'My father JW Marriott Jr thrilled our 10,000th property has come up in India in his lifetime:' David Marriott

NEW DELHI: India will soon be the third biggest market in terms of presence for the world’s largest hospitality company — Marriott International, — overtaking Mexico and be behind only the giant’s home country, US, and China. David Marriott, chairman of the board of Marriott International, said India’s importance can be gauged from the fact that the company opened its landmark 10,000th property here, in Ranthambore.

“My father (chairman emeritus J W Marriott Junior) is 94 and he wanted to be around when we reached that landmark. On Wednesday, after the inauguration I called and told him ‘it’s done’. In India, and that too a JW Marriott — a brand named after his father. He was thrilled. To top it up, this happened on the birth anniversary of my mother Donna Garff Marriott who we lost last Dec. It was an emotional moment for us both from the company and a personal perspective,” David Marriott told TOI here Thursday.

India’s rising economic might and the burgeoning middle class has made Marriott bullish on India. “Almost 40% of people flying to India (and other parts of Asia from the west) do so via the Middle East. That has slowed down inbound. The good news is local travellers are changing their trip destinations and staying largely within the country. They are not staying home but still hitting the road. Except the Middle East, the impact has been manageable,” David said.

Rajeev Menon, Marriott’s president (Asia Pacific, excluding China) gave the impact seen in India and the neighbourhood. “Right as the conflict started we saw lot of cancellations as 42% of inbound travel to India comes from somewhere in the Middle East. In March, the first full month, we were projecting double digit revenue per available room (Revpar) growth) in India. That turned negative. Then we saw people pivoting. Travel didn’t stop and plans go shifted. In April, Revpar growth shifted from flat to marginally positive and last month we were back to double digit growth. This month looks exactly the same and forward bookings are pretty strong,” Menon said.

The company has 6,000 hotels in the US, followed by 700 in China, just under 300 in Mexico and 220 in India. Given the pipeline in India, the country will shortly overtake Mexico. Given the rising might of outbound travel from India, all hospitality majors are focussing on targeting them during their visits abroad with things like the focussed menus.

“India has an incredible hospitality culture, one of the finest in the world. We have taken a large number of professionals from India (to work in properties abroad) and now that we are on our way to have 300 plus hotels here, they are coming back to work here in their home country,” David said.

When the war ends, how will the industry look like? “The way we bounced back post the pandemic, travel will be back. And stronger than before,” David said.

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