Banyan Tree and Kochi Marriott Partnership

This assignment requires an analysis of a proposed partnership between Banyan Tree Spa and Kochi Marriott Hotel. Students need to examine the potential advantages of this collaboration, considering factors such as access to local market knowledge, customer preferences, and existing infrastructure. Additionally, the assignment calls for an evaluation of potential challenges, including management disputes, profit sharing disagreements, and operational complexities. A well-structured analysis should include both pros and cons, emphasizing the importance of a clear partnership contract to mitigate risks.

Running head: GLOBAL STRATEGY
International Management
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Table of Contents
Modes by which Banyan Tree hotel and Resorts will enter in Indian hotel market........................3
Market entry mode...........................................................................................................................3
Things to keep in mind while entering Indian Hotel Market...........................................................5
Some of the important strategies that are to be followed can be.....................................................6
Business Expansion in India............................................................................................................7
Recommendations............................................................................................................................8
Reference list.................................................................................................................................10

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Modes by which Banyan Tree hotel and Resorts will enter in Indian hotel market
Market entry mode
India is a totally new place for the Banyan Trees spa and Resorts; it will be very
beneficial if they can enter into a joint venture or partnership. This partnership must be with an
already established hotel or chain of hotels in India. So, they can enter into a partnership with
any other local hotel company like the Kochi Marriot Hotel. This will help the Banyan Tree
Hotels to understand and gain a firsthand knowledge about the culture and preference pattern of
the Indian customers. It is with the help of this local hotel company, that some local tourists can
also become a regular customer of the hotel. As Banyan Trees have never had any business
chains opened up in India previously, they will require help in order to know the prevailing
conditions of the Indian hotel market. Apart from knowing the market trends of the Indian hotel
market, a partnership with a local Indian hotel will also enable them to know about the demands
of the local customers. As the Banyan Trees have decided to open up their hotels in Kerala, they
might enter into a partnership with the Kochi Marriot Hotel. This will be very helpful because
Kochi Marriot hotel is a very popular and well-known hotel of Kerala. It is well known not only
for its good customer service but also because of its location. It is centrally located, thus
attracting a large number of tourists both from within Kerala and outside as well. It is located in
the vibrant IT district of Kochi, on the campus of Lulu Mall. So, entering into a partnership with
this hotel will help in increasing the popularity of the Banyan Trees.

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It is a known fact that in order to start their business in India and carry on with it
successfully, they need a good platform. Partnership with Kochi Marriot Hotel will perhaps be a
very good launching pad for their new business idea.
The other advantages that the Banyan Trees Hotels will derive from their partnership
with the Kochi Marriot Hotel are an increased number of customers for the spa and message
activities. As the banyan trees themselves have a good expertise in the spa, this will have an
added advantage for them. Kochi Marriot Hotel has a large number of additional customer
facilities. They are airport shuttle, full-service spa, pool, fitness center. This will naturally be a
great advantage for the banyan trees hotel because they specialize in the spa, massage and fitness
activities. As the Kochi Marriot Hotel itself already has their spa and fitness activities, as a part
of their key amenities, it will be easier for the banyan trees to carry on with their spa sessions as
well. They will not have to spend any extra labor or time and energy to set up a separate spa and
fitness outlet of their own. At the same time, they will also be receiving a detailed description of
all the business tips from the Kochi Marriot Hotel itself. This partnership will be beneficial for
the Banyan Trees Hotels because they will be saved from the time and energy to make a constant
market research on their own. As the Kochi Marriott hotel already has a good established
platform and recognition of their own, they will help the Banyan Trees Hotel in every possible
way.
Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts
This hotel chain comes with a wide range of cozy, comfortable, warm private villas that
are surrounded by beautifully decorated tropic gardens. In the midst of this beautiful pristine
environment, the tourists can enjoy the soothing and calming body massage sessions and spa.

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These are just the things that the modern day tourists are looking for everywhere. Along with all
these facilities, the Banyan Tree resorts and spa chains also take very much care about the fact
that Indians are people with a rich cultural root and also have a great appetite for tradition and
antique things. Keeping this in mind, the Banyan Tree hotels and spa resorts have also added
several galleries and museums that sell the traditional antique items. Apart from this they also
offer retail shops for the tourists to go shopping as and when they feel like. They have almost
every aspect within them that are demanded by the Indian tourists. However, in order to enter
into India, they need to make a thorough market research in order to find out the proper market
entry mode so that they can target the right group of customers and can carry on their business
following the right market strategies.
Things to keep in mind while entering Indian Hotel Market
The most crucial thing that Banyan Tree hotels need to keep in mind while entering India
is that they must stick to what is local and what is unique. In other words, they must always try to
match with the local flavors of the city. They must make a thorough survey of the specific needs
and demands of the local customers and design their hotels accordingly, be it in terms of their
rooms, the gardens and even the cuisines that will be served in the resorts (Lai and Hitchcock
2017).
Some of the important strategies that are to be followed can be
Selecting a proper location
The first and foremost thing that Banyan Tree Hotels must keep in mind is selecting the
location wisely. As they are totally new to India, it will be wise for them to set up their business

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in such a place which is already exposed to local and global tourism and also have a demand for
the goods and services that this hotel has to offer.

