NEWS STORIES FEATURES VIDEOS
Editorial comment
15•07•19 Welcome to the latest Short Term Rentalz weekly newsletter!
• One of the key takeaways from this week was the news of Sonder's $225m investment and expansion plans in Chicago to take over space in two more downtown properties.
The fourth round of private equity funding, led by Valor Equity, Westcap and Tao Capital Partners, follows a $135m funding round last year and in that time, the firm has accelerated its growth by tripling the number of available units to rent on its platform to 8,500 spaces in 20 cities worldwide.
As the company also prepares to expand its Chicago product line with a further 92 units at 808 S. Michigan Ave. and 48 spaces at 330 S. Wells, Sonder is looking to shape the future of hospitality by offering furnished spaces that are rentable for between one night and two years and cater to travellers' preferences for hotel-like quality facilities and amenities.
While market competitors like Lyric make waves in the rental space, Cushman & Wakefield managing director Susan Tjarksen says that trend will continue as landlords realise the potential income benefits compared to what they can get from monthly renters alone.
News of the investment, which helped the firm achieve 'unicorn' billion-dollar brand status, will bring credibility to the business and its CEO, Francis Davidson, in efforts to establish Sonder as the dominant hospitality brand ahead of Airbnb-backed Lyric, Stay Alfred and Domio. It will also allow it to tweak its offering with additional services that are consistent within hotels, like smartphone-only check ins, to suit the evolving needs of modern travellers.
Earlier this year, Sonder announced it was opening its first Airbnb-hotel hybrid in Denver and taking over ownership of four Philadelphia properties that were being converted into apartments.
In other news, luggage storage facilities are an increasingly sought-over commodity in rentals and one firm, Stasher, has just announced its launch in 15+ US cities in signs of international expansion.
Speaking exclusively to ShortTermRentalz, CCO Anthony Collias and head of partnerships, Catherine Ainsley, spoke about growing demand for storage in rentals and bridging the gap with hotel-like services. Check out the full interview at the link here.
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Paul Stevens, reporter
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