Further to its obligation to keep stakeholders informed of material events, Minor International (“MINT”) makes the following statement:
MINT has filed a legal claim in Thai court against Marriott International, Inc. (“Marriott”) in relation to the JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa (the “JW Marriott Phuket”) which is owned by MINT and operated by the Marriott group. MINT’s claim is for THB 570.6 million and alleges that Marriott has committed a number of offenses under Thai law, including:
- competing with the JW Marriott Phuket through its operation of competing Marriott portfolio hotels;
- using the JW Marriott Phuket facilities to promote Marriott’s other competing hotels;
- misappropriating MINT’s confidential and proprietary information to benefit Marriott’s own interests;
- operating its loyalty program in bad faith and against the interests of MINT as hotel owner;
- failing to manage the JW Marriott Phuket in a manner to protect and benefit the owner’s interest; and
- unduly enriching itself at the expense of the hotel and MINT, through hidden license fee arrangements and supplier rebates and use of monies in the Marriott loyalty program fund.
MINT is pleased to confirm that its legal action in Thailand remains ongoing (although slowed by Covid) and will be pursued until MINT’s claims are fully addressed. Further updates will be provided to the market in due course.
In addition to its legal claims in the Thai courts, MINT is also imminently initiating further legal action against Marriott, claiming breaches by Marriott of its fiduciary duties toward MINT as the owner of the JW Marriott Phuket. MINT expects that this case will have wide-ranging relevance to the hotel market and highlight a number of problematic business practices by Marriott. Further details will be shared with the market in due course, in the interest of keeping MINT’s stakeholders fully informed as this matter progresses.
