Hartford Business Journal

18 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JULY 27, 2026 FOCUS | HOSPITALITY Anand Patel (left) and Keni Patel recently purchased the Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Danbury. HBJ Photo | Steve Laschever Growing Influence Indian American hotel owners reshape CT's lodging industry employing about 1 million people. "The success of Indian American hotel owners is one of the great small business stories in America," said Laura Lee Blake, president and CEO of AAHOA. "What started with a relatively small number of families has grown over several decades into a commu- nity that owns a majority of the hotels in the U.S." Indian families began buying and leasing U.S. hotels in the early 1940s, often purchasing modest properties they improved through sweat equity while living and working on-site, Blake said. Over time, relatives and friends followed the same path, creating a network that accelerated Indian American ownership throughout the industry. Now, second- and third-generation owners are taking family businesses in a new direction. Rather than simply operating small motels, many are acquiring larger branded hotels, raising capital through more formal investment partner- ships and using technology and data analytics to grow larger portfolios, industry leaders said. Family roots Keni and Anand Patel arrived at the hotel business through different paths, but both were shaped by entrepreneurial families. After immigrating to Connecticut in 1982, Keni Patel's parents initially lived with his uncle while helping operate a 50-room motel on Whitney Avenue in Hamden. A few years later, they saved enough to buy a 17-room motel in Bethel that now operates as an Econo Lodge. They have since expanded it to 45 rooms. Keni and his sister grew up on the property. Back then, he said he couldn't wait to pursue something else. "I went off to college and I said, 'I'm never doing this thing,'" Patel said. Yet, hospitality had a way of pulling him back. After earning bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical and computer engineering from Boston University, Keni built a career in technology and data science, holding positions at Raytheon, MIT and Boeing before becoming vice president of data science and artificial intelligence at Miami-based hospitality investment firm Driftwood Capital. Throughout that time, he main- tained an ownership stake in his family's motel. As Keni started his own family, he began viewing hotels differently. He said he wanted to build a business that could create a lasting legacy for his two daughters, now 7 and 9. In 2018, Keni joined his father, Manharbhai Patel, and three other relatives in purchasing the 78-room Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham in Bethel for about $3.8 million. Anand Patel's parents owned a laundromat and convenience store before expanding into gas stations in Norwalk and Stratford. Anand initially pursued a legal career By Michael Puffer mpuffer@hartfordbusiness.com W hen Keni Patel was growing up, weekends weren't for Little League or family outings. They were for cleaning rooms, checking in guests, mowing the lawn and fixing whatever broke at the 17-room Bethel motel his parents bought after immigrating from India. "My sister and I lived literally in an apartment behind the front desk," said Patel, now 44. "I hated the business when I was growing up because it took away my weekends. Summer was the worst because summer is a busy time." Patel's perspective has changed. In June, he and longtime friend Anand Patel — no relation — paid about $12 million for the 79-room Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Danbury. The acquisition added to Patel's existing ownership interests in two Bethel hotels and marks the beginning of what the partners hope will become a much larger portfolio. The Patels are among a growing number of Indian American hotel owners expanding their investments in Connecticut, where the community has become a dominant force in the industry. A Hartford Business Journal review of CoStar data found at least a dozen hotels changed hands state- wide during the first six months of 2026. Buyers in most of those deals were of Indian heritage, including seven purchases by buyers with the last name Patel — one of the most common surnames among people from the western Indian state of Gujarat. An Oxford Economics study commissioned by the Asian American Hotel Owners Association found its members owned 112 Connecticut hotels in 2022, accounting for about one-third of the state's hotel inven- tory. Nationally, AAHOA members owned about 60% of the nation's hotel stock in 2022, representing roughly 3.2 million guest rooms and Will the next generation stay in the hotel business? By Michael Puffer mpuffer@hartfordbusiness.com I ndian American entrepre- neurs have become the dominant force in the U.S. hotel industry, but one industry leader believes that success may eventually lead future generations down different career paths. The Asian American Hotel Owners Association estimates its members own about 60% of the nation's hotels. Zulfi Jafri, AAHOA's chief representative for Connecticut, said he expects that share to climb to roughly 70% within the next few years as more Indian American investors continue acquiring hotels. But Jafri, a Darien-based hotel investor, also expects that trend to eventually recede as subsequent generations pursue careers in other fields. His family is a good example. One of Jafri's sons is a doctor, while another is in medical school. Jafri said he knows many Indian American hotel owners who struggle to interest their children in the family business. He expects immigrants from another corner of the globe to eventually take a dominant stake in the industry. "At some point, we will see a generational gap with immigrant populations," Jafri said. "There was a time in this country when most of the pizza places were owned by Italians. Now most of the pizza places are owned by Albanians."

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