Group bookings still a big growth driver for Marriott in 2024

Hotel chain Marriott International (MAR) has set its sights on hitting major growth figures this year, expecting a 3 to 5% rise in worldwide revenue growth and 5.5 to 6% in net growth in its full-year guidance.

Marriott International CEO and President Anthony Capuano chatted with Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi about the kind of growth the hotel operator wants to see in corporate group bookings, specifically around the 2024 election season and in China.

"In the first quarter, we were up 6% year-over-year. We're approaching double-digit growth as we look into the back half of the year," Capuano says, going on to comment on Marriott's presence in the Chinese market.

Watch Brian Sozzi's full interview with Mariott International CEO Anthony Capuano.

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This post was written by Luke Carberry Mogan.

Video transcript

Group bookings have been very important.

Very strong Marriott.

What do they look like into the back half of the year in front of the election?

So in the first quarter, we were up uh 6% year over year, we're uh approaching double digit uh growth uh as we look into the back half of the year.

Uh And I was, this is anecdotal, but I was just at an event we hold every year called the Association Masters.

We had about 400 Association meeting planners and it was fascinating almost to a person.

Their frustration was finding dates and space.

Uh They were saying to our teams, can we book 78, 10 years out 10 years?

I, I know it's uh it's remarkable but what it speaks to is the strength of that group demand.

Uh You're a world traveler.

Uh You, you're just, you're basically live out of a, out of a suitcase since we last spoke, the Biden administration, put new tariffs on China when you go to China and talk to your customers over there.

How are American companies viewed?

Are they getting concerned about any potential change in the White House?

Well, it's, it's um I was in China just a couple of months ago.

Uh us political scene is about the only topic anybody wanted to talk about.

I wanted to talk about demand.

I wanted to talk about ways to get inside the room with.

They all wanted to talk about uh you know, my perspective on the election um as we've discussed in the, in the past, one of the really great things about our China business, which is our second biggest market.

We have a little over 500 operating hotels, another 400 in the pipeline.

Almost the entirety of that portfolio is Chinese owned.

And so it is um I think it insulates us a little bit from some of the friction that exists between the two governments.

They self confidence in the US, they do.

It's good to hear.

All right, Marriott, Anthony Capuano.

Good to see you.

Good luck with the Hospitality Week.

All right, appreciate it.