Short stays: Harnessing the hyperlocal entrepreneurs

“Guests are now demanding a higher standard of accommodation, and homeowners are mindful of generating income, particularly in times of higher interest rates,” says William Crock, co-founder and chief executive at Australian prop-tech company Hometime. “There’s a real opportunity to professionalise the industry.”

One of the largest professional short-term rental managers in Australia, Hometime has doubled its revenues year-on-year for the last three years and is on track to bring in $100 million in guest bookings this year, propelling it onto this year’s AFR Fast 100 list.

Crock attributes this rapid success to a unique business model, which centres on local hosts in tourism areas. Hometime partners with these community operators to deliver highly localised services, while continuing to professionalise the industry and provide a superior experience for both homeowners and guests.

“Self-drive and regional trips [have been] increasing in popularity, which led to a wider dispersion of tourism spend outside the traditional or ‘popular’ destinations in Australia.”

— Kristian Kolding, Oxford Economics

“We realised early on that you have to be hyper-local to succeed. We developed the concept of a local hosting partner who provides a portion of the services to a portfolio in their local area. We call it a partnership because it’s the joint delivery of services that makes our model work.”

Crock says the company provides the brand, marketing, distribution and operating software, along with back-office support, while local partners are the face of the service and manage on-the-ground operations.

“Ultimately, running a holiday home or short-term rental is hard, and many people wish there was someone who could do it for them. We are that person. We take care of everything from listing your property, to chatting with guests and cleaning it after the stay.”

Hometime’s partners are small businesses, and many are husband and wife operators embedded in their local community. “They are ambitious and on the way to building a significant business – they are hospitality entrepreneurs and employ local staff, cleaners and maintenance staff. They rely on many other local businesses to maintain the portfolio of homes.”

Crock is now confident the company is onto a winner: 75 per cent of guests leave five-star reviews of their stays at Hometime properties, which Airbnb says is a global record for any scale operator.

“Guests are now demanding a higher standard of accommodation, and homeowners are mindful of generating income, particularly in times of higher interest rates.”

— William Crock, Hometime

“Our guests are happy – they have the confidence that when they stay in a property, it’s going to be immaculately presented, perfectly clean and with an easy check-in. It’s Airbnb done professionally.”

As for where the business is heading, Crock sees an acquisition opportunity in the fact that many short-term rentals are run by baby boomers, who will be looking to retire in the next few years.

“We’re raising money at the moment to pursue that strategy. It’s an interesting phenomenon that’s happening right across the economy – small businesses reaching the end of their life without a succession plan. We definitely want to play a role in that, whether it be transitioning them to a local partner, or just keeping the businesses going ourselves.”

To learn more, visit www.hometime.io.