Airbnb announces the launch of

Airbnb announces the launch of ‘At Home With Airbnb’

A set of curated Online Experiences delivered by artists, influencers and brands which bring the joy of travel and human connection to your living room.

• At Home With Airbnb gives fans a chance to connect with their favourite Indian celebrities, artists & learn a new skill
  
• Features Online Experiences with celebrated experts such as Shivan and Narresh, Nam Wook, Sarvesh Shashi, Sandeep Sreedharan and many more
  
  

Airbnb India today announces the launch of – At Home With Airbnb, a unique set of online experiences that brings together India’s most popular celebrities, artists and influencers. Each experience has been curated keeping in mind the diverse and engaging ways in which guests can connect with people across cultures and hone their skills through the platform. The At Home With Airbnb experiences allow guests to visit the host’s personal spaces to learn their craft in small groups that allow for personal connections and conversations.

Building on Airbnb’s global concept of Online Experiences, At Home With Airbnb, will bring together people from across the globe over their shared passions and hobbies. Ranging from work out sessions with celebrity trainer Nam Wook for fitness enthusiasts, to Zero wastage cooking with Sandeep Sreedharan for food fanatics, and learning the art of fashion illustrations from popular designers, Shivan and Naresh, each experience offers the opportunity to learn something new and interesting.

“Airbnb’s Online Experiences are an extension of our Experiences platform to foster connections at a time when travelers are unable to do so in real life. We are excited to announce At Home with Airbnb, which offers intimate and engaging virtual experiences curated by well-known Indian personalities across fitness, food, fashion and home décor.  At Home With Airbnb brings together our community in India and all over the world, allowing them to choose from a range of experiences and enjoy these from the comfort of their own homes.” Said Parin Mehta, Regional Director, Experiences APAC.

As a unique way to travel, learn and connect with new people, the platform brings together well-known names Sarvesh Shashi, Sanjana Chatlani, Pankaj Balachandran, and Devika Narain among others who will be hosts for these Online Experiences. Through At Home With Airbnb, guests can also learn unique and niche skills such as calligraphy, cocktail making and table designing from experts in their respective fields.

Globally acclaimed designers, Shivan and Narresh, will be hosting fashion illustration classes that will take guests through the process of sketching for fashion design, the colour palette and silhouettes – all helping guests visualize the piece of clothing on the fashion runway.

Shivan and Narresh celebrated Airbnb’s efforts saying “At Shivan & Narresh, we converge our love for fashion and travel when we experience the world with a local lens and translate it through our inspired collections. Partnering with Airbnb for its online experience helps us cement this belief and exhibit our expertise at a global platform to bring the world closer together, while it matures through a global health crisis. The fashion illustrations experience is to encourage originality and drive ingenuity for guests - straight from the mind to the paper - as they hone their art skills. It is to assist in co-creating a stronger and richer world by soothing its mental and emotional habitat.”

Sarvesh Shashi, titled the coolest yogi and the youngest CEO in the yoga and wellness world globally, will be combining his knowledge of ancient Indian martial arts, modern functional training and traditional yoga techniques, to create smooth flowing yoga sessions for guests.

Speaking on the collaboration, Sarvesh Shashi said “Our association with Airbnb fits seamlessly into what we stand for, and that’s building a community that’s social, engaged, active and a community that goes on to become the brand’s best advocate. We understand the value our customers hold for us and that’s one of the biggest advantages of this association. We’re excited to see the doors this partnership opens and the many more ways that we can work together.”

Using some of Ayurveda’s principles and Yin-Yang as a guiding philosophy, Chef Sandeep Sreedharan shall be taking his guests on a culinary journey of sustainable cooking. With over a decade of experience in his field, Sandeep has successfully built a reputation for introducing a new genre of modern coastal cuisine to India. 

Speaking about the collaboration, Sandeep Sreedharan of Mahe said “As a chef I have always believed in delivering distinct flavours and textures keeping things simple and honest. My collaboration with At Home With Airbnb gives me an opportunity to share my expertise with a larger audience that is looking for quick tips to create gourmet experience at home by approaching one ingredient at a time. I look forward to exploring the concepts of zero wastage and minimalistic cooking to produce some stunning yet simple dishes without compromising on taste or health.”

Through At Home With Airbnb, guests can also enjoy -

• An opportunity to become a master in the art of Calligraphy with the founder of The Bombay Lettering Company Sanjana Chatlani
• Insights into how to make the perfect “kitchen cocktails” using easily available ingredients at home, through a specially curated mixology workshop with Pankaj Balachandran, Brand Ambassador, Monkey Shoulder
• A work out session from home using only their body weight with celebrity fitness trainer and Under Armour India brand ambassador Nam Wook
• The art of table settings with celebrity wedding planner and event stylist, Devika Narain

Guests can book their spots for these exclusive Experiences for an opportunity to meet and learn from the experts with unprecedented access. Booking opens immediately, and guests can explore a diverse range of Online Experiences here. These Experiences will be hosted on Zoom, and Airbnb has provided Hosts access to Zoom free of charge along with personalized support services for curating, capturing and sharing their online content.

