Sheraton Hotels: Strategic Positioning And Market Entry Essay.

This assessment affords you the opportunity to undertake research using a wide range of source material into a hotel company of your choice and to assess the strategic position of this chosen organization and examine strategic growth options to seek medium and long term market growth in an emerging market of your choice. 
 
A: Select one of the up and coming hotel company and conduct a (maximum 2 page) SWOT analysis of your selected hotel company. 
B: Select one of the emerging markets of the world as taken from the WTM Industry report –and UNWTO Tourism Highlights, which you feel is right for your hotel company to seek an entry into that market and ultimately to seek medium and long term market growth. 
Conduct a (maximum 2 page) PEST analysis of the emerging market you have selected. All the PEST facts and factors you have chosen to highlight must have a direct or indirect relevance to both the hospitality industry both on a nationally and internationally level and the hotel company chosen. 
C:  Use Porter’s Generic Strategies, Ansoffs Matrix and/or  Nykiel’s fourteen hotel strategic growth options to critically examine the strategic growth alternatives for your chosen hotel within your chosen emerging market. 

Background of Sheraton Hotel

The hospitality industry is a continuously growing sector due to increased demand for luxury travel, leisure, and business. In order to sustain the competitive business market, it is essential for the business organization to increase their business and customer base. In order to strive for continuous growth, the business organizations need to emphasize on the international establishment. This will allow the companies to explore new markets and customers thereby, increasing the business. Tough competition is seen among the hospitality industry, as the business organizations have to implement strategies for attracting customers and business expansion.

This report introduces the background of Sheraton Hotel, is a chain of luxury hotels owned by Marriott International along with evaluating the strategic positioning of the hotel chain. The internal environments of the Sheraton Hotel chains are analyzed in order to judge of the suitability of the hotel chain for international business expansion in Russia.  Therefore, the external environment of Russia, both micro, and macro are studied to judge the suitability for international expansion. Additionally, the report also discusses the various market entry strategies along with justifying the most suitable market entry strategy for The Sheraton Hotel Chains in Russia.

The Sheraton Chain of Hotels is a subsidiary of the Marriott International. The chain of hotels is a Starwood brand and is considered one of the world’s largest and oldest brands. The chain of hotels has more than 800 chains around the world. The hotel believes in offering luxury and comfort to the customers’ throughout the world. The main aim of the chain of hotels is to provide the best and superior quality of service to the customers thereby, providing them a lifetime experience. Until now, the hotel has been successful in providing high-quality service for the customers. Due to excellent work and customer service over the years, the Sheraton Hotels have received awards such as Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence in 2016 along with Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) in 2017 (Starwoodhotels.com, 2017).

 In order to sustain in the competitive market and establish a successful business in the host country, The Sheraton emphasizes on creating lifetime experience and value for the customers (Skift, 2017). The company has introduced different types of signature elements that highlight superior customer service. According to the chain of hotels, the customers not only stay in the hotels but the customers belong to the hotels. Therefore, the new strategic positioning of the hotel emphasizes on comforting and warm service for the customers. The system of four points by the Sheraton chain of hotels provides honest and good value to the customers (West, Ford and Ibrahim 2015).

Based on the type of service provided by The Sheraton Chain of Hotels, it is strategically positioned in the category of high quality and high price.

A SWOT analysis is conducted in order to evaluate the internal environment of the Sheraton Hotels.

The major of the hotel is the brand name and presence over the years among the customers of various countries (Starwoodhotels.com, 2017). The Sheraton Chain of Hotels is one of the oldest organizations in the hospitality industry that has been able to mark their presence in the market successfully. The Sheraton has been operating over 800 countries over the years. Incorporation of latest technologies allowed the company to provide a better experience to the customers thereby, promoting continuous up gradation for the business (Houtari and Hamari 2012). Moreover, strategic positioning has helped the chain of hotels to create a unique image in the eye of the customers over the years.

Strategic Position of Sheraton

The major weakness of the company is that the company is under the threat of another chain of well-established hotels. Hotels such as Marriott International and Hilton Group possess tough competition for The Sheraton Group of Hotels. The faster rate of global expansion for the chain of hotels can result in dilution of the brand (Starwoodhotels.com, 2017). The innovative strategies undertaken by the group of hotels are vulnerable to other hospitality organization making the survival of the company tougher. The business of the company is highly dependent on the economy of the country. Therefore, the economic fluctuation is a potential weakness for the company, as economic downfall will fail in continuing the business (Mahamid 2012).

The potential opportunities for The Sheraton Chain of Hotels include high growth in the hospitality sector along with the luxurious expansion of the chain of hotels. The company can achieve this by catering the preferences and needs of the customers (Starwoodhotels.com, 2017). Due to aforementioned strengths such as strong brand presence along with unique strategic positioning, has huge opportunities for the chain of hotels in the international platform. The increasing demand of the hospitality sector will provide an opportunity for the chain of hotels for luxurious and global expansion. The ability to fulfill the demand and expectations of the customers will ensure success for the company (Ward 2016).

