Marriott International is all set to touch the 1,000 hotel mark in the Asia Pacific region by 2020. Currently, the group operates close to 650 properties across the region, with 100 in India. In 2018, the group is all set to add 16 hotels to its inventory in India.
Speaking about the overall growth, Ramesh Daryanani, Vice President, Global Sales- Asia Pacific (excluding Greater China), Marriott International said, “Globally, we had a tremendous year, we exceeded analyst forecast on our business results. Which was showcased in the stock value, before the integration we were at US$66, we closed the year with around US$144 which showcases the confidence and the results we have been able to deliver. In India we had a significant year, we were able to grow shares in double digits. We had record occupancies and we delivered against our expectations. Also we opened 17 hotels last year. So we now have 100 hotels in India.”
Speaking about the pipeline he further said, “We have around 16 hotels coming up in India. We have got a very strong pipeline. Across Asia Pacific we have 650 hotels and the plan is to take that to 1000 hotels by 2020. Pipeline looks healthy and we are seeing new deals coming and also conversions happening of existing hotels. We are also seeing standalone hotels want to plug into the Marriott engine. So we are seeing some positive interest from the owner community.”
Last year after the implementation of GST and post demonetisation, a lot of hospitality players witnessed a dip in the MICE segment and also the weddings segment. “MICE business has comeback, there was an initial lull because of GST, licence issue, etc. But I think the business is back in most cases. MICE is a significant part of our business. We continue to innovate in this space and deploy correctly in this market. India is a high touch market driven by relationship; innovations will differentiate us from our competitors. With the launch of Meetings Imagined, we have redefined this space. Weddings are coming back big time. We had a workshop on weddings and the introduction of ‘Shaadi by Marriott’ is a testimony to the fact that wedding is one of the most emerging segments in the industry and we see opportunity. We do weddings both domestically and internationally where Indians are travelling for destination weddings like Thailand, Abu Dhabi and parts of Europe are seeing a lot of Indian weddings.”
Currently there are 15 of the Marriott Brands in India. The group is now exploring to introduce newer brands in this market like the Moxy. This brand is now predominantly present in US and Europe.
Speaking about the development Daryanani said, “We are planning to bring Moxy brand to India. We are in discussion with a few players here. We launched the Moxy in Osaka and this brand has been received extremely well.”
Majority of the hospitality chains are witnessing a growth and demand for the mid segment brands in India. Also, the luxury segment is picking up rapidly in the India market. Globally, Marriott is all set to introduce 40 luxury properties in 2018. He further said, “There is opportunity across all segments in India, for the budget we have opened seven Fairfield by Marriott last year. But at the same time we have opened several luxury properties in India with JW Marriott Jaipur, W Goa. We are seeing significant demand in the luxury space as well. We will open 40 luxury hotels around the world in 2018. We are also launching the Ritz Carlton Yachts, the first yacht will be sailing in 2019 and we are already seeing some great demand for it. It’s being built right now, but bookings have started.”
The group has also introduced Mobile Check-ins in certain properties and is working to integrate it in APAC region as well. Also, last year Club Marriott was launched in India market, which is an additional benefit for its client base. Daryanani said, “We have mobile check-in in our hotels even in India, as for integration we are integrating our on property systems and also our loyalty programme. By end of this year we will have one loyalty programme globally. Recently, we have partnered with Alibaba which itself will load a couple of million members. We are looking at more partnerships across the region.”
