Last summer Marriott announced a new ‘basic’ brand that they were literally calling “mid” as a placeholder name. Now it’s StudioRes.
However, since Marriott now identifies as mid, they needed another brand to carry the moniker: Project Mid-T, a lower-end Fairfield. Under CEO Anthony Capuano, “Marriott” doesn’t need to stand for anything, they just need to prop up room count. And Mid-T is perfect to counteract rooms-growth Low-T.
As a cheap conversion brand, Project Low-T Mid-T will be as easy for owners as taking a pill and waiting 30 minutes.
- They’ll focus on hotel conversions and reusing offices
- Straight 10.5% fees
- Open closet and “work surface” not a desk
- Communal tables with TVs and power strips in the lobby
- Basic fitness facility
- Low-end free breakfast
Rooms for the middle class, as it were, somewhat like the democratization of a Low-T pill going off patent. This is all being driven by high interest rates, because unlimited construction is a ZIRP phenomenon.
Marriott calls Mid-T its 35th brand, since they count non-hotel businesses like the Homes & Villas booking platform a brand. And it fits in a similar space as Hilton’s Spark and IHG’s Garner conversion products.
So like Red Roof Inn and Motel 6?
This new brand won’t even have TVs in guest rooms. Probably no phones either. Can’t wait to see the reports of guests fighting over the communal TV. What next no en-suite bath? How is this any different than a boarding house or hostel?
Jerry Springer is back in spirit here with initiating of “the little blue pill” talk.
Marriott is all into growth of erecting ( 😉 ) low service cost hotels as a way to appeal to real estate investors looking for properties with reduced/low service and maintenance costs so that they can squeeze more money out of the capital investments involved in new hotel development. It’s no coincident Moxy seems to be going where Marriott never went before.
> Probably no phones either.
Hotels are often required by either local regulations or their insurance carriers to install wired phones in guest rooms for safety reasons.
Migrant housing
This is more of an ultra low cost hotel than it is a proper hotel. Marriott is putting hotels everywhere it seems. Sometimes several on the same street. McMarriott is more like it.
Finally somewhere you can (but might not want to) redeem your Bonvoy credit card free nights.
So tired of this endless brand proliferation. It just looks like marketing departments full of freshly minted MBAs justifying their existence.
Full Disclosure: I have an MBA
…because 34 Brands isn’t enough? Oh lord….
I’ll just go stay at a Patel motel, thank you. I’ve been racking up a lot of Fairfield nights over the past year, just because of personal budgets and hotel locations, and keep kicking myself for not staying at a no-name joint for half the price. Fairfields really scrape the bottom of the barrel most of the time.
I assume that a no-frills version of a Fairfied will be a supply closet near the airport to were you bring your own bedding etc.
Do these hotel chains not realize that there are infinitely nicer boutique hotels for the same price, and that the only things keeping us coming back are points and brand loyalty – take away that, and you have an over-priced dump.
How would you like to be the owner of a nice Marriott-branded hotel — a property that does everything right and even punches above brand standards? Marriott is making zero investment in the United States in full-service or luxury hotels. Heck, St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton are now conversion brands. What incentive is there to be a great owner or operator of a Marriott, Sheraton, Westin, etc. when Marriott is willing to ruin the system and portfolio with Motel 6-type properties?
Sounds terrible
I’ll stick with Hilton properties
Every single thing Marriott does makes me miss Starwood more. I haven’t been brand loyal in years now (made it about 6 months post merger) and can’t imagine being stuck with Marriott.