Airbnb boss: "We're off course"

2023-05-14 06:20:00

The US rental platform Airbnb admits complicity in the shortage of rental housing. CEO Brian Chesky admitted in an interview with the German news magazine “Spiegel” that he had contributed to this. “If a city has too few affordable housing and many apartments are only available for short-term rentals, that certainly contributes to the problem,” said Chesky. Postscript: “We’ve contributed to problems over the past 15 years that I’m not proud of.”

The rental platform was recently “off course”, Chesky wants to lead it more towards private room rental. In the past, mainly private rooms were offered and booked on Airbnb. In the meantime, professional providers have also been available for a long time – whether hotels or apartments specially developed for rent on Airbnb. The prices are correspondingly hefty – depending on the location and the regulations that apply there.

“We gave people what they wanted. They wanted an entire apartment in Berlin, so they got it. They wanted a huge villa on Lake Tahoe, so we offered it to them,” Chesky said in an interview. The actual core product was neglected.

“It’s like Nike”

If the CEO has his way, the focus at Airbnb should again be more on renting individual rooms in inhabited apartments and houses. However, that does not mean that the platform no longer wants to work with professional providers. Chesky: “Everyone is welcome, including hotels. But that’s not our core product. It’s like Nike. They also sell casual wear, but what Nike really does is sportswear.”

Airbnb growth slowed at the beginning of the year. In the current quarter, the company expects sales growth of between 12 and 16 percent compared to the same period last year. Analysts had expected a better sales forecast. Airbnb’s most recent revenue was $1.8 billion, and the bottom line is that the rental platform earned $117 million. A year ago the numbers were still in the red.