From 0 To $30 Billion Dollars: How Airbnb Is Revolutionising The Hospitality Industry
Founded in August of 2008 and based in San Francisco, California, Airbnb is now worth $30 billion dollars. Under Brian Chesky’s leadership, Airbnb stands at the forefront of the sharing economy and has expanded to over 3,000,000 listings in 191 countries.
Humble Beginnings:
In 2007, designers Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia couldn’t afford the rent on their San Francisco apartment. To make ends meet, they decided to turn their loft into a lodging space, but, as Gebbia explains, “We didn’t want to post on Craigslist because we felt it was too impersonal. Our entrepreneur instinct said ‘build your own site.’ So we did.”
There was a design conference coming to town and hotel space was limited, so they set up a simple website with pictures of their loft-turned-lodging space — complete with three air mattresses on the floor and the promise of a home-cooked breakfast in the morning. This site got them their first three renters, each one paying $80. After that first weekend they began receiving emails from people around the world asking when the site would be available for destinations like Buenos Aires, London, and Japan.
Forward to 2016 and here were some of their stats:
A big part of what makes Airbnb special is its accessibility. It markets itself with tag lines like “Belong Anywhere,” and uses imagery that suggests you can stay anywhere from a cozy apartment, to an airy loft, to a boat house…anywhere in the world.
The Dark Side Of Airbnb:
In recent years, Airbnb has had its fair share of controversies. You may be thinking why would an app that lets you rent out a free room have so much negativity around it, but there is a very real concern regarding the safety of this platform. This video goes into more detail about why you should be more cautious when using Airbnb:
What The Future Of This Industry:
Hotel companies will start to turn into technology businesses that allow more space for culture and creativity. Airbnb and other peer-to-peer sites will diversify the accommodations they offer in many cities.
As for the consumer side, the first expectation is that numbers will grow. Lower rates will lead to increased visitor numbers. This will be true especially for visitors from emerging markets, who will have their own specific expectations for each offer.
