Marriott International is hoping to attract Chinese tourist to their favorite destinations, such as Japan. Image Credit: Ritz-Carlton
Global hospitality group Marriott International is partnering with Chinese ecommerce platform Alibaba's Tmall in an effort to reach more than 500 million annual active users in the competitive Chinese market.
On July 28, Marriott will become the first hospitality brand to participate in Tmall Super Brand Day. Unique hotel packages were specifically designed with Chinese travelers in mind and feature properties from brands including the St. Regis and The Ritz-Carlton.
“Partnering with Tmall is a smart move by Marriott,” said Renee Hartmann, cofounder of China Luxury Advisors. “Tmall is an ecommerce powerhouse and provides a new avenue for the hotel [group] to engage and sell travel experiences to Chinese consumers”
Super Day offers
Marriott International first announced its joint venture with Alibaba Group last year.
The collaboration draws on the partners’ expertise and reach, creating a link between their respective loyalty programs while also joining up to run Marriott’s store on Fliggy. Alibaba is also helping Marriott properties launch programs and offers targeted to the Chinese audience (see story).
"Alibaba increasingly focuses on the travel sector though its popular Fliggy online travel agency platform (OTA) and promoting Alipay mobile payment acceptance internationally," Ms. Hartmann said.
Marriott’s Super Brand Day with Tmall is the latest product of this partnership.
St. Regis properties will be featured in Marriott's Super Brand Day event. Image credit: St. Regis
Launched in 2015, Super Brand Day allows brands to offer special experiences, promotions and flash sales during a 24-hour window. The theme for Marriott’s Super Brand Day is “Boundless Experiences, Extraordinary Travels.”
Among Marriott’s Super Brand Day offerings is a limited-edition “Black Card.”
Black Card holders will be able to enjoy unique, curated experiences through Marriott. Image credit: St. Regis
Cardholders can travel to five of the most popular destinations for Chinese travelers: Thailand, Japan, the Maldives, United Kingdom and United States. The Luxury Collection, Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis are some of the brands included in these travel packages.
During their trips, travelers can experience exclusive, curated activities such as private helicopter tours, personal shopping services and artisanal workshops. Cardholders can also work with travel consultants to arrange trip details.
Chinese hospitality
Attracting Chinese affluents is becoming more important for luxury hospitality brands.
A rebounding Chinese economy means more disposable income for travelers.
On average, travel spending is up 40 percent year-over-year. Sixty percent of Chinese tourists plan to travel to a new country in the next year, and 49 percent plan on traveling within Asia (see story).
Luxury hotel groups also continue to invest within China with new hotel openings.
Bulgari Hotels & Resorts has officially opened its doors in the Suhe Creek area of Shanghai. This marks the second Chinese hotel for Bulgari, joining its Beijing location that opened last September (see story).
Marriott International also has a strong presence in China with several properties.
This spring, the Ritz-Carlton, Macau and JW Marriott celebrated their third anniversary in the South China region, with special culinary experiences and rewards for loyal customers. Both owned by Marriott, the two resorts opened their doors together in Macau, China in 2015 (see story).
By continuing its partnership with Alibaba, Marriott will also remain at the forefront of Chinese consumers' minds.
"Tmall is a great way for travel brands to access Alibaba’s large audience in China and use Tmall's robust marketing campaigns to stand apart from competitors," Ms. Hartmann said.