With close to two decades of overall work experience, including over 15 years in the hospitality industry - predominantly in corporate marketing within hotels, Abhinav is a seasoned marketing and communications leader specializing in brand strategy, digital & loyalty marketing, public relations, and event management. Abhinav’s expertise spans luxury brand development, digital marketing & transformation, media planning, and loyalty program design & implementation, enabling him to drive impactful marketing campaigns and business growth across multiple regions, including India, the Middle East, the UK, and Sri Lanka. Today, he leads one of Marriott International’s largest on-property marketing team in the UAE as the Director of Marketing & Communications at W Abu Dhabi- Yas Island.
Throughout his career, Abhinav has played a pivotal role in establishing and elevating luxury & lifestyle brands by designing concepts, positioning products effectively, and executing high impact marketing strategies. His leadership experience extends to both corporate/organization wide and property-level roles, including hotel pre-openings, where Abhinav have successfully developed and led marketing initiatives. Further, his expertise in marketing to ultra/high-net worth consumer segments has been instrumental in creating personalized, high-value brand experiences that drive customer loyalty and engagement
Abhinav has an in-depth understanding of media channels, including digital, print, television, radio, and public relations, for advertising and promotional activities. Additionally, his strong network of media connections across the UAE, the Middle East, India, and the UK has facilitated the successful launch and sustained growth of luxury & premium brands. His ability to manage large-scale media budgets, ranging from $4 million to $20 million in various assignments, has allowed him to optimize marketing investments and maximize brand exposure.
In his preceding corporate role, Abhinav was the Group Head of Marketing & Communications for ITC Hotels’ (exclusive franchisee of the ‘Luxury Collection’ brand of Marriott International in India & Sri Lanks) $450M mix-use development in Colombo, Sri Lanka leading all aspects of marketing strategy and execution for hotel pre-opening, branded residences and commercial spaces.
A significant achievement in Abhinav’s career was leading the establishment of the digital marketing and e-commerce department for ITC Hotels for its 'Luxury Collection' portfolio of hotels in India. In this capacity, he developed and executed performance-driven digital marketing strategies, including search engine marketing (SEM), pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns, search engine optimization (SEO), display advertising, and social media marketing coupled with chain-wide brand operations. Abhinav’s work in digital transformation has enabled businesses to enhance their online presence, drive direct consumer engagement, and boost revenue through targeted digital initiatives.
Another notable accomplishment was launching one of India’s most recognized hospitality loyalty programs - Club ITC and Club ITC Culinaire. These programs have successfully strengthened customer retention, increased brand advocacy, and driven significant revenue growth by offering exclusive experiences and personalized rewards to members.
Beyond digital marketing and brand strategy, Abhinav has extensive experience in channel and trade marketing, including organizing roadshows, events, and pop-up activations and forging sponsorships & partnerships with like-minded brands. He has also managed enterprise-wide projects such as website and e-commerce platform development, CRM implementation using Siebel, and product information system (PIM) deployments. These initiatives have contributed to operational efficiency and seamless customer interactions across various touchpoints.
Additionally, Abhinav’s experience in working with leading global agencies including Wunderman Thompson, Publicis, MSL, 160over90, GroupM, and Wavemaker has enabled me to leverage world-class marketing expertise and execute high-impact campaigns. Managing multi-geographical marketing operations has further honed my ability to navigate complex business environments and drive collaboration across diverse teams.
Abhinav is a dynamic leader who takes pride in managing highly motivated, multicultural teams within complex matrix structures. He is known for fostering innovation and consistently delivering strong results in competitive markets. His recent accolades include the most prestigious President’s Award for Marketing Excellence across EMEA at the Marriott Global ELITE Awards 2025, recognition in the Marketing Power List 2025 – 101 Best Hotel Marketeers in the Middle East by Hotelier Middle East, and Best Hotel Marketing Team across EMEA at the Marriott Global ELITE Awards 2024. He was also named among the top nine nominees across the Middle East and GCC for the Rockstar Commercial Awards by HSMAI 2025. Abhinav’s ability to seamlessly combine strategic vision with executional excellence has consistently positioned brands for sustained, long-term success.
Abhinav looks forward to leveraging his experience and expertise to drive meaningful marketing and business growth opportunities in the future.
