Hospitality chain Marriott International is betting big on India and plans to further expand in the country. The US-headquartered hospitality chain plans to have around 25,000 rooms in India by the end of 2019. In addition, it aims to add another 15,000 rooms in the next five years in India, the second largest market for the group in the Asia Pacific region after Greater China.
The group already has around 120 hotels across different portfolio of brands currently operating in India, including the high-end luxury brand Ritz Carlton in Bengaluru and Pune. The group has also tied up with Bengaluru-based real estate major Prestige Group to open six new hotels across India.
Under the agreement, Marriott will be adding around 1,000 rooms across its four brands W, JW Marriott, Tribute Portfolio and Moxy. Many new hotels would be added such as the W Bengaluru, Tribute Portfolio Hotel Kochi Maradu, JW Marriott Bengaluru Prestige Golfshire Resort and Spa, and Moxy Chennai and Bengaluru that are expected to open between 2021 and 2025. Marriott is also bringing its brand Moxy for the first time in India. Moxy will target the next generation millennial travelers with various offerings, including social spaces, playful services and technology-enabled guest rooms.
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“Last year we had launched our 100th hotel in India with the opening of the Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield. We have also been one of the major job creators in the hospitality segment in India and with this tie up with the Prestige Group, we would be adding around 1,000 new jobs in the market. Besides Prestige, we also have tie-ups with other groups in the country such as the Rahejas and Reddys, etc. We see huge growth in the domestic outbound tourism and growing leisure travel in India,” said Rajeev Menon, president, Asia Pacific (excluding Greater China), Marriott International, while announcing the tie-up.
Chairman and Managing Director of Prestige Group, Irfan Razack, observed that the hotel industry in India is projected to be worth Rs 1,210 billion by 2023. “The hospitality segment is witnessing an upward trend across the mid-scale, upscale and luxury segments. Measures such as GST reduction from 28 per cent to 18 per cent for premium and luxury hotels, reduction of corporate tax and UDAN—the regional airport development and regional connectivity scheme aimed at making air travel affordable—will further help the sector. We are planning an investment of around Rs 350 crore towards this tie-up over the next 3-5 years,” said Razack.
The hospitality chain Marriott International has a portfolio of more than 7,200 properties under 30 brands across 134 countries. On the other hand, the Prestige Group is spread across 12 different locations in the country and has completed 241 projects with developable area of 125 million square feet.
