The popular home sharing platform Airbnb began in 2008 when two friends Brian Chesky and Nathan Blecharczyk shared their apartment—and air matress, hence the “Air” of Airbnb, with three travelers looking for a place to stay during a design conference that overbooked the city of San Francisco.
Over a decade later, it is estimated that the $87B company now accounts for over 20% of the vacation rental industry and yesterday Airbnb posted $1.9 billion in profit for 2022, its first full year in the black since 2018. This is a huge vote of confidence in the company’s durability in the midst of a broader economic slowdown.
Fueled by a surge in travel and listing daily rates that have grown 36 percent since 2019, Airbnb pulled in $8.4 billion in revenue last year — a stunning 40 percent increase from 2021 — as homeowners and investors scrambled to rent out spaces while the travel gridlock of the pandemic subsided due to the emergence of COVID vaccines.
Putting it mildly it was a banner year for travel and specifically Airbnb, a company that posted a loss of $352 million in 2021. And as you can see on my LoveRenoTahoe.com Airbnb ticker Airbnb shares jumped approximately 10 percent after yesterday’s earnings report to today’s 14% at $137.79 a share.
