Big companies invest in the sharing economy

Sharing economy and tourism: the big companies are investing in the collaborative economy in their sector, led by hotel chains who are training their eyes on the hospitality sharing economy.

The most eye-catching example is that of AccorHotels, one of the biggest hotel chains in the world, which in the last two years has spent €148 million buying Onefinestay, the British luxury short-stay rental website, 30% of the Argentine company Oasis Collection, France’s Squarebreak (for €3 million) and American luxury villa company Travel Keys. All of these companies are innovative and specialise in temporary leases for high-end properties. And that’s not all. AccorHotels’ management arm is planning on investing tens of millions of Euro to take on the US giant Airbnb by driving the international development of Onefinestay. The company’s aim is to meet client needs by offering a more complete product range – not by acting as an intermediary in the mould of Airbnb, but by providing a service that offers high-end homes with features comparable to proper hotels. It’s similar to the business model of Italy’s Sweetguest, which optimises its customers’ Airbnb ads and oversees the management of their short-term leases by providing check-in and check-out services, cleaning, high-end linen and other benefits. Sweetguest has received investment from IH Hotels, which now boasts 11 sites in locations including Milan, Rome and Florence. For IH Hotels, their stake in Sweetguest is a complementary – not competing – interest.

In 2015, Hyatt Hotels and Wyndham Hotels invested in companies competing with Airbnb. Whyndham – which encompasses brands such as Ramada – invested in LoveHomeSwap, a private house-swapping company, with non-official sources talking of figures in the realm of $7.5 million. Given the ceaseless expansion of Airbnb, the only option may be a “if you can’t beat them, join them” approach. Or in this case – buy them!

Sharing economy and mobility

By the looks of things, this trend in not just limited to the world of hospitality. The trailblazer in the mobility sector was Avis Autonoleggi, who grasped the potential of the sharing economy back in 2013 and set about investing accordingly. The acquisition of Zipcar, one of the leading car sharing companies in the world, was worth around $500 million. Next to jump on the bandwagon was the Europcar Group, which – after buying car sharing company Ubeeqo in 2014 – turned its attentions to the Italian market. Through Ubeeqo, it bought GuidaMi, the Milan-based car sharing operator with over 150 vehicles and special parking spaces all over the city. Once again, the strategy was centred around satisfying the demands of end users. The focus is no longer on renting or sharing cars, but a “car using” approach lasting for minutes, hours, days or longer, according to the needs of the customer. This has been made possible thanks a complete service range – it’s no coincidence that the giant owns 25% of Car2Go, Europe’s biggest car sharing provider.

Even the “classic” real-estate sector is pushing the boundaries. Real Web, the Italian company that owns Immobiliare.it, has invested €5 million in Housing Anywhere, a platform offering solutions for people who go to study abroad. This international website allows students from all over the world to search for short-term leases. To guard against fraud, all transactions are handled through the website, while the down payment of the first month’s rent is only transferred once the user has seen the space. This is a business model which takes the sharing economy principle and adds a professional edge. The investment will allow Housing Anywhere to expand into new countries and cities in the USA and Western Europe, where the EU’s Erasmus exchange programme sees around 270,000 students study abroad every year.