Marriott CEO Interview: Buying Starwood and Its $13 Billion Bet on Loyalty
Photo Credit: Pictured: Le Meridien New Orleans. Marriott's long and winding road to buying Starwood is finally complete. Now, it'll have to figure out how to succeed as the world's largest hotel company. Marriott International
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That didn't take too long now, did it? In all seriousness, however, this mega-merger was certainly a long one in the making, filled with plenty of twists and turns. Now, we hope, comes the even more interesting part in the next chapter of the story.
Marriott International can finally breathe a collective sigh of relief, having officially purchased its former rival, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, for roughly $13 billion, nearly a year after the deal was first announced last November.
According to the terms of the deal, Starwood's shareholders receive $21 and 0.8 shares of Marriott for each share of Starwood stock. With Marriott's stock closing on Sept. 22 at $69.75 per share, that amounts to $76.80 per share of Starwood.
The CEO of Marriott, the former CEO of Starwood, and More Are Speaking at Skift Global Forum 2016. Join Us.
And to mark the creation of the world's largest hotel operator, with 30 brands and more than 1.1 million rooms in more than 5,700 hotels in 110 countries worldwide, Marriott has announced some big news related to its loyalty program.
Beginning today, members of both Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) can now link their accounts, something not often announced when travel co
