Sonder Forecasts Improved 2021 Outlook as Public Debut Awaits

Sonder Hospitality, which lowered its valuation and slowed the timing of its potential SPAC public market debut at the end of October, increased its revenue and adjusted earnings outlook for full-year 2021.

The private company and SPAC hopeful released its third quarter results Tuesday, recording 155 percent revenue growth year over year to $67.45 million, but notched wider net losses of more than $64 million.

The quasi hotel operator and short-term rental company, which is based in San Francisco, increased both its revenue and adjusted EBITDA outlook for 2021 on despite the Delta variant curveball in recent months.

Despite the Delta headwinds, “it turns out to be our best quarter ever,” CEO Francis Davidson told Skift Wednesday.

Davidson added that Sonder’s recovery is taking place faster than expected.

Sonder’s 2021 revenue outlook increased 17 percent, compared to its April forecast, at the midpoint between $200 and $205 million. It likewise forecast an improved adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) loss of $240 million for the full year compared to the previous $290 million, although the methodology has been tweaked.

Revenue per available room in the third quarter came in at 83 percent of that mark in the third quarter of pre-pandemic 2019, and the occupancy level was 70 percent.

The company said that its revenue per available room of $126 was 17 percent higher than comparable upper upscale hotels in cities where Sonder has a footprint.

Compared with the same period in 2020, Sonder’s revenue of $67.5 million was a 155 percent jump.

Despite the wider net income loss of $64.6 million in the third quarter, compared with $55.5 million loss a year earlier, Sonder reported that its property level loss narrowed to $4.3 million from $7 million in the third quarter of 2020.

The company is on track to go public through a special acquisition company merger with Gores Metropoulos II before December 31, pending approval of the latter’s stockholders.