Airbnb not an issue, says Mantra CEO
Airbnb might be challenging some in the hotel industry but Mantra chief executive officer Bob East doesn’t seem to be too fazed about it.
It’s simply not an issue for Mantra.
“People were saying two years ago that Airbnb would have a big impact. Those same people are not saying that any more," Mr East told The Australian Financial Review.
He said the impact on Mantra had “been so minimal, we have not felt it at all."
He dismissed warnings from Citi analysts that Airbnb could affect Mantra's capacity to lift earnings in its key Gold Coast region during next year's Commonwealth Games. According to Citi, Airbnb will be putting Mantra's Breakfree holiday apartments business under pressure.
Not so, said East.
"On the Gold Coast where we have 5000 rooms in the market but there's only 100 or 200 on Airbnb. If you are a group or an inbound traveller, chances are you are staying in a hotel room or a serviced apartment," East told the newspaper.
Mr East’s remarks are in contrast to industry concerns about Airbnb.
Tourism Accommodation Australia wants to see Airbnb regulated, but so far, federal and state governments have shown no interest in going down this direction.
And the Accor group is actually taking on Airbnb.
AccorHotels global CEO Sebastien Bazin is taking his group into Airbnb’s territory of the private rental market.
Accor is adapting its business model to compete and acquiring digital businesses and investing in platforms such as Onefinestay, Travel Keys, Squarebreak and John Paul, a digital concierge business.
Meanwhile Mr East’s comments are unlikely to dispel market speculation about his own future movements, given all the years he has been at Mantra.
Talk around the traps is that he will be the next chairman of the federal government's Tourism Australia, after Tony South's decision to step down.
East however rejected any such suggestion, saying he was "absolutely not leaving Mantra (and his role as CEO) to join the Tourism Australia board".
by Leon Gettler, August 31st 2017
