Airbnb Acquires Vacation Rental Company Luxury Retreats, Officially Moves Into Luxury

As expected, Airbnb acquired Montreal-based Luxury Retreats International in an effort to help it expand in high-end vacation rentals and travel services, it announced today. This follows earlier reports on talks between the two companies. No official price was disclosed but estimates are that Airbnb purchased Luxury Retreats for anywhere from $200 million to $300 million. According to the release announcing the deal this morning: Luxury Retreats CEO Joe Poulin will join Airbnb and lead luxury homes, reporting to Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky, and the Luxury Retreats team will remain based in Montreal. As the companies put it: "Luxury Retreats offers high-quality listings, world class concierge service and a range of amenities and the acquisition will complement Airbnb’s work to provide a variety of homes and experiences to travelers, particularly those visiting traditional vacation destinations." Luxury Retreats provides concierge services and access to its support team for guests, as well as having dedicated villa specialists. It currently has a network of more than 4,000 homes worldwide. Chesky says in a statement he has spent countless hours with Poulin and his team. That level of interest in the serviced and luxury end of vacation rentals suggests Chesky and his team may have similar companies in their sights to acquire. Skift reported a