Marriott International is gearing up to bring to India two more of its global brands.

The hospitality major’s upper upscale brand Tribute Portfolio, for those seeking fresh travel experiences, is to be inaugurated later this year. The other is Delta Hotels by Marriott, a Canadian brand acquired three years ago, is the other upscale brand, targeted at the frequent traveller.

India is a key market for Marriott International with the presence of 15 of the company’s 30 brands with 108 hotels in 32 cities with over 21,000 rooms.

“W Hotel Goa was the brands we introduced in India. We will soon launch Tribute Portfolio in Kochi followed by Delta Hotels by Marriott in Goa,” Mike Fulkerson, Marriott’s Vice-President, Brand & Marketing, Asia-Pacific, told BusinessLine .

“JW Marriott has created the most positive impression in India. However, there is some confusion between JW Marriott and Marriott brands, and we are working to clear that,” he said.

Pointing out that Courtyard by Marriott has been performing well, Fulkerson said that “the brand that is really exploding in terms of openings and pipeline is Fairfield by Marriott, the entry level portfolio that caters to the growing middle-class population. We already have 12 Fairfields here and will open more.”

Asked what the parameters for introducing a brand are, given that the company already has 15 brands in the country, he said: “It’s a complex process involving many factors. Part of it is the market condition, part of it our partner-owners’ level of investment, how many other brands there are in the market, the demand dynamics... ”

The company hopes to end this year with 20 new hotels with a focus on the secondary and tertiary markets.

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