“I had tried to create too many things at the same time,” the Airbnb boss explained to AFP, who wants to refocus the platform on its core business, home rentals and guarantees for hosts, leaving possible diversification for later.
“We’re going to go into a recession, if we’re not already there,” Brian Chesky said, referring to rising house prices and a slowing global economy.
“We have to help people earn money” by renting all or part of their home, “because we know that for many rents or mortgages are an important expense,” he added.
Vacations, the platform’s favorite mania
To encourage people to get started, Airbnb on Wednesday unveiled a new device that offers neophytes the help of a “superhost” who, for payment from the company, can provide tips and advice.
Another first aimed at reassuring future hosts, the platform now offers identity verification for all travelers who book in the 35 most active countries on Airbnb, and plans to roll it out to all its markets next spring.
The group has also increased the damage covered by its AirCover insurance from $1 million to $3 million, and has implemented a system to identify reservations that could lead to parties, the platform’s favorite craze.
For example, a reservation for the next day, by young people, in the same city where they live, will thus alert Airbnb that can block it to avoid a possible party.
“We must be affordable” in terms of fares, Brian Chesky also insisted, to allow consumers to travel despite the deteriorating economic situation.
In early November, the San Francisco group announced the December launch of an option that allows a host to display the full rental price, all expenses included.
Airbnb will also offer hosts, in early 2023, tools to better calibrate their rates and facilitate discounts.
Rental real estate in focus
Shaken by the coronavirus pandemic, which forced the group to lay off a quarter of its workforce in 2020, Airbnb had to review its priorities.
“We had to return to our main activity,” admitted the head and co-founder of this platform whose name has already passed into common language.
However, Brian Chesky believes that Airbnb will diversify in the long run. In five to 10 years, “hopefully, we’ll be doing a lot more than hosting travelers,” he says.
The entrepreneur intends, in particular, to relaunch “experiences”, these activities that are offered to travelers in their place of stay, in addition to their accommodation.
“I think it can become a great business,” enthuses the manager, “but it will take longer than I thought. (…) The pandemic has completely changed our trajectory and we have changed our priorities”.
It also turns out, he says, that “it’s harder to match supply and demand” for these “experiences” than it is for housing.
Inevitable
The 40-year-old, originally from upstate New York, is also considering leasing general real estate. 20% of the nights reserved on the platform are for stays longer than a month, he recalls.
“We could allow the signing of leases on the platform or the contract (rental in the current Airbnb format) could be worth a lease”, imagines Brian Chesky.
“The one-year lease (the most common duration in the United States) is a rare thing, which will no longer be necessary in the future,” launches the manager. “We will continue to add new protections for the user and for the host,” in order to offer both parties security comparable to a traditional lease.
“I think it’s inevitable that we’re going in that direction,” says Brian Chesky.
Source: BFM TV
