10 years ago, the thought of letting a random stranger sleep in your house was an absurd idea. However, That’s exactly what Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky did in 2007. They were struggling to pay rent in San Francisco and decided to rent out three air mattresses in the loft of their apartment during a weeklong conference in the city that made hotel rooms very scarce and expensive. They then decided to try to build it into a business. They struggled to get funding for a long time, with many investors not seeing it as a feasible idea. However, they eventually got funding from venture capitalist Paul Graham. This allowed them to get the capital they needed to finally start growing the business. They shortened the name from Air Bed & Breakfast to Airbnb and created a sleek new logo to improve the company’s image as it was starting to grow. The founders of the business even stayed at every single Airbnb in New York City to build relationships with the hosts and build loyalty to the business. Everything was looking up until the company started facing regulatory issues with cities that did not want their residents renting homes out as Airbnb’s. This coincided with a few incidents where guests trashed the host’s home and led to distrust among the hosts. Airbnb had to combat the regulatory issues by collecting hotel taxes and distributing them to cities, whole it built back up trust with its hosts by providing hosts with a $1 million coverage policy against damages. These initiatives, along with acquisitions of other companies and additions to the services and options provided to customers have again allowed Airbnb to move forward and grow the business. I like Airbnb’s story of an example of perseverance by the entrepreneurs. They faced rejection and roadblocks every step of the way, but they always overcame them and never gave up on their vision.
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-airbnb-was-founded-a-visual-history-2016-2#since-2016-airbnb-has-been-expanding-its-services-through-a-series-of-high-end-launches-and-acquisitions-adjacent-to-its-main-service-28
Interesting post. I never knew the company faced so many challenges but it is great to see how far and how big they have come despite their obstacles.
It is interesting to see all the problems they had to overcome to create a successful business. Most people are unaware of the problems the businesses they use have had to overcome.
Ha I love that their idea came out of a desperate call to pay their rent. I guess it’s a good reminder that good ideas can literally come to you at any random moment.
This is the perfect example of how success can come during really hard times if you find the right people to work with. The idea of Airbnb was unheard of and kind of farfetched however, Gebbia and Chesky made it into a reality! I love this story and I am glad they overcame their difficulties and made Airbnb so successful.
That’s a cool story. I didn’t know Airbnb had all those struggles, but they persevered and got through them. Now they are a big success. This shows how many challenges entrepreneurs go through and if you want to be successful you have to face them.
This really shows how certain personal problems can ultimately lead to huge things. The idea around AirBnB is very unique and very smart. People with nice luxury houses or a regular house can make money off of it by renting it out. I personally have never used one because I’m a little skeptic of it but for most people it is a good way to find a place to stay.
Although I personally have never stayed in an AirBnB I have heard many good things. I plan on trying it in the future. it was a very creative idea and I really enjoyed reading this.
I love how I have heard about this product because it proves to me that it is truly successful. Also the fact that I heard good things is great because the word of mouth really shows their success.
Awesome stuff. Airbnb has changed much of the world we live in and changed models for businesses in the future whether we know it or not. With this said, it is interesting to hear some insight into it.
Nice job. I have to admit I never really knew the story of how AirBnB was founded so seeing that was really interesting. Also great point about how mentioning the perseverance and adaptability necessary for entrepreneurs.