Ifrah Khan has a knack for building marketplace startups.
She founded her first one, an on-demand babysitting mobile app called Usit, while she was still a student at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. Over three years, Atlanta college students earned over a million dollars through babysitting and thousands of parents got the caregiving help they needed.
During COVID she co-founded Clubba, a virtual after-school club for kids in the creator economy that was funded by Google for Startups and Blue Startups. She most recently served as Head of Product for a healthcare tech marketplace.
So when Neighborhood Studios started tinkering with the idea for a travel-focused marketplace Swiftstay, it was only natural that Khan would be the leader of the new venture.
Khan, who was just announced as Swiftstay’s CEO and co-founder, likes to describe the platform as the “Soho House for home exchange.” The members-only club is designed for well-traveled people looking to enjoy easy getaways. The platform connects like-minded people who can decide to swap homes for short stays at a fraction of the cost of a hotel or vacation rental. The private access to to these unique homes, that are not listed on short-term rental platforms, is also a plus for membership.
“[The platform] makes spontaneous travel more accessible and affordable without sacrificing quality,” she added. “Swiftstay is like having unlimited vacation homes in any city.”
Inside the Swiftstay Platform
Between platforms like Airbnb, VRBO, Kindred, and Whimstay, the travel space is certainly crowded. But Khan saw a clear gap in the market. Swiftstay looks to capture spontaneous travel enthusiasts who crave a more localized and affordable option than what other platforms can provide.
Members can apply whether they rent or own their place. Members are verified via LinkedIn and through an onboarding interview. If selected, members are notified each Sunday about available homes for the following weekend. Those interested in a specific spot can start a chat with the other member to determine if the exchange is the right fit.
Instead of straight home one-on-one home swapping, the platform works on a credit system.
Through its concierge-style service, the Swiftstay team makes home exchange more attractive for hosts and guests by taking care of sending fresh linens, towels, and toiletries. They also take care of the check in and check out process. Professional cleaning is provided before and after each stay, and there is up to $100,000 worth of insurance coverage included.
Members only pay the cleaning fee for each stay, on top of a $300 per year membership. That drastically reduces the cost associated with renting a home through Airbnb and timeshares, which can easily cost $900 for a weekend trip.
“It’s hard to travel frequently with current travel solutions when you’re paying a mortgage on your home, HOA fees, or high rent. We are essentially taking money out of the equation without sacrificing quality and allowing people to increase the amount they travel without feeling a financial burden,” Khan told Hypepotamus.
Building TravelTech In The Southeast
Swiftstay is the second startup to be spun out of Neighborhood Studios, an Atlanta-based venture studio building hyperlocal startups. The first, Homegrown, is a fintech platform that provides growth capital to local small businesses.
To get off the ground, Swiftstay has been working to build its marketplace through strong internal referral systems and “grassroots networking” with professional and local communities across the Southeast.
To start, Swiftstay is launching in Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte, Savannah, Charleston, Asheville, and Chattanooga. Later this summer, the team is looking to bring Swiftstay to more locations across the Southeast.
The Swiftstay app is set to launch at the end of May, but the team currently has a waitlist open for new members who love to travel. The first 50 accepted members will also get their first year membership fee waived.
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Photos from Swiftstay’s website