'Samara' is a New Design Studio Division from Airbnb
Laura McQuarrie — August 4, 2016 — Business
References: designweek & samara.airbnb
'Samara' is a new design studio division launched by Airbnb that will function as an innovation lab for exploring the many ways that Airbnb can continue to expand beyond the travel and hospitality industries. Samara's first project is to introduce a communal housing structure to a rural Japanese town in order to revitalize the local region.
For years, Airbnb has been at the forefront of the sharing economy with its vibrant online home-share marketplace. Airbnb's founders stumbled upon a list of the top 10 technology companies of the 90s and quickly realized that these companies are no longer what they used to be, mostly due to a lack of experimentation and innovation—as a result, Samara was born.
As far as the impact that Samara has for the future of Airbnb, co-founder Joe Gebbia says: "What excites me is that we can apply what we learned over the last eight years to create new types of commerce and new types of social change."
For years, Airbnb has been at the forefront of the sharing economy with its vibrant online home-share marketplace. Airbnb's founders stumbled upon a list of the top 10 technology companies of the 90s and quickly realized that these companies are no longer what they used to be, mostly due to a lack of experimentation and innovation—as a result, Samara was born.
As far as the impact that Samara has for the future of Airbnb, co-founder Joe Gebbia says: "What excites me is that we can apply what we learned over the last eight years to create new types of commerce and new types of social change."
Trend Themes
1. House-sharing Design Studios - Samara, the new design studio division from Airbnb, explores ways to expand outside of travel and hospitality industries.
2. Communal Housing Structures - Samara's first project aims to revitalize a rural Japanese town by introducing a communal housing structure.
3. Experimentation and Innovation in the Sharing Economy - Samara was created to avoid the fate of outdated technology companies by promoting experimentation and innovation.
Industry Implications
1. Interior Design - The house-sharing design studios trend offers opportunities for interior design companies to create innovative and functional communal housing structures.
2. Hospitality - The trend of expanding beyond travel and hospitality industries opens up new opportunities for companies in the hospitality sector to explore communal housing and alternative forms of accommodation.
3. Technology - The sharing economy trend, with the introduction of house-sharing design studios, presents opportunities for technology companies to develop new platforms and tools that support the growth of communal housing.
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