Don’t Expect Marriott’s Homesharing Business to Compete With Airbnb Just Yet
Marriott took a big leap in launching its own short-term rental business to take on Airbnb. But it’s definitely still too early to expect the world’s largest hotel chain to challenge on that front.
Marriott knows two things for certain about its homesharing business launched back in April: The offering is still tiny compared to market rivals, and Marriott Bonvoy, the industry's largest loyalty offering at 133 million users, will likely be the catalyst for its growth.
Yet the hotelier does not have any idea how large the ancillary business will actually become, CEO Arne Sorenson said on an earnings call last week.
"We're optimistic about the future, but we don't really have any forecast for you yet," he said.
