More than 250 professionals from the hospitality procurement department converged at the Mayfair Lagoon in Bhubaneshwar to mark the sixth anniversary of the Hospitality Purchasing Managers’ Forum. The three-day event from November 17 to 19, was a perfect mix of celebration, knowledge sharing sessions and interesting B2B meetings with vendors. Excerpts.
Highlights
• Record breaking congregation of hospitality purchasing heads
• Networking of more than 250 professionals
• Interactive knowledge based sessions
• HPMF Excellence Awards
• B2B Meetings
• Purchasing Managers talents revealed
• Tree Plantation
” It is no surprise to get a call from the F&B at midnight placing orders for products to be delivered at six in the morning,” This is true of almost all purchase heads in the hospitality industry. Always on their toes, day-in and day-out meeting various requirements of different departments, more than 250 purchase heads took a welcome break to celebrate the sixth anniversary of India’s leading Hospitality Purchasing Managers’ Forum (HPMF). The three-day event was a perfect blend of Learning and Leisure, Awards and undying Memories.
The entire delegation of about 250 hospitality purchasing managers from across India, along with dignitaries, vendors and consultants, gathered at the flush green luxurious property of Hotel Mayfair Lagoon and Convention Center at Bhubaneshwar. The brainchild of Nitin Nagrale, the founder and general secretary of HPMF, the proceedings were filled with anecdotes, humour, surprises, lessons, sessions and lots of fun.
Delegates from Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, New Delhi, Chennai, Goa, Guwahati, Jaipur, Indore, Nagpur, Vadodra, Bhubaneshwar and Puri, were overwhelmed with the programme put together by team, including the core committee including Chairman Mohan Deshpande, General Manager Materials Hotel Aureole; Teckbahadur Sarke, Manager Hotel Sahara Star – Mumbai & Aamby Valley City – Lonavala (Pune); Harvey Rodrigues, Director of Purchase, Hotel Meluha The Fern and Hotel Rodas An Ecotel Hotel; Ganpat Dalvi, Director of Purchase, Hotel Four Seasons; Jaideep Gupta, Operations, Procurement and Pre-opening professional; and Gary Coutinho, Supply Chain Manager Devyani Airport Services.
Inaugurated by Ashok Chandra Panda, Minister of Tourism and Culture, Government of Odisha, the occasion was also graced by His Highness Giriraj Singh Lotwara, President of Shree Rajput Sabha, Jaipur; Dilip Ray, CMD of Mayfair Hotels; Debasis Patnaik, Director, Crown Hotels; Pankaj Mehta, Lion Pankaj Mehta; and Souvagya Mohapatra, Executive Director, Mayfair Hotels among others. Clean India Journal participated as media partners to this event.
Highlighting the importance of purchasing managers, who are more a background artist, Mohapatra said, “From every tile in the floor to the entire structure, purchase is involved. They play an important role in material, marketing and money management.” Even though almost every demanding job entails stress, as Jaipeep Gupta, also the anchor of the event, put it, “Stress is not the situation, it is the inability to manage the situation”.
