LAUNCHING THE FAMILY BUSINESS
While finishing up at the university, Marriott hatched plans for starting a business of his own, thousands of miles away, in the nation's capital. Bill had passed through hot, muggy Washington, D.C., at the end of his mission and recognized a tailor-made market for A&W Root Beer. He secured the A&W franchise for Washington, D.C. - plus Baltimore and Richmond - and headed east in the spring of 1927. Marriott and partner Hugh Colton pooled $6,000 to buy equipment and rent space for their tiny operation. On May 20, 1927 - the day aviator Charles Lindbergh began his historic transatlantic solo flight - the duo opened their nine-stool root beer stand at 3128 14th Street, NW.
His fledgling business launched, Marriott raced back to Utah just two weeks later to attend another event that promised to change his life: his wedding to Alice Sheets. On June 9, 1927, one day after Alice graduated from the University of Utah, the pair married in Salt Lake City. The couple's honeymoon consisted of a long, hot, bumpy drive back to Washington, D.C., in Bill's Model T Ford.
For the next 58 years - until his death in August 1985 - J. Willard Marriott rarely rested. Whether adding locations, perfecting procedures or expanding into new enterprises, Marriott breathed, ate, lived, and dreamed about his business. Even when his older son, J. Willard "Bill" Marriott, Jr., took over most major responsibilities after being named the company's CEO in 1972, the founder could not bring himself to retire. A true hands-on manager, he thoroughly enjoyed visiting Marriott's increasingly far-flung locations, as well as spending time with the ever-growing ranks of associates who - in his eyes - were the secret of his company's success. "Take care of associates and they'll take care of your customers," he constantly advised Marriott's managers, voicing a deeply held belief that remains the keystone of the company's culture.