From Banking to Luxury Travel: How Abhishek Dadlani Built Lushescapes

A successful banking career offers stability and professional growth, but for Abhishek Dadlani, a passion for travel eventually inspired a different entrepreneurial path.

After working at Citigroup in India, Dadlani identified an opportunity in the luxury travel market. He believed affluent travellers wanted more than conventional holiday packages. They were looking for personalised itineraries, distinctive experiences, exceptional accommodation, and seamless travel arrangements.

In 2007, he founded Lushescapes to address these needs, transforming his interest in travel into a specialised business focused on bespoke holidays.

Identifying an Opportunity in Luxury Travel

Luxury travel is not simply about expensive hotels or premium flights. For discerning travellers, it is often about convenience, exclusivity, personalisation, and experiences that reflect their interests.

Dadlani recognised that planning such journeys required coordination across multiple suppliers, destinations, and services. Travellers needed someone who could bring these elements together into a seamless experience.

Lushescapes was built around this idea: creating customised journeys rather than offering only standardised travel packages.

From carefully selected accommodation to distinctive activities and specialist local partners, the company focused on making every part of a holiday contribute to the overall experience.

Building Lushescapes

Launching a luxury travel business required more than a strong concept. It meant developing supplier relationships, investing in infrastructure, building a capable team, and establishing customer trust.

Dadlani committed his resources to developing the business and creating a service that could meet the expectations of premium travellers.

The company's early development demonstrated the importance of specialising in a clearly defined market. Rather than competing across every segment of tourism, Lushescapes concentrated on clients seeking customised holidays and attentive service.

This positioning helped establish its identity in the luxury travel sector.

Expanding Beyond India

As Lushescapes developed, international expansion became an important part of its strategy. In 2011, the company established an office in Dubai, strengthening its presence in the Middle East and bringing it closer to a market for premium travel services.

International expansion also required stronger supplier networks, local market knowledge, and reliable service delivery across destinations.

For a bespoke travel business, these relationships are essential. Customers expect their arrangements to work together smoothly, whether a journey involves luxury accommodation, private transfers, exclusive experiences, or complex multi-country itineraries.

Navigating the COVID-19 Crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for the travel industry. Border closures and international travel restrictions severely disrupted businesses dependent on tourism.

Lushescapes was also affected, experiencing a significant decline in revenue and margins.

In a 2025 interview with The National, Dadlani discussed the challenges of keeping the business operating during this period. The company retained its team and borrowed money temporarily while navigating the disruption.

The recovery required resilience, financial discipline, and confidence in the eventual return of international travel.

His experience highlights an important reality of entrepreneurship: building a business requires not only identifying opportunities but also managing uncertainty when circumstances change dramatically.

Redefining Luxury Through Personalisation

Lushescapes focuses on designing holidays around individual preferences rather than treating every customer alike.

For some travellers, luxury might mean a secluded retreat. For others, it could involve wildlife encounters, cultural exploration, private experiences, or an elaborate journey across multiple countries.

This approach recognises that a memorable holiday depends on understanding what matters to each traveller.

The company has also explored more ambitious curated journeys, including multi-destination experiences designed to connect places and activities into a single itinerary.

Such trips require careful planning, specialist partnerships, and attention to detail at every stage.

Lessons for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Abhishek Dadlani's journey offers several lessons for people considering entrepreneurship.

1. Identify an underserved market. Recognising the needs of travellers seeking highly personalised holidays gave Lushescapes a clear business focus.

2. Research before taking the leap. Understanding the market and developing supplier relationships can help entrepreneurs make more informed decisions.

3. Build strong partnerships. In travel, reliable hotels, local operators, and specialist service providers are essential to delivering a quality experience.

4. Differentiate through customer experience. Personalisation, attention to detail, and responsive service can distinguish a specialist business from larger competitors.

5. Prepare for uncertainty. The pandemic demonstrated the importance of resilience, careful financial management, and the ability to adapt.

The Road Ahead

Lushescapes operates in a segment of tourism where customers increasingly value privacy, meaningful experiences, and tailored itineraries.

For businesses serving this market, long-term success depends on maintaining trusted partnerships, understanding changing customer expectations, and consistently delivering on promises.

Dadlani's entrepreneurial journey demonstrates how a company can build its identity around a specialised customer need while adapting to changes in the global travel industry.

Conclusion

Abhishek Dadlani's transition from banking to luxury travel illustrates how professional experience and personal passion can combine to create a business opportunity.

By founding Lushescapes, he pursued a vision centred on personalised holidays and distinctive travel experiences. The company developed through specialisation, international expansion, and a focus on customer service, while also navigating the severe disruption caused by the pandemic.

His journey offers a useful lesson for aspiring entrepreneurs: sustainable differentiation comes from understanding customers, solving real problems, and delivering value consistently.

For Lushescapes, the goal is not simply to help people visit destinations, but to create journeys that remain memorable long after travellers return home.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Abhishek Dadlani?

Abhishek Dadlani is an entrepreneur who founded Lushescapes, a company specialising in bespoke luxury holidays and curated travel experiences.

What is Lushescapes?

Lushescapes is a luxury travel company focused on personalised holidays, premium accommodation, and distinctive travel experiences.

When was Lushescapes founded?

Lushescapes was founded in 2007.

What did Abhishek Dadlani do before entering the travel industry?

He worked at Citigroup in India before pursuing his entrepreneurial ambitions in luxury travel.

How did the pandemic affect Lushescapes?

COVID-19 severely disrupted international tourism and affected the company's revenue. Dadlani subsequently described the challenges of maintaining the business and working towards recovery.

What makes bespoke luxury travel different?

Bespoke luxury travel involves tailoring itineraries, accommodation, activities, and services to individual preferences rather than relying solely on standard holiday packages.