In 1957 Bill Marriott was a 25-year-old former navy officer urging
his entrepreneur father to give him a shot at revitalizing the family's
first hotel, outside Washington D.C.
Fast forward 55 years and
as executive chairman of Marriott International, Bill Marriott has
built a world-renowned, multi-billion dollar hotel chain.
Back when Marriott got
involved with the D.C. hotel the 365-room facility was an
under-performing part of his family's business portfolio, which then
primarily consisted of restaurants and food stalls.
"My father was a
restaurateur and he didn't really understand the (hotel) side ... of the
business," Marriott told CNN's Richard Quest.
"I
started focusing on what would make this hotel successful," he added.
"All of a sudden, I figured out we'd make more money in the hotel
business than we would ever make in the restaurant business."
In more than half a
century in the industry, Marriott, now 80, has built a hotel empire of
more than 3,700 properties. When it comes to changes in a fast-moving
business, Marriott has seen it all.
When he started out in
the 50s, Marriott was a single brand. These days, the industry is
characterized by segmentation, with hotel corporations producing
ever-more niche brands.
"In 1981 we had a lot of big box city hotels
... someone said we are going to run out of great locations where we can
build these hotels, we've got to do something to build the company --
let's go and build a hotel for the business man."
The result? In 1983 Marriott introduced its Courtyard brand.
Bill Marriott
"We built a 150-room
Courtyard in the suburbs of Atlanta," Marriot told Quest. "It was
tremendously successful, so then we just started cranking out these
Courtyards. They didn't have a lot of services -- limited restaurant
menu, no bellman, no room service, no parking attendants -- but it was a
low price for a great room."
The Marriott portfolio
now comprises 18 different hotel brands, including Ritz-Carlton and
Fairfield Inn, which target different types of traveler, be they
businesspeople, families, or budget travelers. And he believes there's
room for more brands.
"We've just added AC
Hotels in Europe and Autograph Collection (a series of Marriott-owned
independent hotels) two years ago ... so we've got a lot of stuff going
on," he said.
And whereas once it may
have been enough to simply provide hotel guests with a clean,
comfortable place to sleep for the night, today's customers demand more
individual attention.
"If somebody asks the
best place to have dinner, we know where that is," said Marriott. "The
best place to get an Armani bag? We know where that is. Where is the
best place to go sightseeing? We are interested in taking care of your
visit."
Marriott says the
biggest change he has seen in the last 20 years is the focus on the
international market. In 1969 Marriott opened its first international
hotel in Acapulco, Mexico. It now has facilities in 73 countries and
territories around the world.
Marriott said he first realized the true importance of the international market when his company expanded into Asia.
"We
went into Hong Kong in 1989 ... I had a feeling we had to be in Asia,
we had to be over there. There was growth coming," he said.
"I went to China in 1979
-- there was nothing but Mao suits on bicycles, no cars, everybody wore
the same clothing -- but we could start to see glimmers of interest."
Today there are 171
Marriott hotels operating in Asia and a further 85 in the pipeline,
mirroring the region's rise to economic prominence during the same
period.
Marriott highlighted one
final change in the hotel industry over the last 20 years, one that
reflects a huge change in society as a whole: the prevalence of
technology.
"We continually fight
the battle (for) more broadband, better access," he said. "Technology is
very, very important. Thirty percent of our reservations come through
the internet. We are in the top eight or nine purveyors on the
internet."
Marriott has recently stepped down as CEO
and taken up the more hands-off position of executive chairman, passing
on day-to-day control of the company to former president and COO Arne
Sorenson. But Marriott's not about to give up all of his influence over
the company he built.
"It's my life, it's my vocation," he said of his work over the last 55 years.
"I don't play golf, I don't have a yacht. I work and I visit hotels ... it's in my DNA," he said.