One of the major threats for The Sheraton Chain of hotels is the presence of black market in the hospitality sector. Due to this, the recruitment of the skilled labor has become a competitive factor (Starwoodhotels.com, 2017).  Lack of skilled and experienced labor in the industry has compromised with the quality of service provided in the hospitality sector. Another major threat for the industry is terrorism and imbalanced political scenario that has led to the downfall of the economy of the country (Raza and Jawaid 2013). Economic declination will also hamper the income of the customers thereby, reducing opportunities of availing luxurious hotel services.

The hospitality industry has entered a new era of transformation and growth. In 2015, the hospitality sector has recorded almost $1.2 trillion, that is, five percent higher from the previous years (Bharwani and Butt 2012). It can be seen that the demand of service industry has increased drastically over the years, as the customers prefer boding comfortable and luxurious hotel services. For holidays or business purpose, the customers prefer availing standard hotels for high-quality service. For this, the customers also prefer paying a considerable amount of money without hesitation (Hawkins and Bohdanowics 2012). Moreover, another recent trend identified in the hospitality industry is the use of technology in the service industry. The use of technology will help the customers to personalize their tour by evaluating and analyzing all the options present. For example, the customers will be able to select hotels accordingly, book transport for sight-seeing along with booking accommodations and ordering food and beverages. Additionally, the customers will also be able to modify the changes in case of emergencies. These are the present global scenario of hospitality industry (Refer to Appendix 1).

SWOT Analysis of Sheraton

The optimistic nature of the Russian hospitality industry resulted in high domestic trips along with facilitating the increase of employment rates and foreign investors for establishing the business. Post-2014 Olympics, the hotels in Russia has recorded an increase in inbound tourism in 2016 Olympics (2016.export.gov, 2017). Moreover, in 2015, the hospitality market of Russia has seen positives in terms of 80% occupancy rates in summer in St. Petersburg. Such high numbers were previously recorded only during the peak season. High rate was also seen in Sochi and Moscow where the occupancy rates reached nearly 100% (Export.gov, 2017). According to the Federal Agency for Tourism of the Russian Federation also stated that as challenging economic situation resulted in decline in travel to Egypt and Turkey, hospitality industry rose by almost 30% in Russia between 2014 and 2015. Moreover, the strong economic growth of Russia over the recent years also facilitates the country in attracting international business venture and expansion.

PEST analysis has been conducted in order to evaluate the external environment of Russia thereby, judging the suitability of international business expansion for The Sheraton Chain of Hotels.

Political: Until 2009, the country had official relationship with more than 199 countries and 144 embassies. This signifies that the country has been maintaining an open relationship with the foreign countries. The strategy of maintaining an open relationship with the foreign countries facilitates good opportunity for international trade and commerce (Zhao 2012). Moreover, the country has been playing a significant role in maintaining safety and peace in the world. Russia has the largest store of nuclear weapon including navy, air force and military. It is one of the countries with established domestic arms industry. The government of the country also emphasizes on growing their military base by investing more on it. Therefore, the country ranks on top in manufacturing and exporting of weapons. It has been seen that the country not only manufactures weapons but also export weapons in more than 80 countries in the world (Sutela 2013). This contributes largely o the economic growth of the country.

There is a close relationship between the local and the national government. The national government is actively involved with the regional governments thereby, facilitating the growth of trade and commerce. As a result, it is easier for the governments to monitor international investors and business organizations thereby, helping them to conduct business in the country. Moreover, as the governments are actively involved in running business, it is easier for them to develop strategies facilitating and promoting appropriate business environment (Clapp and Helleiner 2012).  

Economical: The country ranks 10^th in terms of the economic growth and is expected to reach $3.18 trillion by 2018 (Kudrin and Gurvich 2015). As a result, the country is expected to gain huge economic strength in the upcoming years. However, corruption in the Russia adversely affects the economy of the country. Due to the prevailing corruption, the foreign business organizations and investors are highly concerned. The increasing number of crimes such as murder and robbery affects the economy of the country largely as it highlights the risk of internal security of the country. However, the country has sufficient skilled workforce that are of great use for the foreign investors in their relevant field. The available resources of the country largely contribute in making the economy of the country strong and stable (Munda 2012).

Global Hospitality Market

Russia has one of the biggest resources of oil and gas and contributes largely for the economy of the country by exporting them. Moreover, the country has the biggest area in terms of agriculture that facilitates the growth of crops. Majority of the crops are exported to Europe and Asia that contributes to the economy of the country. On the contrary, the economy of Russia cannot be compared with other countries in market, as it is extensively dependent on the price of crude oil. Moreover, the government has been able to maintain an effective tax system successfully along with monetary policies (Fernández-Rodríguez and Martínez-Arias 2014).

