MKG Consulting's ranking of the world's hotel groups based on the number of rooms available for sale confirms American dominance, with 4 US companies in the Top 10, Chinese dynamism with the best growth rates, and European resilience, despite a one-place drop for European champion Accor.
The first overall conclusion to be drawn from the MKG Consulting Top 10 results for 2014 is the resumption of growth momentum on already substantial inventories. There has been no decline in the number of rooms, even if the major franchisors are still experiencing serious variations. The balance of entries and exits is positive, which also confirms the trend for establishments to display a brand name, which can facilitate marketing in a highly competitive world.
Marriott International remains the undisputed leader among global hotel groups since its merger with Starwood Hotels. It maintains a serious gap of nearly 250,000 rooms with its immediate Chinese rival, the Jin Jiang Group.
However, Chinese performance should not be underestimated, with two champions posting the highest growth rates in the Top 10: Jin Jiang (+7.7%) and above all H World, ex-Huazhu, which increased its inventory by almost 13%. The former closes the gap on Marriott, while the latter manages to overtake Accor to move up to 6th place.
Accor Group had to face the consequences of its diminishing inventory in France and Germany
Accor, whose net increase in the number of rooms is among the lowest, is suffering from a decline in the number of rooms in its core markets of France and Germany, which has not been sufficiently offset by growth in other markets.
At the bottom of the rankings, China's BTH Hotels and India's Oyo still remain well behind. We await the updated 2024 figures for Oyo, which is continuing to restructure its portfolio. After losing a huge number of members to its networks during the health crisis, it is rebuilding its inventory more slowly.
Hilton Hotels, which remains in 3rd place on January 1, 2024, boasts the largest pipeline in the global industry (462,000 rooms already signed) and is multiplying its acquisitions to tap new niches with Graduate Hotels and, more recently, Sydell Group's NoMad. Let's see if that could change the ranking next year!
IHG, the second-largest group of European origin, holds on well to 4th place and will soon join the club of room millionaires. Wyndham Hotel Group remains in 6th place, having successfully countered the aggressive takeover bid by Choice International, which would have been happy to take the world crown from Marriott by adding the two parks together.