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Top quality input materials
As Banyan Tree is mainly a chain of hotels that will offer spa treatment sessions, it is of
utmost importance for them that they must purchase the top quality input materials for all the spa
treatments. It is the place where people will come for soothing their minds and toning up their
body parts, hence no compromise is to be made with the quality of the products. It must be pure,
fresh and totally free from any harmful materials.
Medical Accommodations
As they will excel in spa sessions keeping proper medical aids and dermatologist
facilities on a 24*7 basis is of utmost importance so that proper assistance can be given during
cases of an emergency.
Simplification of the menu structure
As India is a very new place for Banyan Tree Hotels, they must make things simple for
themselves and for themselves and for the customers as well. There must be enough flexibility in
the booking services, schedule resources etc (Lagrosen et al 2016).
Offering to discount them on the spa sessions
In order to attract more number of customers, Banyan Tree hotels must make sure that
they are allowing a considerable amount of discounts and offers for free spa sessions to their
customers. Customer satisfaction must be the top most priority of a new start-up business.
Creating promotions on social media

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As they are a totally new business startup in India, they must make sure that they are easily
reachable by all the visitors. Hence, they must open some online WebPages or some facebook
pages and helpline or booking sites so that the tourists are well aware of this new spa resort
startup and can accordingly see the details and the past achievements of the hotel on their online
sits and book their rooms and their spa sessions accordingly.
Make sure to get referrals
A referral program is a must. This will help keep the customers happy and satisfied. Offering
discounts and free gifts to the customers have become very common and nowadays the Indian
customers are looking forward to something new, hence the Banyan Tree can try this method by
which they can give several rewards to the customers and can make them aware of all the
additional services that will be given by the hotel like salons, skin treatments etc.
Business Expansion in India
Keeping the historical context of the Indian tourists in mind and also the emotions of the
tourists, Banyan Tree Hotels might expand their business in Kerala initially. This is likely to add
up to the business expansion of the company because Kerala is one among the few Indian cities
that have the highest tourist attractions every year. Not only the Indian tourist but the foreign
tourists also visit this place in bulk amounts every year (Wirtz 2016). This will be an added
advantage for the company because they will be able to target both the Indian as well as the
foreign tourist at just one single goes. But as their major concern presently is to enter into India,
Kerala indeed will be the best place to bring their business with (Sucher et al 2013). This is a
land of sea beaches with beautiful temples and natural beauty all around. Adding an array of
hotels with private villas and spa sessions will satisfy the need of a major sector of the Indian

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tourists because this particular sector of tourists always looks for a place of private
accommodation and some soothing and pleasing experiences like body massage, spa etc. Apart
from this, they must concentrate on two important factors that might prove to be their success
mantras; they are an environmental conversation and high customer satisfaction.
Recommendations
Thereby, it can be said that Banyan Trees will naturally gain a good advantage if they
enter into a partnership with the Kochi Marriot Hotel. This is because entering into this
partnership will give Banyan Tree Hotels a detailed description of the business tactics that they
need to follow in India. They will be able to know the exact needs and preference patterns of the
Indian customers. As the Kochi Marriot Hotel has a spa and fitness outlet of its own, it will help
the Banyan Trees to know about the local flavors that they are using in their spa products, as per
the taste of the Indian customers. However, there can also be some cons of this partnership as
well. Like all other partnership business, there can be temporary instances of disputes. There can
be problems related to the management and operations, profit shares and many others. However,
this can easily be solved by careful and matured handling from both the partners and also by
entering into a proper partnership contract right during the initial stages of the business.
.

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Reference list
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Responsibility Activities Within the Hospitality Sector: Empirical Research from
Vietnam. Corporate Reputation Review, 19(3), pp.244-262.
Govil, N., 2015. Producing “India” as Location. The Routledge Companion to the Cultural
Industries.
Lagrosen, Y., Lagrosen, Y., Lagrosen, S. and Lagrosen, S., 2016. Customer perceptions of
quality–a study in the SPA industry. European Business Review, 28(6), pp.657-675.
Lai, I.K.W. and Hitchcock, M., 2017. Sources of satisfaction with luxury hotels for new, repeat,
and frequent travelers: A PLS impact-asymmetry analysis. Tourism Management, 60, pp.107-
129.
Lam, C., Ho, G.K. and Law, R., 2015. How can Asian hotel companies remain internationally
competitive?. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(5), pp.827-
852.
Lo, A., Wu, C. and Tsai, H., 2015. The impact of service quality on positive consumption
emotions in resort and hotel spa experiences. Journal of Hospitality Marketing &
Management, 24(2), pp.155-179.
Roll, M., 2015. Asian Brands Toward 2020—A New Confidence in the Boardroom. In Asian
Brand Strategy (Revised and Updated) (pp. 251-293). Palgrave Macmillan UK.

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Shen, H., 2015. Critical success factors for leading hotel brands in Asia: a case study of banyan
tree. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 7(3), p.19.
Shen, H., 2015. Critical success factors for leading hotel brands in Asia: a case study of banyan
tree. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 7(3), p.19.
Stevens, L., 2017. Of Love and Decomposition: Counterpoints in the Production of Space in
South Bali. Asian Diasporic Visual Cultures and the Americas, 3(1-2), pp.204-207.
Sucher, W., Pusiran, A.K., Dhevabanchachai, N.T. and Chon, K., 2013. THE INFLUENCS OF
ASIAN CULTURAL VALUES IN THE ASIAN HOSPITALITY SERVICES. In the 11th
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Wirtz, J., 2016. Banyan Tree: Designing and Delivering a Branded Service Experience.
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