Hospitality giant Marriott has big plans for India. Given the massive shortage of hotel rooms in the country -pegged at one room for 12,000 Indians - Marriott feels this is the place to be. So much so, Marriott International's president Arne M Sorenson is back in India just three months after his last visit.
Though revenue from India business is just about one percent of Marriott's total fees, Sorenson says the country is growing faster than many markets around the world. According to him, with the new government coming in, there is a lot of optimism surrounding India.
Currently, there are about 28 JW Marriott Hotels operational in India and 52 are still under development. "Our team is currently working on 10-20 more hotels," he told CNBC-TV18.
Ritz-Carlton has one hotel functioning and two are under development. Sorenson says Bulgari is currently under development and the hospitality chain is excited about Courtyard and Fairfield Hotel Properties. Marriott International acquired a 49 percent interest in Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company LLC in April 1995.
Sorenson is excited about Ritz-Carlton property in Bangalore and is eager to open other Ritz-Carlton properties in Mumbai and Delhi.
Below is the verbatim transcript of Arne M Sorenson's interview with CNBC-TV18's Nayantara Rai
Q: What are your plans now?
A: We are going to open a JW Marriott in Mumbai at the JW Sahara at the new terminal which we are very excited about. We are going to have a grand opening on Thursday afternoon and then we are going to fly around a little bit to see some of the other hotels. We have got about 28 hotels open in India and 52 under development.
Q: 52 under development, 28 operational - are you looking to sign on more hotels at the moment or is your plate full with 52?
A: Our plate is never full. We have got a team here that continues to work on probably right now another 10-20 hotels. They won't all come to pass but hopefully many of them will come to pass. We think with the new government in India there is greater optimism here. Hopefully we will see that translates into renewed effort to do some more development.
Q: You have many brands, which are the brands that you are looking at for India?
A: One of the great things about the India story for us has been about the number of brands that are engaged here. We have got Ritz Carlton - one open and two under development, we have got JW Marriot which is an extremely strong brand that is here and then Courtyard and Fairfield, we are also very excited about. Courtyard has 12 open and 18 under development. Fairfield just one open but there are almost 15 under development. Those brands are both sort of in the moderate tier and will provide a great entry point for the new Indian middle class, new travellers for the first time and hopefully they can grow with us in the higher and higher tiers of the marketplace.
Q: Where is the Bulgari one coming up and by when?
A: Bulgari is in Mumbai and hopefully we will have one in Maldives too.
Q: If you look at the supply in India it is very small, like it is one hotel room for 12000 people. Where does Marriott group feature into all of this because you have an asset light strategy as well? How many rooms are you targeting let's say over the next 5-10 years?
A: We would like to open these 52 hotels that are under development. So, that would get us to about 80 with hotels that are already open. Hopefully we will do another 10-20 hotels every year that we sign and will be entering into our system. I think in the fullness of time, we got to see brands like Fairfield and Courtyard each with well over a 100 hotels in India and hopefully we will see the higher end develop too. I think that will depend a little bit on the economic strength, not just being anticipated but being a reality.
Q: Revenues from India right now must be a drop in the ocean?
A: The revenues from India for us today are about 1 percent of our total fees. However, India is growing faster than many markets around the world. So, we will see that 1 percent grow meaningfully.
Q: What has the response to the Ritz Carlton been? You have one right now operational in Bangalore.
A: It has been great. It took a few years longer than we anticipated to get that hotel open and finished but it is open and finished and we are excited with the product that has come out. We are eager to open the next couple, we have got one in Mumbai, we have got one in Delhi that are both in the works and will open soon. We think the future for that brand here too is very strong.
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