Airbnb Partners With Amex GBT, BCD and Carlson For The Corporate Market
by Jessica MontevagoAirbnb is partnering with three travel management companies in an effort to attract the lucrative corporate travel market.
The company on Tuesday announced that its corporate-focused platform, Airbnb for Business, will team with American Express Global Business Travel, BCD Travel and Carlson Wagonlit Travel, allowing clients to book stays directly through Airbnb. In addition, AmEx GBT will add Airbnb as a preferred supplier, allowing Airbnb to offer negotiated rates and business expenditure tracking.
The three travel management companies are top players in the corporate market, with a whopping combined $78 billion in travel sales. AmEx GBT reported $30 billion in sales in 2015; Wagonlit Travel and BCD sold about $24 billion each.
Their integration with Airbnb will go live in the United States over the next few weeks, and expand into other countries later this year.
The news could mean trouble for hotels, whose core customers have been business travelers. Business travel spending on Airbnb has already grown 261% in the United States and 249% internationally in 2015, according to a report from Certify.
