The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
SAN FRANCISCO, United States — Airbnb Inc. is adding Angela Ahrendts, a high-profile luxury retail executive, to its board of directors.
Ahrendts, 58, joins the home-sharing start-up after a five-year stint overhauling Apple Inc.'s retail operations and more than eight years as chief executive of British high-end fashion house Burberry Group Plc. Airbnb, which is preparing for a public stock offering next year, has been broadening its mission to become an end-to-end travel company, and has been moving to add more luxury listings to its six million homes on offer.
“Angela has a reputation for pushing brands to dream big, and she told me that’s exactly what she hopes to bring to Airbnb’s Board," CEO Brian Chesky said in a statement.
Under Ahrendts’ watch at Apple, the iPhone maker overhauled its retail operations, redesigning stores into sleek Starbucks-like meeting places with customer service “geniuses” roaming the shop floor. But she was also criticised by some Apple employees for turning the stores into an exercise in branding, that no longer served customers’ basic needs.
ADVERTISEMENT
Ahrendts has been consistently named a Top 100 Global Executive in rankings by Forbes and Fortune. During her tenure at Burberry, Ahrendts transformed the company into a global luxury brand, tripling the business.
“She has led global brands through transformation, completely redefined the retail experience and done it all while putting customers and communities first,” Chesky said. “I’m so excited for her to join our board and know her innovative thinking will make us a better company."
An Indiana native, Ahrendts has a BA from Ball State University and is also currently serving on the board of Ralph Lauren Corp. She is the third independent non-affiliated board member to join Airbnb, alongside former American Express Co. CEO Ken Chenault and Ann Mather, a former chief financial officer at Pixar Inc who also serves on the board of Netflix Inc and Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc.
By Olivia Carville, Jinshan Hong; Editors: Jillian Ward, Molly Schuetz and Alistair Barr.
From analysis of the global fashion and beauty industries to career and personal advice, BoF’s founder and CEO, Imran Amed, will be answering your questions on Sunday, February 18, 2024 during London Fashion Week.
The State of Fashion 2024 breaks down the 10 themes that will define the industry in the year ahead.
Imran Amed reviews the most important fashion stories of the year and shares his predictions on what this means for the industry in 2024.
After three days of inspiring talks, guests closed out BoF’s gathering for big thinkers with a black tie gala followed by an intimate performance from Rita Ora — guest starring Billy Porter.