Accor’s global CEO Sebastien Bazin speaks to HM about the impact of Airbnb, the company’s digital focus, his outlook for 2015 and much more.
Accor’s global CEO Sebastien Bazin speaks to HM about the impact of Airbnb, the company’s digital focus, his outlook for 2015 and much more.
By James Wilkinson at IHIF in Berlin, Germany

In the second part of an exclusive video interview at the International Hotel Investment Forum (IHIF) in Berlin, Accor’s global Chairman and CEO Sebastien Bazin has spoken exclusively on video to HM about the impact of Airbnb, the company’s digital focus, his outlook for 2015 and much more.

“Airbnb is here to stay, there to grow and I wish we would have invented Airbnb five years ago,” he told HM. “Which is why I’m so keen on digital.

“We’re not competing with them, [but] we need to align ourselves because at the end of the day, it’s the same customer that’s 18 years old and going to Airbnb today and when they are 28 years’ old, likely coming to one of the Accor hotels.”

To view the not-to-be-missed interview, click on the YouTube image at the top of the page.

HM flew to Berlin with British Airways. BA flies to Berlin via London and the author recommends flying in Club World (Business Class), which features flat-bed seats, hundreds of hours’ entertainment on demand, a great selection of wine and some of the best meals in the sky. For bookings, visit www.ba.com