Meet the Ryanair of the Hostel Industry
Skift Take
There's more than one way to run a hostel and, in A&O's case, it means keeping prices as low as possible.
The dominant narrative for the growing hostel sector is that it’s a design-led revolution. Brands like Generator and Accor-owned Jo&Joe are acting like boutique hotels in a bid to entice travelers. But what if there’s another way?
Instead of focusing on creating cool communal spaces with cutting-edge food and beverage offerings, cut costs and prioritize pricing. That’s what A&O Hotels and Hostels is doing. In fact, the budget chain sees itself as similar to low-cost airlines like Ryanair, with the aim of keeping things as cheap as possible for consumers.
“We bring some new demand because of the price, like Ryanair is creating demand…that's what we're doing as well but we never create the reason…to travel. That's a bit different then Generator,” CEO Oliver Winter told Skift.
Like his CEO counterpart in the airline world Michael O’Leary, Winter is relentlessly focused on costs, which enables him to offer a dormitory bed for as little as $13 (€12) a night.
“I'm 100 percent sure, there's no big player in the game, like Meininger or Generator or even Jo&Joe, who can produce this stay as
