want to gain from their purchases—whether confidence, wellbeing, connection or memorable experiences—may be better positioned to build relationships that last beyond the festive season.

The Kitchen by Chef Deepa is bringing a traditional festive favourite to Chennai with its special selection of homemade Matthi for Karwa Chauth, prepared with pure ghee and available exclusively on a made-to-order basis.

Matthi holds a special place in Karwa Chauth traditions, particularly during the ritual of breaking the fast after the moon is sighted. Traditionally, a husband offers his wife the first morsel of food and water, with Matthi often forming part of this moment. The festive delicacy represents care, affection and togetherness, making it a meaningful addition to the celebration.

Through its festive offering, The Kitchen by Chef Deepa aims to bring this familiar tradition closer to families in Chennai, offering home-style preparations that can be included in their Karwa Chauth rituals.

The selection features two varieties. The Sweet Saffron, Almond and Pista Matthi, priced at ₹1,350 per kg, combines aromatic saffron with the richness of almonds and pistachios. For those who prefer a simpler, traditional option, Classic Plain Matthi is available at ₹1,100 per kg.

Prepared with pure ghee and an emphasis on traditional flavours, the Matthi is available on a made-to-order basis. Customers can place orders directly with The Kitchen by Chef Deepa ahead of their celebrations.

The festive offering reflects the kitchen's focus on traditional Punjabi home-style cooking and special preparations for occasions celebrated with family. By bringing a familiar part of the Karwa Chauth ritual to Chennai, the kitchen offers customers a convenient way to include this traditional delicacy in their festivities.

Order Details

• Brand: The Kitchen by Chef Deepa

• Location: Perungudi, Chennai

• Sweet Saffron, Almond and Pista Matthi: ₹1,350 per kg

• Availability: Made to order

• Phone: +91 93635 44123

• Instagram: The Kitchen by Chef Deepa