The fact that Gujaratis have an impeccable business sense is no secret. They are known nationwide for their excellent business skills. But, it is not just in India that they are doing wonders. In the USA, they own a whopping 42% of the country’s hotels & motels.
So, how come they got to own more than two-fifths of the USA’s hotels? Let’s see.
History Of Patel Motel Cartel
Gujaratis own hotels & motels worth $40 billion in the States. They own nearly 22,000 out of the 53,000 hotels. To understand how it happened, we have to go back all the way to the 1940s and dive into the story of Kanjibhai Desai.
The British rule in India was dwindling and the American laws were warming up to people of other nationalities. It was a good time to migrate to the US in search of better opportunities. Obviously, the Patels saw this as a golden chance to do something challenging that will pay off well in the end.
Kanjibhai Desai had recently shifted there and he managed to purchase Goldfield Hotel, a 32 room motel in San Francisco, California. Little did he know that he was laying the foundations of what will come to be known as Potels – motels and hotels owned by Patels.
In the hotel, everyone was welcome and Gujaratis especially felt at home there. Kanjibhai advised every Gujarati walking through his door to invest in the hospitality business as it did not necessarily require fluency in English and also provided a home to the family itself.
One Gujarati in business paved way for more Gujaratis back home to come to the US and invest in hotels. Today, the first investors’ descendants are expanding the business and successfully running hotels there.
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Running a motel was considered to be “unsophisticated”, something that the American natives didn’t want to be associated with. But, a Gujarati knows when how to turn soil into gold, or in this case a seemingly unsophisticated business into an empire.
Let Success Make The Noise
The business that initially no one wanted to do has everyone’s eyes today. Gujaratis are in the limelight. Everyone with their sheer grit and determination went from rags to riches, a tale as old as time and loved by everyone.
Americans had their reservations initially. An Indian immigrant running a business did not seem very lucrative. They doubted the business’ legitimacy, hygiene, and safety. Jump to now, popular hotel chains like Marriott, Hilton, and Starwood want to lease their hotel franchise to Gujaratis.
Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) has 90% Gujaratis who pay a collective charge of $700 million per year. Hence, their contribution to the hospitality sector is too big to not be noticed.
They are upholding our Indian value “Atithi Devo Bhava” in the States and showing the world what Indians are capable of doing with hard work and determination.
Disclaimer: This article is fact-checked
Sources: Times of India, New York Times, National Geographic
Image Sources: Google Images
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This post is tagged under: gujaratis, us hotels, gujjus, patel, motel, hotel, business, indian Americans, monopoly over hotel business, business sense, profit, indian, patel hotel cartel, potels, Marriott, hilton, starwood, hospitality sector, rags to riches, soil to gold, franchising, hotel franchise
