when they first acquired hotel in Springfield in Massachusetts, Sheraton today has more than 400 branded hotels spread across more than 70 countries of the world. Explaining the evolution of the Sheraton brand, Martin Wuethrich, General Manager, Sheraton Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway said that the brand has been the pioneer in terms of introducing many novel concepts to the hospitality industry in the last 75 years of its journey. Sheraton was the first hotel chain to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange back in 1947. Sheraton was the first hotel chain to introduce electronic reservation system in the hotel industry in 1958 as well as the first hotel chain to establish a toll free 800-number for guest access in 1970. In 1985, Sheraton became the first international chain to operate a hotel in China, he informed. Today, Sheraton has almost 50 hotels in China alone, almost half of the total number of Sheratons in Asia Pacific.
Although Sheraton has been operating in India since 1973, mainly with the domestic partner ITC Hotels, Sheraton Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway, which was opened in May 2011 was the first newly built and designed Sheraton brand hotel in India. Speaking about the property in Bengaluru, Wuethrich said that the signature Sheraton amenities of the hotel have been received well by both local and international guests in the last one year of operations. “The hotel has won many awards including the Best New Hotel of the Year award at the HICSA and the Best Hotel of the Year in South Asia by Starwood. All our signature restaurants have won awards and accolades as well,” he informed.