J W Marriott bets on food, weddings and uses data to craft Indian identity

The flagship brand of Marriott International, the J W Marriott group, is reinforcing its focus on food and beverage (F&B) and styling its properties to cater to the uniquely Indian desire for grand weddings in its bid to win over the growing tribe of domestic customers. While adapting to local needs and preferences is not new, the voluminous amount of customer data at its disposal today, as it is in fact with hotels across the world, is helping target localisation efforts more finely. It is also making it easier for JW Marriott to train its lens on millennial travellers. However, given the fickle nature of the industry and the proliferation of local experience-focused hospitality brands in the country, differentiating one’s brand is an arduous task say experts.
 
“In India we need to position F&B extremely well. It is a huge talking point and it is one of the brand’s pillars,” said Neeraj Govil, Area vice president - South Asia, Mariott International. F&B accounts for 45 per cent of the chain’s total revenue in India, encouraging a spate of brand promotions around cuisines across the nine properties in the country. Coming up, is an event called ‘Taste of JW’, which creates a platform for its chefs from all over Asia Pacific. Such initiatives in the past have helped introduce the brand to new customers and created a buzz on social media platforms.
 
F&B as a brand focus is unique to J W Marriott’s Indian properties said Govil, in comparison to Europe. The focus on F&B is not surprising however. The size of the food services market in India (organised and unorganised) was estimated at Rs 3,375 billion in 2017, larger than the pharmaceuticals and FMCG sector in India. It is projected to grow at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 10 per cent over the next five years to reach Rs 5,520 billion by 2022, according to a report by FICCI.
 
The hotel is also keeping an eye on hyper-local traveler trends; airport properties J W Sahar and J W Aerocity for instance, have seen a big spike in the demand for 24/7 spas. People come in at odd hours and want to de-stress and the hotel now provides these. “We have had to adapt and learn as within India itself the nuances are very different,” said Govil. Localisation is a great idea as even airlines such as Lufthansa are doing it, said Harish Bijoor, a Bengaluru-based brand consultant.
 
Another localisation initiative has been the ‘Shadi by Marriott’. “The expectation in India is very different, especially for weddings,” said Govil adding that the hotel has restyled its properties to accommodate their needs. “Huge banquet spaces, bridal rooms attached, you won’t necessarily see in other countries,” Govil said. Also, the wedding feasts are a buffet service in India unlike the sit-down affairs in many European nations, given the number of people attending such occasions in the country. It is also always good to have separate entrances to banquets to ensure minimum disruption to the routine business of the hotel, he points out.
 
The chain is also eager to woo the millennial traveller who wants local experiences and expects personalised attention. Towards that end, the hotel is now banking on the data at its disposal to ensure that hospitality is as much a function of its service as it is of its technology teams. The young traveller is on its mind globally too, as J W Marriott has changed the colour palette for its iconic griffin logo. Khushnooma Kapadia, Area director of Marketing, Mariott International said, “The brand has to appeal to a different subset of customers. Colour palettes and tones have changed to become more relevant, the logo is more digitally savvy too.” Historically, the brand has been black and white, she added but the new palette is grey and pink.
 
As the nature of travel undergoes change, the approach of customers has also changed. The distinction between travelling for business and pleasure has blurred.  “A customer is looking for a bit of fun and local experience even while working,” said Govil. They want to take back a good story and locale becomes an important brand differentiator. It includes everything, from décor, staff and especially F&B.  “Having a great local beer on the menu and good local food is important”, said Govil. Additionally, the percentage of domestic travellers is growing.  “If you looked at this business 10-12 years ago, you’d have more expats and foreigners but now a huge chunk of our customers are domestic,” said Govil.
 
It therefore becomes important not to see India merely as an exotic location. “Our local affiliations have been strong from day one. It has now become more relevant because consumers are becoming more local,” said Govil.  “Every brand is a mix of global and local. People come from outside on the basis of the hotel's global name but they experience the local once they come in,” said Bijoor.
 
However, the line between local and global is a tricky one. Getting more Indian guests does not necessarily mean providing more Indian food, for instance. Here comes the importance of the data. It helps get to know the guests better and tailor an experience around their tastes; that is what J W Marriott hopes to do across its properties in India.