Hyatt Forms New Joint Venture In China To Expand Footprint

If they do participate in WoH that would give us so many opportunities to book with points in many Chinese cities. One can dream!

Hyatt is also a very recognized brand in China and most see it as an international luxury brand.

As join-venture goes, if as any guidance, the Hampton in china does not join Honor program.

Hyatt has also been expanding its Hyatt Place and Hyatt House brands in China. It's more aggressive in that segment than any of its competitors, perhaps trying to take the lead in the segment. This JV fits that strategy.

HomeInns (RuJia in Chinese) is positioned very far away from where Hyatt brand is. The level of those hotels is such that foreigners may not even be admitted. Another visionary experiment from brand builders / destroyers ...

@SK, you are right rujia is very low-scale, however now it is owned by BTH, who also owns Jinlun which is one of the first hotel chain to serve international visitors and mostly 4-stars hotels.

It is easier to "grow" new brands by going out and doing deals with existing chains. However, that almost invariably leads to large compromises, especially in joint ventures, because each side has a 'vision' that it wishes to realize or features that it may wish to preserve. It is the main reason why Hilton's CEO prefers to grow brands 'organically", i.e., almost from scratch.

@lu - At least based on Q1 2019 promo that excluded no Hampton in China, and on a quick search of award availability at Hilton properties in Beijing and Shanghai, it would seem that Hampton in China now fully participates in Hilton Honors.

@DCS @Lu exactly...there were reports that the Hampton Inns in Mainland have joined the Hilton Honors Program, so one should be able to earn and redeem points and possibly some elite benefits...I think...maybe.

Home inns will become Hyatt house in China as they quality is similar. Home inns will earn Hyatt points and stays towards elite status.

this is hilarious to watch. hyatt folks used to be ones who kept spinning the condescending "marriott is just a bunch of Fairfield Inns" but now has to watch their beloved "premium" firm create a JV with a hotel company that competes against the low end of Wyndham's offerings.

I don't understand hotel "levels" in China. Looking at Hyatt Regency in China you'd think they are all Grand Hyatts. They're all gorgeous with unique designs, sumptuous rooms, and overall a very luxurious aesthetic. Meanwhile in America, the vast majority are copy-pasted business hotels that are decent on the surface but clearly generic non-luxury hotels.

Since it seems the Hyatt "levels" are one level higher in China (with a Regency being the equivalent of a Grand in America), are they going to create the copy-pasted business hotel I just mentioned for Homeinn?

My best guess is that this new JV will be indistinguishable from current Chinese Hyatt Regency's to you and me, but will be marketed as Chinese as the only difference.

@Stanley- Not 'maybe'. Award stays are now bookable at Hampton Inn in China -- really dirt cheap too -- which means that the brand has agreed to participate fully in HHonors, including adopting the T&C with respect to elite benefits.

@Super - It is all of Asia that Hyatts are much better than in the US. I was totally shocked with how downmarket Grand Hyatts are in the US. I wish we could get Asia-quality Grand Hyatts and Hyatt Regency properties in the US market.

My guess is that the new Mid-to-upscale chain is like Hyatt Place. The key benefit of a local partnership is access to good property sites, which can be hard to come by in China.

Be wary of any JVs in China. Read a few classic business cases where this did not end well for the American company.