Why motel business is getting Gujaratis killed in US

Motels and gas stations are very successful businesses, where the cashflow is steady—a reason why Gujarati business owners have grown exponentially in the US since the 1960s.

Motels, like other hospitality sectors, are labour-intensive. Through the decades, the Patels have taken over a motel, used a room or two for their families, and used family members to run the business. Making money from one motel, they generally expanded their “dhandho” (business).

Today, despite comprising just 1% of the US population, Gujaratis control over 60% of the US’ motels, according to Amar Shah, the director of The Patel Motel Story, a short film premiered at New York’s Tribeca Festival and is showing at festivals across the US. The short film explores how Gujarati immigrants, especially Patels, built America’s motel empire—highlighting their grit, family networks, and the struggles behind their success.

But motels and gas stations, especially budget independents in remote or low-income zones, are “magnets for crime”, a 2021 USA Today investigation revealed.

The investigative report revealed that motels receive a disproportionate level of police calls (911 emergency calls). A reason for this is that motels often accommodate guests in transit, which fosters anonymity, and the risk of patrons linked to illicit activities.

There are also reports that suggest that confrontations between motel owners and long-term lodgers over unpaid dues are common and have, in the past, even led to shootings. Botched robberies, which often result in shootouts, also plague motels, gas stations and convenience stores in remote areas.

FACTORS THAT MAKE MOTEL BUSINESS IN THE US RISKY

Drug overdose cases in motels are fairly common, and Gujaratis—who own a majority of these establishments in the US—often bear the burden of dealing with the crime scenes, including overdose deaths, and facing potential lawsuits linked to human trafficking, for which motels are notorious.

Several posts on X have highlighted lax security at Indian-owned motels, citing missing cameras, faulty locks, and chronic understaffing—often a cost-cutting measure. Users also noted that in many such motels, front desks double as living rooms for the owners’ families, exposing them to risks.

Critics say poorly managed motels in high-crime neighbourhoods can turn entire areas into “no-go zones”.

While these businesses have brought success to many, they also come with serious risks tied to how they are run.

HOW PATELS CAME TO RULE AMERICA’S MOTEL INDUSTRY

The grip of Gujarati Patels in the US motel sector began in the mid-1960s itself.

Gujaratis, known for their strong community support in India and abroad, have built a vast business empire in the US over the years—often reinvesting their earnings and supporting fellow community members instead of upgrading their personal lifestyles, a sacrifice they have carried forward for generations.

By the 1990s, their hold on the US’ motel industry grew to 50%. In 1999, the New York Times highlighted this in its article “A Patel Motel Cartel?”

But the foundation of the Gujarati community’s hold in the hospitality sector was laid in the mid-1930s.

Kanji Manchhu Desai, hailed as the “godfather of Indian-owned hotels in the US”, arrived in the US as an illegal immigrant from Trinidad in 1934 and became the first Patel hotelier in the US, according to Mahendra K Doshi, a journalist who has been documenting stories of hotel-owning families in his book, Surat to San Francisco: How the Patels from Gujarat Established the Hotel Business in California, 1942-1960.

During World War II, he looked after a hotel in Sacramento after its Japanese-American owner was moved to an internment camp.

In the post-war US, Desai leased Hotel Goldfield in San Francisco, where he housed arriving Gujarati immigrants, offered handshake loans, and advised: “If you’re a Patel, lease a hotel.”

His mentorship sparked a chain reaction, with families pooling resources to acquire properties, living on-site to cut costs, and reinvesting profits into expansion. A trend that still continues.

By the 1950s and 1960s, as US immigration reforms post-1965 eased entry, Gujaratis flocked to the industry.

The strategy of the Gujaratis emphasised “paying it forward”. Loans weren’t repaid but funnelled to the next relative for another motel purchase.

An Idaho entrepreneur, Nathan Barry, detailed in an X thread, Indian families in the 1950s immigrated with family aid, worked tirelessly, and stockpiled earnings for more acquisitions.

Venture capitalist Sieva Kozinsky noted on X: “The Patels built a $52-billion motel empire in 70 years.”

FROM ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO BUSINESS MASTERS

The key to Gujaratis’ dominance in the US was collective buying and family labour, slashing overheads, and undercutting competitors.

Many Gujaratis migrated to the US as illegal immigrants but went on to build an empire.

As one X post explained, three early Patels—Nanalal Patel, Kanji Manchhu Desai, and D Lal—entered illegally via Panama and Trinidad, then pooled resources to buy motels, fire staff, and employ their family, driving down prices and acquiring distressed properties.

Networks like the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA), with 20,000 members owning 33,000 properties, amplified this through conventions and advocacy. The AAHOA is a Gujarati-dominated body.

Today, Gujarati owners of motels, gas stations, and convenience stores, generate billions in revenue and millions of jobs.

Pop culture references, such as Hasan Minhaj’s Netflix quips in his many comedy specials, show the gritty rise of Gujaratis in the US.

While Gujarati-owned motels and businesses in the US are one of the biggest success stories of the community abroad, their visibility and concentration also make them targets. There is racism, along with resentment against Indians even in the remotest corners of the US, which exposes owners to robberies, shootings, and even deaths.

In recent years, community leaders have pointed to a surge in hate crimes and anti-India sentiment, particularly in smaller American towns. With their visible success in owning motels and gas stations, Gujaratis often face resentment and stereotyping, making them easy targets of racial hostility.

Source : https://www.indiatoday.in/world/us-news/story/gujarati-motels-usa-patel-gas-stations-convenience-stores-us-gujaratis-killed-shootouts-drug-overdose-murders-indians-2798542-2025-10-07