Home-swapping specialist
HomeExchange
has acquired United Kingdom-based competitor
Love Home Swap
for an undisclosed sum.
HomeExchange claims the acquisition comes after a period of growth for the company with a 41% increase in new members at the beginning of 2023 versus 2022.
Emmanuel Arnaud, CEO of HomeExchange, says: “In a time where conversations around skyrocketing costs of often impersonal accommodations make travel seem like an unaffordable luxury for many, the market is ripe for something like home swapping to boom.”
He adds that exchanges are already up 75% compared with 2022 while the platform saw 3.7 million exchange nights in 2022, up almost a third on pre-pandemic levels.
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Love Home Swap, which was founded in 2009, offers home swapping across the U.K., United States and Australia.
The U.K. company, which is said to have more than 10,000 members,
acquired Netherlands-based HomeForExchange
in late 2015.
It was then itself
acquired by Wyndham-owned RCI
in 2017 for a reported $53 million.
Paul Mulcahy of RCI, says: “The objective of this strategic direction reflects our mutual desire to maximize customer satisfaction and deliver great home exchange opportunities. The decision to sell the Love Home Swap platform to HomeExchange is in the best interest of our members as they gain access to an easy-to-use site with the largest community.”
HomeExchange was itself
acquired by France-based GuesttoGuest
in 2017 off the back of a $35 million funding round. The combined companies became HomeExchange.