Patel + Hotel owner here.

We are from Indian state Gujarat. Patel is the most common last name in Gujarat.

90+% of Patels I know immigrated to the USA through chain migration. My dad's sister-in-law's sister (A) & her husband came to the USA in last 60s early 70s. Sister (A) applied for the immigration visa for my dad's sister-in-law. My dad's sister-in-law and my dad's brother immigrated to the USA in the late 70s. My dad's brother applied immigration visa for all his brothers & sisters. My dad & his family (including me) immigrated to the USA in the late 90s.

Roughly 200+ of us were migrated to the USA because of the sister (A). Half of them speaks & understand very very basic English. They only have limited options for the job. Mom&Pop kind of motel is easy to run, only requires talking to a few people and its mostly same every day. So they work their butt off for a few years and buy a small motel.

Those who can speak little better English end up working at someone else's hotel when they move to the USA, and from there with the friend/family's help they buy their motel.

>>Patel is the most common last name in Gujarat.

Fellow Gujju here. It is "one" of the most common last names in Gujarat. Probably it might be the most common last name of Gujjus outside Gujarat but I doubt it is so inside the state.

The Gujaratis are known to be big on business as the bread and butter of life. Even the simplest of businesses is something they would rather pick up than learn an actual trade. Of the Gujaratis, the Patel's are known for being the biggest pursuers of business. Aside from being a common name, Patel is synonymous to owning a business.

One of the ways that Gujaratis come to America is use the investments route, sort of like investment chain migration. One member takes an investment, migrates, sets up business, profits, then sends the money back home, for others to travel in the same visa program. Then two people come, twice the profit, twice the pace of bringing people over. These business groups form around family bonds typically.

> sort of like investment chain migration

Most of us came to America through chain migration (Family F3/F4 Category)

In India, last names were usually based on your occupation. And iirc, Patels used to be farmers or merchants. It's the most common Gujarati surname. That's why you would see some people having "Motiwala" as a last name which literally translates to "Pearl merchant".

Source: have the 3rd most common Gujarati surname.

Patel here, Patel as a community has farming background, and usually are quite industrious people, and so are generally in the middle or upper middle class in India also. Most who are coming to USA already have good amount of money or somehow have access to it, but they do not have first world skill for high tech job or business, so for doing business, this is the only option, or grocery store or petrol pumps.

This community uses traditional/informal financing methods with members of their community with primarily "social reputation" at stake. This kind of financing not available to outsiders, and that kind of community effects are every where to be seen in many industries.

For example, there was an article about how Portuguese immigrants have sort of dominated Dunkin franchises.

1. Common Gujarati lastname

2. Good old fashioned nepotism

Patel is a common surname in one portion of India.