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Sonder partners with Off Their Plate and Lyft to support restaurant workers
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: Hospitality start-up Sonder has announced a partnership with Lyft and Off Their Plate to help support US restaurant workers. The company has committed to donating meals, and committing five meals and a $50 credit towards a stay with each booking made through a special link. As the global pandemic has spread across the United […]
Sonder in talks over $150-175m investment
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: Short-term rental apartment operator Sonder is reportedly in discussions with prospective investors Fidelity and WestCap Group about raising funding for the company in the region of $150 million to $175 million. The hospitality unicorn, which signs multi-year leases in residential buildings and rents out units with hotel standard amenities for short-term stays, is believed […]
Zeus Living joins growing list of companies to lay off staff
Reading Time: < 1 minuteUS: Furnished apartment provider Zeus Living has joined the growing list of companies in the real estate and travel sectors to lay off a significant portion of its staff. The firm, which provides furnished spaces for business travellers primarily, is laying off around 80 people from its workforce, which represents roughly 30 per cent of […]
Sonder cuts workforce by one third
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: San Francisco-based hospitality startup Sonder has announced it has laid off 22 per cent of its workforce and furloughed an additional 11 per cent of its staff as the reality of the coronavirus impact on the travel industry bites hard. According to The Information, those made redundant or furloughed accounts for up to 400 […]
Airbnb weighs up distressed asset acquisitions
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: After news emerged last week that Airbnb had received “significant” interest from private investors ahead of going public, sources have also revealed that the company may look to purchase struggling short-term rental providers who have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Airbnb’s board convened last week to discuss a wide range of options, […]
Sonder plans to open largest offering in New York
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: Hospitality startup Sonder is continuing with plans to open its largest ever offering in new York. The group has planned for a late spring or early summer 2020 opening, in spite of the threat posed to hospitality by the coronavirus. Its latest property will open in a building owned by the Moinian group, a […]
Frits van Paasschen joins board of directors at Sonder
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: Sonder has announced Frits van Paasschen, a seasoned global executive and former CEO and president of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, is joining its board of directors. In recent months, van Paasschen has served as an informal advisor to Sonder as it applied powerful technology and “revolutionary” design to launch a new category of alternative […]
Denver building leased by Sonder sold for reported $6.25m
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: A Denver building leased by hospitality start up Sonder has been sold for three times its initial purchase price. Run as The Essex Hotel by Sonder, the former hotel building is noted to be the first Airbnb-hotel hybrid of its kind. The building, which was first purchased by a Denver based property firm GM […]
Boston closes possible short-term rental property loophole
Reading Time: 2 minutesUS: The city of Boston, which introduced legislation against short-term rentals last year, closed a possible loophole earlier this week. The city’s zoning commission rejected the efforts of property investors in 11 city neighbourhoods to rebrand apartment clusters as “executive suites”. The current law requires that companies apply for permits from the zoning board if […]
The short-term rental industry 2020: Ones to Watch
Reading Time: 9 minutesWorldwide: Following the release of our ten predictions for the short-term rental industry in 2020 this time last week, we have identified ten figures that we believe are ‘ones to watch’ in the space over the next 12 months. Making up the list are a mixture of well-established and up-and-coming names in the short-term rental […]