A Race To Check-In India's Deal Makers

Marriott International, which acquired Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide in 2016, is the world’s largest hotel operator. In March, it opened its 100th hotel in India—in Bengaluru. Fortune India spoke to Arne Sorenson, president and CEO of Marriott International, to understand what about India attracts the company. 

- Gauri Chauhan

VENTURE What major plans do you have for India?

We are likely to go from 100 to 200 in a handful of years. We have about 50 more hotels that have been signed and are under development. This doesn’t mean that all are under physical construction; some are in the permitting process. Our team has got another 50 or so that are in discussions... So that gives you a sense where the growth is coming from in the next few years.

How important is India and what are the drivers of growth?

India is a big economy and with a large population. Travel is business travel as well as tourism. Business travel is more important in some respect than tourism. A majority of our business is domestic Indian travel. The most important driver of growth and demand in that area will be the strength of the Indian economy because it will drive business travel and because the strength of the business economy will drive leisure travel as people would like to take vacations. So the first thing is about policies, which are about growing GDP.