Marriott Corporation

John Willard Marriott founded his first hospitality venture a nine-seat A&W root beer in May 1927 outlet in Washington, DC.

The Marriott root-beer stand evolved into a family restaurant chain called Hot Shoppe which offered a full menu and car hop service.

Later Hot Shoppes expanded into in-flight airline catering in 1937. Hot Shoppe became international company by purchasing an ailine-catering kitchen in Venezuela.

In 1957 Marriott went public and in the same year that the company began branching out into other areas of the hospitality industry.

Marriott opened his first hotel in that year in Arlington, Virginia.

Between 1975 and 1984, Marriott increased its room capacity from 14,000 units to more than 60000 units. Rapid expansion caused the company to become truly international, with operations in twenty-six countries by the mid-1980s.

Marriott was the first company to develop a joint venture hotel in Warsaw, Poland.

In May 1995, Marriott made a strategic move by obtaining a 49 percent stake in the famous Ritz-Carton brand.

In early 1997, Marriott International acquired Renaissance Hotels to further its global development.
Marriott Corporation