Marriott on Thursday became the first international hotel chain to launch a brand in India. Called ‘Series by Marriott’, the brand will have a collection of hotels in partnership with Concept Hospitality (CHPL) which runs properties under ‘The Fern’ brand. Rajeev Menon, president, Asia Pacific (excluding China), Marriott International, in an interview with Swaraj Baggonkar, shared the company’s focus and expansion plans in India. Excerpts:
What really is ‘Series by Marriott’?
This is a global soft launch for ‘Series by Marriott’ in the midscale-to-upscale segment. And with that we are announcing the founding deal with Concept Hospitality. This will allow ‘The Fern’ brand to affiliate with ‘Series by Marriott’. The Fern has a legacy of over 30 years with good reputation, excellent distribution. There is immense opportunity to further grow it.
How many properties does Marriott have in India?
Marriott operates 158 hotels and there is a pipeline of another 112 across 17 brands. We saw an opportunity in the midscale and upscale space in the form of The Fern where we do not have any representation.
Does this make Marriott the largest hotel company in India?
Marriott has always been the largest by a long shot in terms of number of rooms because we have around 30,000 of them. We have another 20,000 rooms in the pipeline. So the total number of operational properties with us is 158 and there will be 84 of The Fern.
Can you share details of the agreement?
Marriott has made a small equity investment in Concept Hospitality because we see incredible opportunity for growth in this segment. They now have the powerhouse distribution system of Marriott along with the largest loyalty programme, Marriott Bonvoy.
Will Fern hotels be re-branded as Marriott?
Our intention is not to take existing Fern properties and change them to our brands. CHPL will continue to operate their hotels. The aim now is to work with the property owners to get them into our system.
When you will have 50,000 operational rooms by 2030, where would India be on Marriott’s global map?
India is well positioned to be the third-largest country for Marriott, after the US and China, in the next 2-3 years. At present, India is fifth in the ranking, behind Mexico and Canada.
What has been the interest from investors, real estate companies towards the hotel segment post pandemic?
Coming out of Covid-19, the recovery has been very strong. Today, clearly there is an experiential economy that’s at play where people are willing to spend extra for that unique experience. We expect this to continue. And as a result, there is a lot of focus by potential investors.
How strong is the demand for branded rooms in India?
The US has north of 5 million hotel rooms, China has 3 million, and Japan has 1.7 million hotel rooms. India has a few hundred thousand rooms. Marriott drives strong double digit RevPar (revenue per available room) growth. In the January-to-March quarter our RevPar growth was 16%.