Milestone for Marriott: 800th Property in Asia Pacific

July 2020, marks another milestone for Marriott International - the opening of JW Marriott Nara in Japan. The company also expects the EDITION and Aloft brands to debut in Japan before the end of the year. Meanwhile, in another addition to the Asia Pacific portfolio for 2020, the Moxy brand anticipates its first hotel opening in China.

Within the last three years, Marriott International has added close to 80 hotels per year just in Asia Pacific, with its pipeline growing by a little below 10 percent annually over this period of time. In the first half of 2020 alone, the company recorded 73 new signings, including 43 in the Greater China region.

Loyal franchise community and confident owners

The annual 20 percent increase in the number of hotel conversions has allowed owners and franchisees to see fast-paced expansion compared to building new hotels from scratch. Moreover, Marriott International has signed off on Singapore’s first two Autograph Collection hotels – Marriott International’s dynamic collection of independent hotels that champions individuality – both anticipated to fly the Autograph Collection brand flag in 2021.

A rise in average disposable income largely accounts for the increased demand for brands like Fairfield and Moxy such that they enjoyed six billion domestic trips made in 2019 in China alone. To meet this growing demand and support franchisees, Marriott International has introduced an “Enhanced Franchise” model. Under this model, Marriott will appoint a general manager for the first year of a hotel’s opening to help train and equip franchisees to leverage Marriott’s powerful systems.

Making guests at home in new destinations

Recently, Marriott International debuted the AC Hotels by Marriott brand in Asia Pacific with three AC by Marriott hotels in Malaysia, and the AC Hotels Tokyo Ginza. AC Hotels by Marriott celebrates the beauty of modern design with its European soul and Spanish roots with hotels that are intuitively designed. Also in Japan and situated on the edge of a 1,300-year-old garden set on former royal palace grounds, the 158-room JW Marriott Nara is the first offering from the JW Marriott brand in the country. Additionally, expected to open by the end of this year, the EDITION Toranomon in Tokyo is slated to be the brand’s debut in the country.

Meanwhile in China, the opening of the Moxy Shanghai Xujiahui this year is expected to be an ideal addition to that vibrant cosmopolitan city. The millennial-focused Moxy brand features lively public spaces, minimalist design elements, and rooms fitted with custom furniture that offers a playful style of traveling.

Cleaning up worldwide

Finally, Marriott International earlier this year established a global cleanliness council to develop and implement a new generation of global hospitality cleanliness standards, norms, and behaviors for its more than 7,400 properties around the globe.