Reflections: J.W. Marriott Jr.

By Staff -- HOTELS Magazine, 8/1/2006

J.W. Marriott Jr., chairman, Marriott International

I remember when we opened our first hotel in 1957. Back then, our company was known as Hot Shoppes Inc., and we were primarily a foodservice company with more than 70 Hot Shoppes drive-in restaurants in operation. But the lure of the hotel business was great. We decided to embark on a new adventure.

In January 1957, we opened the 365-room Marriott Motor Hotel in Arlington, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. We wanted this hotel to be like no other, so we introduced a few novel concepts. Guests registered at a drive-up window and were then led to their rooms by guides on bicycles. The hotel had a barber shop, beauty shop, gas station and 335-seat Hot Shoppe Restaurant, while guestrooms boasted air conditioning and free radio and television in every room. My entire family was up half the night painting and hanging pictures so the hotel would be ready for its grand opening the next day.

Nearly a decade later, when the first issue of HOTELS magazine was published in 1966, Marriott was still a tiny presence in the hotel industry. That year, we managed to open just our fifth and sixth Marriott Motor Hotels in Atlanta, Georgia, and Saddle Brook, New Jersey—to go along with our two in the D.C. area, and one in Dallas and Philadelphia.

Over the 40 years that HOTELS magazine has served our industry, much has changed—and continues to change as we enter a new era in travel. We are seeing a consolidation of lodging companies across the industry. Competition has never been more intense as the major companies aggressively expand their portfolios around the world. Most of the major chains have launched limited- or select-service brands to appeal to customers at all levels. Some of us have used our years of hotel experience to build the timeshare industry into one of the most exciting and profitable hospitality segments today. Electronic reservations systems, frequent traveler programs and revenue management systems are all part of how we do business.

Travelers also are changing, and growing in geographic origination. As middle classes develop in India, China and Eastern Europe, millions of new travelers are beginning to explore the world. There are huge changes going on in our customer base as Baby Boomers begin to retire and Gen Xers come into their own. We are also seeing a revolution in rising expectations—guests who demand the most, the best, the latest, and who expect to get it every time they stay at a hotel. We are responding to these trends and demographics by introducing new and innovative products, services and technologies, both in the guestrooms and behind the scenes, that are changing the way people define a great hotel experience.

Opening that first motor hotel in 1957 was a daunting decision. No one in my family had ever run a hotel before. But we have never looked back. Today, Marriott has nearly 2,800 hotels and resorts around the world, and I can safely say that there is no other business I would rather be in. It has been an exciting, challenging, eye-opening adventure, and I look forward to seeing what is around the next corner.

I want to thank HOTELS magazine for taking the ride with us, for educating us, for informing us, for being a key voice for our industry over the past 40 years. Congratulations on your anniversary, and best wishes for many more years of success.