IHCL's Taj is the strongest hotel brand globally in 2021: Brand Finance

In 2021, Hilton, Hyatt & Holiday Inn are the most valuable brands in the hotel industry

Premium Indian hotel brand Taj Hotels has emerged as the strongest brand in the global hotels industry in 2021. As per the latest report by the UK-based brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance, Taj beat some of the most coveted names in the industry like Hilton, Shangri-La and Marroitt to top the chart of strongest brands this year.

Taj, a brand owned by Mumbai-headquartered Indian Hotels Company, scored 89.3 out of 100, USA’s Premier Inn followed with a score of 88.9. Two hotel brands from Spain – Melia and NH Hotel Group – grabbed the third and fourth spot, while Hong Kong-headquartered Shangri-La ranked fifth.

Brand Finance’s evaluation, based on factors such as marketing investment, customer familiarity, staff satisfaction, and corporate reputation, determines the relative strength of a brand. According to these criteria, Taj (with a brand value of $296 million or Rs 2,200 crore) is the world’s strongest hotel brand, with a corresponding AAA brand strength rating.

“Taj’s successful implementation of its 5-year plan, which focuses on selling non-core assets, becoming less ownership driven and reducing dependence on the luxury space, followed by speedy adoption of its new 2020 strategy, which provides a transformative framework to help the brand overcome the challenge of the pandemic, has contributed to the brand’s re-entrance into the ranking for the first time since 2016 (38th spot),” the report noted.

“Taj being rated as the World’s Strongest Hotel Brand is a testament to the unwavering trust our guests have consistently placed in us and the warmth and sincere care our employees have embodied day-after-day. We will continue our endeavor to elevate the world class experiences of luxury hospitality and deliver the magic of Tajness to all our stakeholders”, said Puneet Chhatwal, managing director & CEO of Indian Hotels Company.

On the valuation front, the top five positions were captured by leading hotel group’s from the US. Virginia-based Hilton topped the chart with a valuation of $7.61 billion (Rs 56,300 crore), followed by California-based Hyatt ($ 4.7 billion or Rs 34,800 crore), Holiday Inn from Denham ($3.8 billion or Rs 28,100 crore), Hilton’s sister brand Hampton at the fourth spot ($2.9 billion or Rs 21,200 crore) and Washington DC-based Marriott ($2.4 billion, Rs 17,800 crore).

While Hilton continued to hold on to its position at the top, it lost a massive 30 per cent of its valuation in the last one year. Among the top 10 hotels in the world, its loss was the second highest, down from $10.83 billion or Rs 80,170 crore in 2020. Marriott, at the fifth spot, lost the most – $3.6 billion or Rs 26,800 crore since last year. It was ranked as the second most valued hotel brand in 2020.