Marriott invests in India's Concept Hospitality to start a new hotel brand

US hospitality chain Marriott International Inc. has acquired a minority stake in India's Concept Hospitality, which operates brands like the Fern Hotels and Resorts, to launch a new hotel series, it announced on Thursday.

It will first integrate The Fern into its new brand and could later include the Concept's other brands as well. The Mumbai-based company, which has 84 operational hotels, 31 hotels in the pipeline, and 8,000 rooms in total, will continue to manage these hotels.

Mint first reported in April that the US hospitality giant had earmarked about $15 million for the deal and valued Concept Hospitality at $100 million.  

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Concept Hospitality—backed by the Nepalese multinational CG Corp Global, which also owns the Wai Wai noodles brand in India—operates 84 hotels across the country under six brands, including The Fern and The Zinc.

Marriott International, the company behind hotels JW Marriott, Westin, W and other brands, is the largest hotel chain in India by the number of rooms, according to a 2024 report by the hotel industry consultant Hotelivate. As of August 2024, when this report was written, Marriott had more than 24,000 rooms in India. Its closest rival, Indian Hotels Co. Ltd (IHCL) of the Tata group, had over 21,000 rooms.

The report added that around 35% of the country's branded hotel supply, or branded hotel rooms like these, comes from publicly listed firms. While Marriott International itself is unlisted in India, it partners with listed hotel owners like Chalet Hotels Ltd and Samhi Hotels Ltd in India. 

It had earlier announced it planned to increase its room count to 50,000 over the next three to five years, aiming to operate 250-300 hotels in the country. In 2024, it signed contracts for 42 new hotels in South Asia, including India, adding about 7,000 pipeline rooms. The company operates about 171 hotels in South Asia, with 158 of them in India, which now have close to 30,000 rooms.

The new brand will have no-frills rooms—“well-priced” lodging with a focus on essentials and basic, clean stays, the company said. It will also become a part of Marriott Bonvoy, the company's loyalty programme.

The exception deal

Rajeev Menon, president, Asia Pacific excluding China, Marriott International, told Mint that this growth will help the company expand into the secondary and tertiary markets.

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 “This is a one-off exception deal, in the sense that Marriott does strategically invest in companies and has only a handful of hotels around the world where we have some kind of investment. We had done this in the past with our Autograph Collection Hotels elsewhere in the world and built some hotels which we later sold.”

“We see an incredible opportunity for growth here and not just necessarily in premium or luxury brands, but in the space where it's approachable, accessible,” he added.

“This will allow us to amplify our reach as The Fern brand is expected to benefit not only from the loyalty programme and a global distribution system, but also from strategic growth opportunities,” added Binod Chaudhary, chairman of CG Corp Global.

The hotel giant is also in talks with hotel owners in regions including the US, Caribbean, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East about adding more properties to this new brand.

India-first global brand 

The new partnership is being seen as a move to scale operations more quickly in India’s competitive and fast-growing hospitality market, where demand is rising for mid-scale and upscale hotels. 

India has about 200,000 branded hotel rooms, and the number is expected to grow to 300,000 by 2030, according to a report by hospitality consultancy Horwath HTL.

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This investment marks a change in strategy for Marriott in India, where international hotel companies have generally focused on managing rather than owning properties. 

Other than Marriott, only a few international hotel groups, including the owners of Hyatt Hotels and French hospitality major Accor, have acquired direct stakes in Indian hotels. 

Hyatt Hotels holds a stake in India through Juniper Hotels, which went public in 2024. Accor and InterGlobe Enterprises together started InterGlobe Hotels in 2004.