Social:  A huge difference in the living standard of the people in the society was created after the economic recession hit the country in 1990. This resulted in formation of an aristocratic society from democratic society that eventually divided the society into rich and poor making their living standards more distinguishable. As a result of the rise of aristocratic society, the people emphasizes more on living high standard life and started spending more buying expensive items and living a luxurious life (Koptseva and Kirko 2014). Therefore, due to lack of concern and planning for family, the death rates increased whereas the birth rates decreased. Moreover, due to lavish and luxurious lifestyle, huge number of people in the society died due to alcohol poisoning and HIV (Rhodes et al. 2012).

However, on the contrary, the entertainment and the social activities saw a rise in the Russian society that eventually improved the living standard of the people. Ballet, music, arts along with philosophers and literatures were commonly seen in the Russian society. Inequality between the income of the rich and the poor is very high and distinctively visible. Reports suggest that the difference between the 10% rich and 10% poor people was over 42 times. However, the difference reduced to 38 times in 2015. This is due to anti-crisis measures implemented by the government but the social spending has not been reduced due to the initiative (Willetts 2014).

Technological: Russia is one of the first countries that have sent people on space thereby, signifying the rich tradition of science in the country. The country has emphasized more on the development of latest technologies such as nanotechnology. Moreover, the country has made significant development in the field of information technology that has improved the living standard and development of the country largely. However, such technological advancements do not contribute to the economy of the country (Law, Buhalis and Cobanoglu 2014). Therefore, noticing the significance of technology in the economic growth of the country, the government has emphasized on technological development for the country. For example, the government has started investing more for the technological advancement of the country.

The government is also supporting the youth of the country who want to pursue career for technological development. Therefore, motivating people for getting involved in technological advancements is the main thing the government needs to undertake. This will help the country to compete with the rest of the western countries in terms of using technology for economic contribution. This will help in facilitating the trade and commerce for the country by the foreign investors (Holden 2016).

As mentioned by E Dobbs (2014), barriers to entering the host country are measured from the potential threats. The threats include both the operational scope and the economic scale in terms of customer loyalty, product differentiation, structure and switching of cost. The hospitality industry emphasizes on the capital costs, that is, comparatively higher. A considerable amount of economy is associated with the hospitality industry, it is essential to manage the capital of the project effectively. Effective management of the financial resources helps in the appropriate use of finances in the hospitality industry. For example, filling up all the rooms of the hotels with customers should be the main aim of the company, as this will help in conducting business and incurring profit. The locations of the hotel along with the quality of service provided to the customers are the main factors that help in filling up the rooms. These factors are highly dependent on the management of the hotel along with the motivation level the employees receive from the company. On the contrary, due to unavailability of a suitable location in the urban region, the growth of hospitality industry is slow.

The organizations in the hospitality industry are not threatened due to economic downfall in the cities. This is because international traveling easily replaces the cost of domestic traveling. The concept of substitute product aim towards reducing the cost of providing higher or lower service thereby, allowing the customers to avail the service due to technological advancements. In the niche market segment, the operators in the hospitality industry compete because of low cost. The competition in the hospitality industry is basically based on the luxurious and modern style of hotels along with the location and the quality of service provided by the organizations. In addition to, the threats in terms of the substitute products are not directly related to the products and services provided by the organizations. Targeting the operators and the tour packages will create a powerful impact on the buyers. As the hospitality sector generally encounters healthy competition, the hospitality industry is not vulnerable to the negative rivalry (Lee, Kim and Park 2012).  

As commented by Haucap et al. (2013), more concern towards the customers results in more power to the suppliers of the hospitality industry. Moreover, long-term relationship is established, as command over business shares is not facilitated. As a result, the customers are generally open to a variety of products. Moreover, the cost of the products encounters continuous fluctuation. Therefore, the customers will be casual in spending considerable amount due to fluctuation in the hotel price. Thus, if the aforementioned changes affect the image and service quality of hotels, the service level will be affected drastically. The supplier possesses the ability to create an impact on the labor force and the experienced personnel that are highly demanded in the hospitality industry globally.

The bargaining power of the buyers might adversely affect the hospitality industry because the buyers might emphasize more of mass purchase of hotel rooms. These buyers generally include the tour operators, national and international airlines along with the people organizing conventions for the business class people. The impact of this strategy generally affects small groups and does not bother travelers. This is because the travelers travel for business or leisure purpose. The differentiation factor plays a significant role in terms of the independent traveler thereby, helping the travelers with a limited travel budget. The customers visiting the hotel will hardly agree with paying a higher amount as a huge investment is required. The customers prefer spending more in the airline industry but not in the hospitality industry (Li 2012).

