Fairfield by Marriott is operated by Marriott International, Inc., based in Bethesda, Maryland. The brand offers franchised hotels providing quality accommodations for business travelers, groups, families, and vacationers, featuring guestrooms and suites, a small sundry shop called "The Market," expanded lobbies, exercise rooms, guest laundry, business centers, swimming pools, meeting space, and complimentary hot breakfast daily.
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Fairfield by Marriott provides a comprehensive support system designed to guide you from your first day of training through every stage of your business ownership.
Franchisor's assistance, advertising, computer systems, and training provided to franchisees, including pre-opening and post-opening assistance, marketing fund administration, computer system requirements, and training programs.
Before the hotel opens, Marriott makes available design and construction criteria, specifications for FF&E and inventory, reviews construction drawings and plans for compliance with standards, assesses compliance periodically during construction/conversion, provides input on procuring operating supplies/FF&E, visits the hotel upon completion to determine readiness to open, provides on-site training or training tools, trains the general manager and management team, and makes available standards, procedures, systems, and guides through electronic systems.
Marriott generally does not participate in site selection or lease/purchase negotiations but reviews proposed sites for location, size, visibility, accessibility, customer generators, and competitive environment. Franchisees generally have 15 months from application approval to begin construction and are expected to open within 15 months from the start of construction.
Marriott makes representatives available to consult on design and operations, provides access to electronic systems including a reservation system, protects and preserves Proprietary Marks, makes standards available (subject to change), offers training programs for management personnel (may charge tuition/fees), directs Marketing Fund activities, and reviews upgrade/remodel plans for compliance with standards.
Marriott administers a Marketing Fund for advertising, sales, marketing, promotional programs, and research. Franchisees pay a Marketing Fund Contribution of 2.5% of gross room sales (which may increase up to 3.5%). In 2024, funds were allocated: 82% to generate awareness, trial and loyalty; 2% on strategic planning/product positioning; 13% to drive/capture demand through sales and channels; 1% on distribution and revenue management strategies. Administration cost totaled 2% of contributions in 2024. There is a franchisee advisory council on marketing matters, and participation in the Global Sales Organization (GSO) is mandatory.
Franchisees must purchase, lease, or license various required computer systems including Property Management System (PMS, estimated $66,700-$86,700, transitioning to a new system 2026-2027), Opportunity Management Systems (OneSource or SFAWeb/GPO required, CI/TY optional), Guest Experience Platform (GxP), Point-of-Sale (POS) system (~$25,000-$35,000), Reservation and Yield Management System, Marriott Communications Network (MCN) and Property Network Standards including FMN (~$25,000-$30,000) and Wi-Fi network (~$650-$1,000 per guestroom), Continent Field Support, Digital Guest Services (~$2,000), optional Digital Food & Beverage Services, Hotel Lock System including Mobile Key (~$250-$275 per lock plus $12,500-$18,500 infrastructure), Mobile Device Management, Guestroom Entertainment Platform (~$23,500 plus $220/guestroom), Lobby PC (~$2,500), Associate Alert Devices (~$22,000-$36,000), Intranet Website (MGS/MDash), optional EV Charging Stations, Information Security Managed Detection and Response Services, MESH sustainability software, and Residential Software if applicable. Payment processing and tokenization requirements also apply, including PCI compliance.
Marriott has established training programs for franchisees and key hotel personnel, including a learning and development bundle (~$11.40-$12.60 per guestroom/year) covering required training programs such as Brand & Service Training, Consumer Operations Training, Ethics + Integrity Training, Functional Operations Training, Administrative Training, Electronic Systems Training, Leadership Development (Connect U), and Loyalty Program Training, delivered largely via web-based/virtual formats at no additional charge (excluding travel/living expenses). Required third-party training includes Alcohol Awareness Training, Food Allergen Training, and Food Safety Certification for associates and management. Additional programs include Executive Orientation (~$795/person), FITM (~$40,000) and FITM-R (~$60,000) for new-to-Marriott franchisees, FOND/API (~$20,000) for qualified franchisees, an Audit Program/GSS Improvement program for underperforming hotels, and Residential Training for hotels with residential/condominium components.