Marriott Investor Call: This Is What We Have in Store for Starwood
Photo Credit: Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson prepares for a TV interview. He spoke today from Havana, Cuba about his company's improved bid for Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Marriott International / Marriott
Skift Take
This is assuming Marriott and Starwood actually close their deal this year, which, given what's happened over that past week, is still not a sure thing, obviously.
Now that it appears the Marriott-Starwood merger agreement is back on, Marriott held a call for investors this morning, talking primarily about the new deal's terms, with CEO Arne Sorenson calling in from Cuba where he is traveling with U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker during President Obama's historic visit.
Also included in that call were some clues as to what might happen to Starwood and Marriott, should their new deal go through and they do eventually become the world's largest hotel company.
In short, Marriott likes the fact that Starwood has a strong group of loyal customers, many of which are affluent travelers and Millennials. And for its part, Marriott believes the strength of its group sales network, customer database, strong corporate account business, and both domestic and international mid-market accounts make its new offer an attractive one for Starwood.
Here are some highlights:
The Loyalty Programs
Initially, the Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred
