Surface Magazine just republished this 2016 interview with Arne Sorenson. Sorenson was CEO of Marriott, but sadly passed away this week after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
One of the questions he was asked in the interview was about the rise of Airbnb. This is how he responded:
"It’s fascinating. I hope we’re not as exposed to this as the taxi industry is right now. Taxis in many cities are awful and hard to find. So here comes Uber with a better product. In the hotel business, I still think we can deliver better service, so we don’t have quite the same risk. Airbnb is fascinating. Increasingly, it’s less personal, and there are more dedicated units. The more they get into that space, they become a competitor. The story isn’t over, but we’re set up to compete well."
Taxis were awful and that business model is done for good. But how do Sorenson's comments about Airbnb hold up today?
Marriott ended up launching its own home sharing platform in 2019, but it's comparatively small as I understand it. There are also no shortage of
Surface Magazine just republished this 2016 interview with Arne Sorenson. Sorenson was CEO of Marriott, but sadly passed away this week after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
One of the questions he was asked in the interview was about the rise of Airbnb. This is how he responded:
"It’s fascinating. I hope we’re not as exposed to this as the taxi industry is right now. Taxis in many cities are awful and hard to find. So here comes Uber with a better product. In the hotel business, I still think we can deliver better service, so we don’t have quite the same risk. Airbnb is fascinating. Increasingly, it’s less personal, and there are more dedicated units. The more they get into that space, they become a competitor. The story isn’t over, but we’re set up to compete well."
Taxis were awful and that business model is done for good. But how do Sorenson's comments about Airbnb hold up today?
Marriott ended up launching its own home sharing platform in 2019, but it's comparatively small as I understand it. There are also no shortage of
But there are also headwinds. Barcelona, for example, is looking to permanently ban people from renting out private rooms on a short-term basis (< 30 days). This is even if the rest of the home remains owner occupied.
So what use cases remain? Only extended stays?
If I look at my own pre-pandemic travel record, I am largely in the hotel camp. I like the consistency and I like certain brands. But maybe that's just me getting older. What do you all think? Leave a comment below.
But there are also headwinds. Barcelona, for example, is looking to permanently ban people from renting out private rooms on a short-term basis (< 30 days). This is even if the rest of the home remains owner occupied.
So what use cases remain? Only extended stays?
If I look at my own pre-pandemic travel record, I am largely in the hotel camp. I like the consistency and I like certain brands. But maybe that's just me getting older. What do you all think? Leave a comment below.
Equinox Holdings operates, among other things, 99 fitness clubs in the US, the UK, and Canada. And this June, the first
I am sure that many of you have been eagerly waiting for an old Brutalist wine warehouse to come on the market near Bordeaux, and so here is a listing from Espaces Atypiques. The site is over 1 hectare. The ground floor is about 2,000 square meters. And the central atrium space is some 25m tall. It's listed for €550,000 and I reckon it needs a bit of work.
I don't know where exactly it's located in Saint-Émilion, France (nor have I ever been) and I can't vouch for the condition of the existing building in any way shape or form, but I do think it would be a lot of fun to turn a Brutalist structure like this into a hotel, restaurant, and creative event space. Public gathering space(s) in the atrium; private rooms along the perimeter.
will open in a 92-storey tower in New York's Hudson Yards. It will occupy floors 24 to 38. Below it will be Equinox's corporate headquarters. And above it will be residential condominiums.
Supposedly, the brand emerged out of a trend that the company saw over a decade ago: Its fitness club members were choosing to stay in hotels based on their proximity to an Equinox. They simply weren't satisfied with the gym offerings at other luxury hotels.
The full back story, which can be found here in WSJ. Magazine, is a good read. I think their ambition of trying to "own sleep" is a clever one. They are pitching their rooms as dark, quiet, and cool. I am sure other hospitality brands have tried to do this, but Equinox is clearly taking this directive very seriously. They even sponsored a sleep study with UCLA.
This feels like a natural extension of their existing brand. Equinox is focused on regeneration. What better way to accomplish that than through a good night's sleep?
Image: 35 Hudson Yards via Related-Oxford
I am sure that many of you have been eagerly waiting for an old Brutalist wine warehouse to come on the market near Bordeaux, and so here is a listing from Espaces Atypiques. The site is over 1 hectare. The ground floor is about 2,000 square meters. And the central atrium space is some 25m tall. It's listed for €550,000 and I reckon it needs a bit of work.
I don't know where exactly it's located in Saint-Émilion, France (nor have I ever been) and I can't vouch for the condition of the existing building in any way shape or form, but I do think it would be a lot of fun to turn a Brutalist structure like this into a hotel, restaurant, and creative event space. Public gathering space(s) in the atrium; private rooms along the perimeter.
will open in a 92-storey tower in New York's Hudson Yards. It will occupy floors 24 to 38. Below it will be Equinox's corporate headquarters. And above it will be residential condominiums.
Supposedly, the brand emerged out of a trend that the company saw over a decade ago: Its fitness club members were choosing to stay in hotels based on their proximity to an Equinox. They simply weren't satisfied with the gym offerings at other luxury hotels.
The full back story, which can be found here in WSJ. Magazine, is a good read. I think their ambition of trying to "own sleep" is a clever one. They are pitching their rooms as dark, quiet, and cool. I am sure other hospitality brands have tried to do this, but Equinox is clearly taking this directive very seriously. They even sponsored a sleep study with UCLA.
This feels like a natural extension of their existing brand. Equinox is focused on regeneration. What better way to accomplish that than through a good night's sleep?