The rivalry level depends on the number of the competitors along with the size of the industry in a potential market. When it comes to product differentiation and cost switching, the rivalry of the market becomes fierce, as the cost is comparatively low. More rivalry is encountered in the fixed costs such as the cost of hotel reservation that is affected by the locality of the hotel. The economic and the strategic factors are the potential barriers in the hospitality industry, as this allows turning out low profits for the business organizations (Webster, McNutt and McComb 2012) (Refer to Appendix 2).

The market penetration strategy for The Sheraton Chain of Hotels is that it has been operating at a global scale for several years and is not a new company in the hospitality sector. As commented by Taylor (2012), conducting business for long term helps in easy penetration of the market. Therefore, as it will be easier for The Sheraton Chain of Hotels to penetrate the market of the host country, Russia easily, as the company has been operating globally for many years. Moreover, this would not have affected the financial position and strategies of the company in the new market in the host country.

As mentioned by Mugo, Wanjau and Ayodo (2012), targeting the right customers according to the standard of the service prevents failure in attracting suitable customers. The Sheraton Chain of Hotels needs to target appropriate customers, as this will allow the company to incur profit. Based on the standard of the hotel, the company needs to target customers with high income (El Namaki 2012). This is because targeting customers with moderate and fewer customers will eventually incur a loss for the company. Therefore, the Sheraton Chain of Hotels needs to develop strategies that will help the company in attracting potential high-end customers.

According to Hussain et al. (2013), market segmentation helps the business organization to determine the potential target group of customers based on their pricing strategy. The segmentation will allow The Sheraton Chain of Hotels to offer high-quality service at a considerably higher price. The Higher price will enable the hotel to maintain the quality of service provided to the target customers (Shaw 2012). High-quality service to the customers will help the hotel to create a unique image in the eye of the customers thereby, standing out among the competitors in the market along with providing service in Russia.

As mentioned by Bocken et al. (2012), identifying the products or services in demand among the customers is essential, as this allows the business organizations to develop services and strategies considering the customer’s demand. Therefore, The Sheraton Chain of Hotels needs to identify the services that are preferred by the customers of the host country. For example, the hotel can incorporate Russian cuisines in their menu thereby, allowing the customers to enjoy traditional cuisines while their stay in the hotel. Additionally, the hotel can design the infrastructure and architecture by the culture and tradition of the host country (Barile et al. 2012). This will allow the company to provide a cultural taste for the customers.

Post establishment, The Sheraton Chain of Hotels needs to ensure that they allocate a low-profit margin. This will help the company in increasing the competition level within the host country along with analyzing the market of the host country in terms of skills. This will help in recruiting the most skillful and qualified employees by the hotel. This will help in gaining a competitive advantage by The Sheraton Chain of Hotels over the competitors in the market (Krauss et al. 2012) 

The different types of market entry strategy include licensing, franchising, exporting, outsourcing and joint ventures (Ogutu and Samuel 2012). In the case of franchising, a number of stakeholders share a single brand name. This market entry strategy is faster and cheaper. On the other hand, licensing enables the international companies in securing an agreement with the local companies. However, the host company holds the sole right to the services and products provided and the partner company needs to pay a certain amount to the host company. In the case of exports, the government of the host country actively participates for the ownership of the business (Putnins 2013). On the other hand, the local business organization helps the host company to bring the required resources to the host country and run the business successfully.

The Sheraton Chain of Hotels needs to adopt franchising and licensing as the preferred market entry strategy in Russia. This is because selecting franchising and licensing as the market entry strategy will help The Sheraton to acquire sufficiently and required knowledge of the host country (Leitmannslehner  and Windsperger 2012). These will also provide an opportunity for The Sheraton to give certain responsibilities to the local or home organization in Russia. Moreover, franchising and licensing are the easiest market entry strategy for the international market. Because of using franchising and licensing as the market entry strategy, The Sheraton can market their service without very less or no capital investment (Brown 2014). On the contrary, The Sheraton needs to emphasize on the management, as it is mostly hampered. As mentioned by (Jayachandran et al. 2013), licensing offers low market risks due to previously existing established market. Therefore, The Sheraton Chain of Hotels has to encounter minimal legal and financial risks in the host country. Additionally, the brand name of The Sheraton will eventually lead to huge success in the host country. Due to the selected market entry strategy, The Sheraton Chain of Hotels will have greater access to finance and reduced risk.

Conclusion

In this report, it can be concluded that, international business expansions are significant for the business organizations as this provides them with the opportunity of exploring new markets and increase the customer base. The Sheraton Chain of Hotels has been successfully operating in the hospitality industry wants to expand their business to Russia. Internal analysis of the company helped in identifying the strengths and weakness of the company thereby, strategizing and planning international establishment. Moreover, external analysis of both micro and macro environment of Russia helped The Sheraton Chain of Hotels to judge the suitability of the country for international business expansion.

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