I’m proud to say we’re making history with the simple, cotton hotel towel.
Marriott International has found a way to have the towels and bath mats for our U.S. hotels produced in the USA - with cotton grown in the USA. We signed a long-term agreement with Standard Textile to purchase towels for our nearly 3,000 U.S. hotels.
I had the opportunity to see production in action when I visited two of Standard Textile’s manufacturing plants… One in Thomaston, Ga., and the other in Union, S.C. The teams there are excited about this new relationship. They’ve been busy keeping up with the demand—an annual production of nearly three million bath towels and five million hand towels. I could feel the energy there… people taking pride in their efforts to create a quality product for our customers.
I was also impressed with Standard Textile's CEO Gary Heiman. His associates all wear red uniform shirts with the word "Innovation" on the back. The leading edge technology I saw in these plants is a result of successful motivation at its best.
Once most of our hotels switch to the new towels in the next two years, you’ll see tags with “Made in USA” on our towels and bath mats across all of our brands. Each, of course, will be a bit different since our towel items always meet specific brand standards.
We know towels are very important to our guests, which is why we spend a great deal of time thinking about them. We think our customers will appreciate knowing that an item they use every day in our hotels represents progress for the U.S. economy as well as for the environment.
By producing these textiles here in the U.S. instead of overseas, we’ll eliminate 300 ocean-going container shipments annually, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Standard Textile uses cutting-edge machinery and special processes that reduce water consumption. Marriott hasn’t sourced 100% of guestroom towels from U.S. makers since the 1990s, when U.S. manufacturing began to fade away.
As a global company, it makes sense to do business this way in other parts of the world and we’ll continue to look for new opportunities.
We think that both customers AND employees who see the “Made in USA” tag on our towels and bath mats will feel proud. And that’s very important to me.
I’m Bill Marriott and thanks for helping me keep Marriott on the move.
Good decision! I pay attention to where products I buy are manufactured, and I support companies who follow this policy. I hope other hospitality companies follow Marriott's lead in supporting American manufacturing.
Posted by: Bobbi Henniger | 07/05/2016 at 10:56 PM
Great news! Thank you.
Posted by: Marketa | 07/05/2016 at 10:46 PM
I love this
Posted by: Lori Wight | 07/05/2016 at 08:20 PM
Glad that Marriott is making this change. I always look at labels of origin.
Posted by: Fran Wishnick | 07/05/2016 at 06:06 PM
Marriott is my hotel of choice because Marriott supports American manufacturing.
Posted by: Jan | 07/05/2016 at 02:35 PM
Thank you again, Marriott! This is fantastic! I'll be looking for those tags every time I travel.
Posted by: Dana Nickerson | 07/05/2016 at 11:12 AM
Initiatives like this are what keeps the company at the forefront of the industry and supporting our economy.
Bravo!
Posted by: Albert Mertz | 04/10/2016 at 12:03 PM
A great eco-friendly initiative. Good to hear how much customer needs are valued..even if its a towel!
Posted by: Catering Science India | 04/06/2016 at 08:13 AM
I'll support Marriott because they are supporting Americans.
Posted by: Juanita Jett | 03/27/2016 at 08:11 PM
thank you for making 'made in the USA' a continuous movement for marriott. i also really want marriott to secure the deal with starwood.
Posted by: norma | 03/21/2016 at 01:32 PM
Excellent! Very glad to hear of this decision which supports U. S. Manufacturing and jobs!
Posted by: Hank Mancini | 03/18/2016 at 11:50 AM
Great to see the terry manufacturing for the USA come back to the USA.
Posted by: Mitch | 03/17/2016 at 08:07 AM
Thanks nice move.
Posted by: ELIZABETH 'ROBILLLARD | 03/15/2016 at 05:24 PM