Nathan Blecharczyk, cofounder of Airbnb, said the first year of starting up was a disaster for the peer-to-peer room and home rental company as they had not raised any venture capital and were on the verge of quitting.
Airbnb, cofounded by Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia and Blecharczyk in 2008, has since emerged as one of the pioneers of the sharing economy.
“The economic recession had just set in at the time,” said Blecharczyk who is the chief strategy officer at Airbnb. “In the first year, we raised money out of making breakfast cereals, and the tag was Obama Oats and Captain McCain (John McCain) with the hope that we will get publicity as it was election year,” he said while talking to Silicon-Valley based tech evangelist Guy Kawasaki in a fireside chat at the Global Business Summit here on Friday.
Blecharczyk said that profile, payments and preview helped Airbnb to build trust between the renters and the hosts in the initial years.
Talking about regulations in the sharing economy, which companies like Airbnb and Uber have had to grapple with, Blecharczyk said the industry was now establishing protocols with existing stakeholders.
“We have started working with cities on collecting hotel tax, for instance, which will amount to $1 billion now,” he said. “The idea is to help cities also grow with us and create micro entrepreneurship by giving the opportunity of self-employment to our hosts… We were building a long-term business, so we realised the government was a crucial partner to ensure our success.”
He said his firm will help create micro entrepreneurs in India by getting more homes under Airbnb. “We have also struck local partnerships, and rural has been a key area as we wanted to give to our travellers more customised, local and immersive experiences,” Blecharczyk said. This would contribute to the growth of rural economy, he said.
When Kawasaki asked Blecharczyk if Airbnb was a “hotel killer” or a sharing economy company, he said it was helping travellers to have an experience. “What makes out business sticky is the people associated with us,” he said. “The personal touch, the trust and hospitality that our hosts are able to display and the unique experiences of each of our homes is what makes Airbnb what it is today.”
He said the firm’s focus remains on travel and it has 500 million guests today. “That’s more than the top five hotel chains combined,” Blecharczyk said. “We want to expand geographically and we are doing it aggressively. I also believe the power of a marketplace can make these homes, which nobody would know about, discoverable to millions of people around the globe. I find that fascinating.”
India, where Airbnb started operations in 2016, is among the fastest growing markets for the firm.
It recently introduced Airbnb For Work to manage corporate travel and maximise employee productivity with business travel, offsites and team activities. As many as 6,500 customers in India have associated with it already. “The idea is to keep it inexpensive, personal and ultimately provide an experience to professionals to travel and connect,” Blecharczyk said.
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