Richard Crawford co-founded Hobart's internationally acclaimed Henry Jones Art Hotel, which under his ownership was Australia's most awarded hotel. Other former business interests include Thrifty Car Rental Tasmania and travel wholesaler, Tas Vacations.

Richard has served as a Board member of the Tourism Industry Council Tasmania, The Skills Institute, Waterfront Business Community, Fahan School for girls, and Tennis Tasmania.

Following its acquisition of Starwood Hotels and Resorts in 2016, Marriott has a global team of more than 675,000 people, across 130 countries.  The group’s leading brands include Marriott, Sheraton, Ritz Carlton, Westin, W, St Regis, Le Meridien, Aloft, Moxy, EDITION, and Bulgari.  Illustrating Marriott’s rapid rate of global expansion, the company will open a new hotel - somewhere in the world - every 14 hours for the next three years.

A New York Stock Exchange listed company, Marriott is the world’s largest hotel company, operating 6,500 hotels under 30 global brands.

How did you get in to the hospitality sector?

I was very fortunate to have the support and backing of my family’s business in Tasmania, which included American Express travel agencies, the Thrifty Car Rental franchise (operating up to 600 vehicles), property investments, and other interests. Whilst studying marketing and international business at university, I founded Tas Vacations, a wholesale travel company packaging Tasmanian self-drive holidays as an offshoot to our retail travel operations. The business recently enjoyed its 25-year anniversary.

What are some of your career highlights in time with Marriott International?

My first 18 months with the company has been a prolific time of growth, which has been energizing and greatly rewarding. Our hotel openings and signings are naturally always highlights, but meeting our Chairman, JW Marriott Jnr, in Miami was a rare moment which many of our 775,000 staff will unfortunately not have the opportunity to do.

What does Marriott International find so attractive about Asia Pacific hotel sector?

Of Marriott’s five continental areas of operation, Asia Pacific is our second largest region (next to North America) and it is by far our fastest growing, with more than 600 hotels and resorts in our confirmed pipeline.  Beyond being the engine room of our portfolio growth, Asia Pacific also generates a large portion of our company-wide revenue, due the prevalence of Hotel Management Agreements in the region, compared to the dominance of franchising in other continents.

What is your 10 year game plan in the Asia Pacific region?

Our immediate imperative is to capitalize on the region’s favourable trading conditions and strong hotel investment appetite to achieve our growth aspirations. An indication of the current rate of hotel expansion is that Marriott International will open a hotel somewhere in the world every 14 hours, for the next three years. And, nearly one in four hotels currently under construction or planning globally will carry one of our brands.  So, the near to medium term goal is to continue to win the greatest share of growth opportunities, across all 30 brands, whilst continuing to leverage the advantages that come with being the world’s largest hotel company.

How will Marriott International stand out in Asia Pacific?

In Asia Pacific, and right around the world, Marriott International’s points of difference will continue to be most readily identifiable by the distinctive attributes of our 30 global brands.  More broadly, the amalgamation of our three award-winning guest loyalty programs will unite more than 110 million global customers, underscoring our commitment to nurturing meaningful direct relationships with our most engaged guests. 

What changes would you like to see over the next 2 to 5 years in the industry?

Right now is an undisputable moment in time for our industry. We are building and planning more hotels than ever before and my hope is that in 5 years’ time we will look back collectively as an industry and say we got it right. This period of growth should be seized as an era of rejuvenation that redefines our accommodation landscape, as we evolve from dated legacy hotels to contemporary offerings that genuinely enhance destinational appeal in a hyper-competitive global travel market.

What is your favourite hotel and holiday destination?

I naturally have a soft spot for the hotel I founded, The Henry Jones Art Hotel in Hobart, but Marriott International have exposed me to some of the world’s great hotels, of which EDITION New York would be my pick. For holidays, I seek out snow or sand, and for the latter, French Polynesia is hard to beat, where our St. Regis Bora Bora is a stand out.

See also:

Westin Hotel Adelaide GPO redevelopment

$150m Four Points by Sheraton hotel Sydney Central Park officially opens

W Hotel announced for Ribbon development Sydney

Marriott and Capital Alliance partnership to open new AC Hotel Melbourne Southbank