San Francisco—The
buzzword at Marriott International's 2007 Full Service General Managers
Conference was "connectivity." The conference, which concludes
Tuesday, was held at the San Francisco Marriott and Travel Agent was on hand to
witness the new developments Marriott International will deliver across its variety
of brands in the months and years to come. The company is heading into its 80th
year and its 50th as a lodging company. Marriott Hotels & Resorts, JW
Marriott Hotels & Resorts, and Renaissance Hotels & Resorts will become
the first lodging brands to offer high-definition, LCD TVs with a digital
connectivity panel in all its guest rooms in the U.S.
and Canada.
Using the new plug-in panel, guests can connect a variety of digital devices to
view on the flat panel, high-definition screen, including laptops, camcorders,
digital cameras and video games. The standard 32-inch TVs also are equipped
with a 25-watt stereo speaker system so guests can listen to music on their MP3
players and iPods—no headphones required. Marriott's new Great Room concept
also was previewed at the conference. The company is introducing extensive
renovations portfolio-wide to renovate, redesign and reinvent its public and
lobby spaces. Look for lobbies to become more customer-friendly, as evidenced
by the 5–10–20 minute concept, which addresses the various eating, socializing
and meeting needs of guests. In addition to décor and interior design, the
Great Room concept will use lighting and scent to bring the space to life. The
Great Room will have both social zones and individual zones, with plenty of
opportunities for guests to plug in and stay connected outside their rooms. It
was noted that 50-plus years ago, the hotel lobby was a central meeting place.
Over the years, this changed into the hotel lobby being something to traverse
on the way to one's room. The Great Room concept is at least partly an attempt
to regain these past glory years of the hotel lobby. Last year, Marriott
International went smoke-free in its U.S hotels. When asked if the company
would continue this initiative worldwide, Robert J. McCarthy, president, global
brand management and North American lodging operations, Marriott International,
Inc. said, "We're taking it on a country by country basis. We're talking
with Australia, New Zealand
and certain European countries. Smoke-free isn't a concern for emerging countries."
The company also announced plans to renovate fitness centers, making them 60
percent larger on average than current facilities. In other news, Marriott
International declared it joined forces with Clean Up the World, a leading
global environmental organization with 35 million volunteers in 120 countries.
Marriott International launched the new partnership with a Save the Bay
clean-up effort involving more than 50 Marriott general managers. Travel Agent
dug in side by side with the GMs, planting over 300 seedlings in an effort to
reclaim the bay for indigenous plants. According to Charles W. Linaburg,
director of community relations and corporate projects for Marriott
International, look for the company to develop its community efforts as options
for corporate team-building clients and meetings groups. In a changing world,
various executives noted the tremendous profits from bookings online. The
hotel's web site accounted for over $4 billion in bookings in 2006. It also was
noted how important the growing outbound China market (currently 300 million
travelers) was to the future growth of the company. When asked how these
developments would affect U.S.-based travel agents, Michael E. Jannini,
executive vice president and general manager of global brand strategy and
innovation for Marriott responded that the rates on the company's web site are
identical to the rates presented to travel agents, and that full integrity
between the two will remain. It was later noted that travel agents are
responsible for 30 percent of Marriott's transient bookings, and that the
bookings on the web site for the most part represent a customer shift from
booking over the toll-free number, to booking on the web site. Visit [www.marriott.com].
