Meet Annie Sloan | Co-Founder and CEO, The Host Co.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Annie Sloan and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Annie, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
Picture it: the morning after your best friend’s wedding. You got three hours of sleep last night, and you definitely didn’t go light on the champagne. So you think to yourself “If this Airbnb had Advil and Gatorade I would pay $100 for it.”. Or, maybe you’re in Barcelona, staying at a great rental in El Born, and just about to leave for the airport. There’s this one mug in the rental that you really loved, and it would be the perfect memento from your trip… should you just… take it? Of course not. But now you can buy it!

My co-founder and I, who met as Producers at HGTV, started The Host Company because we are constant travelers AND Airbnb Hosts. We know that guest (including us) really want to buy things in rentals – if it’s the toothpaste they forgot, the sunhat that will help on their hike, or a pre-stocked pantry. We know that guests want access to products by local artists as well – that they might not be able to actually find on their trip.

So we created technology that helps Hosts create custom stores that connect guests to items already in the rental (e.g. the art on the walls), curated local products, and services like alcohol delivery. Basically it’s all the stuff that you’re missing from a hotel: the mini-bar, gift shop and concierge.

All because well, I want the Advil and Gatorade already in my Airbnb!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
At the Host Co. we make Airbnb’s shoppable. So a guest can walk in, scan a QR code, and buy anything in the space from snacks in the fridge to the art on the walls. We do this by helping hosts create custom digital stores.

I am so, so proud of the platform we’ve created, and the community of 10,000 hosts that we’ve built! You know, many of the short term rental platforms like to think of hosts as people who just happen to have extra space and want to make friends. But, as professional hosts, we know that hosts are really each running a small business and need advice. There are 10 million short term rentals out there, and we’re stepping in to help each of them grow and thrive.

Something most people don’t know – the majority of hosts are female, and over 40. Both in the US and globally. In fact the fastest growing demographic if hosts is women over 60. Out platform, and our community, was established to make these women more money. We think of the “Aunties” we’ve stayed with in rentals around the world. We think of the grandmother who can finally sell her grandkids handicrafts even though she doesn’t share the same language or currency as her guests. Women’s financial empowerment gets us closer to equality. And as a female and LGBTQ+ founded company, that’s at the heart of what we do.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Most of our rentals are in the high desert – Joshua Tree, Yucca Valley, Landers. So any friend who comes out will get a whole lot of hanging out in the desert, watching sunsets, talking to the trees, etc. And of course we’d stop by La Copine, the Integratron, Joshua Tree Bottle Shop, The End (shout out Kime!), Pioneer Town, and Out There Bar in 29 Palms.

There are so many new things opening around there all the time… it’s been a really wild ten years watching the area change.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Three sources deserving a shoutout:

1. The Women Founders Group. Yes, it’s on Facebook. but it’s 12,000 founders and has been a incredible resource for advice as well as recruiting, knowledge sharing and fundraising.

2. Meditation. Building a tech company is super intense – somehow every day is like the last 20 minutes of an action movie. Meditation (I use Headspace) brings me back to earth.

3. My mom, a chef who owned and ran a restaurant for many years. The days were super long, the work was exhausting, and she was in a role usually reserved for men. And she never, ever complained. Just celebrated her wins.

Website: https://www.thehost.co/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehostcompany/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anniesloan/

Other: See what we do in 100 seconds: https://www.thehost.co/introvideo