For more information, if you are interested in hosting please visit airbnb.com/onlinehost.

Enormous Brands decodes the

Enormous Brands decodes the ‘Lock-down Consumer’; India is bullish about SENSEX in future 

Enormous Brands surveyed the changing sentiments, attitudes, and habitual changes in India’s citizens, across the country’s top 6 cities during the unforeseen lock-down

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

·         56% believe that Sensex will hit 50K in less than 2 years’ time and there is a 28% increase in the internet banking users

·         74% of the population misses their daily newspaper and are waiting for the service to resume

·         Data suggests that 47% of Indians are willing to pay up to 25% higher for Indian made goods over Chinese made

·         66% feel PM Narendra Modi is the most apt world-leader to handle this crisis

·         TV shines over OTT. 43% see cable TV as the primary entertainment in the high-income households

Chennai, April 28, 2020: The stay-at-home mandate has changed the behavior and attitudes of many Indians. Indians who were born and brought up asking for ‘Dhaniya’ or ‘Mirchi’ free from the vegetable vendors are now buying vegetables and other consumables without asking prices. Stay-at-home orders have thus caused visible major shifts in people’s behavior.

India is bullish about SENSEX in future

The study showed India will emerge as a winner in the on-going crisis.

58% believe that India will emerge as a ‘favorite country to trade with’. 54% state they have witnessed a drop of 30% in their stock and Mutual Fund portfolio. Even after this southward trend of the SENSEX, it is viewed optimistically. 44% believe that the SENSEX will bounce back to 40K levels in about a year’s time and 56% believe that it will hit 50K in less than 2 years’ time thanks to domestic development (22%), strong internal consumption (14%) and FII (37%).

India’s older adopt digital

The study shows a sharp increase (47%) adoption among elders (55-65 years) of e-commerce – ordering milk, grocery and home essentials and paying through wallets / UPI.

The banks have been promoting Internet banking for over a decade, in just the last month the data suggest that first time users have increased by 28%. The maximum shift of 33% is among the age group of 35-50 years age segments – this is the ‘bankers’ delight segment as it is the most profitable customer band.

Newspaper poised for a strong return

Lots of international researches suggest 21 days can break or form a habit. However, this study suggests otherwise when it comes to a daily newspaper. 74% miss their daily newspaper and are waiting for the service to resume.

While 29% have moved to reading newspapers online, only 4% would unsubscribe from the hard copy. Looks like the newspaper is a habit like coffee that has grown on the Indian palette, making it difficult to part with.

COVID – 19 helps push the ‘Make in India’ agenda

42% believe that there is an active and deliberate attempt by China to spread COVID across the world for economic gains. This has led to a strong anti-China sentiment

The data suggests that 47% of Indians are willing to pay up to 25% higher for Indian made goods over Chinese made. There is a strong sentiment that the world should unite against China to stop using China as the world’s manufacturer, even if it is cost-inefficient.

The BJP government is applauded for its COVID – 19 action plans

The study suggests BJP is emerging as ‘super’ force across age bands, genders and also across communities (including minorities).

PM Narendra Modi is seen by 64% as a world leader and 66% feels he is the most apt leader to handle this crisis. The government’s ‘Tech’ initiatives followed by their courage to lock-down the country and its medical response set up where the 3 most admired achievements of the BJP government.

Television grows strength to strength during lock-down

The study suggests TV still shines over OTT. 43% see cable TV as the primary entertainment in the high-income households. 13% across the sample size have re-activated their DTH / Cable subscription.

Interestingly, ‘news’ has emerged as the new GEC’s. A staggering 64% of TV viewing time across the TV viewing population is spent on the news channels. 43% believe that news reporting is unbiased and 27% believe that there is a clear indication that few news channels are pro a particular political party.  

Commenting on the outcome of the study, Mr. Ajay Verma, Managing Partner, Enormous Brands, said, “The young Indian population is behaving very differently from other parts of the globe. The study suggests a high level of optimism even in a situation that has brought the entire world in a lock-down and also showcased that households feels confident about the revival of the Indian economy.”

He further added, “This study was conducted to help brands understand how the current situation is molding the habits, behavior and attitudes of Indians. We believe this will help us shape client communication and offer strategic counsel in line with the prevailing sentiments of the consuming class.”

Editor’s Notes: The excerpts as above are from a proprietary online study done by Enormous Bands. The study was a quantitative web-based study, administered between 30th of March and 22nd of April 2020. The total sample size was 3737 and the dispersion was as follows.

Mumbai: 837, Delhi (Incl. NCR) 782, Bengaluru 774, Chennai 519, Pune 428 and Ahmedabad 397. 88% of the respondents had an annual income of Rs. 5 lac plus and one-fourth of the sample has an income level of Rs. 20 Lac+. 68% of the samples were graduates.

For additional information on this survey, individuals and companies can send an email to info@enormous.be for the full report / individual or specific sections of this research. The research covers attitude and behavior changes across segments like the employer and employee expectations, e-commerce, FMCG, BSFI, Auto, FMCG, Retail among some of the sectors covered.