The truth that everything comes around again was never more aptly illustrated than this weekend, when a whole load of people outside the sector learned all about revenue management when trying to buy Oasis tickets.
The 90s are back, in case anyone hadn’t noticed and if you can remember it you weren’t doing it right the first time and so on. For those members of NewDog who spent the 90s stopping Liam Gallagher from getting into the sketchy north London indie club they worked in, Ticketmaster did not dominate their weekend, which pleased them greatly.
For those lucky few hundred thousand, a date with the Gallagher brothers awaits. Will it be fun? It had better be. The good news is that investment at that level implies that fun will be had or else, which is a whole sphere of experience psychologists would enjoy very much.
For the rest of us, the return of the 90s has presented many such opportunities to enjoy our youths all over again, but that bit more…saggy. On the one hand, it makes it a whole lot easier to get to the front at gigs if the rest of the audience hasn’t been taking their cod liver oil, on the other hand, when you get there your heroes’ jowls are around their knees.
Of course it’s not just the recently-divorced who are getting back out there. Concepts are back too, in this case: timeshare. Timeshare threatens to come back every now and then because – and there is no greater explanation than this – memories are short. The same is true for market-driven recessions. And, if we’re getting into it, wars. Not enough people read their history.
It’s always slightly different, of course, or it wouldn’t be fun. In the case of timeshare, we have been mostly intrigued by MYNE’s €40m series A funding round, which saw Limestone Capital, a private equity group who have been more closely linked to the luxury hotel market, joined by existing investors including Motive Ventures and Scope Hanson.
Nikolaus Thomale, managing director MYNE, said: “The funding round we announced today will empower us to embark on our next phase of expansion and growth, as we enable even a higher number of people to own their own second home.”
Under the MYNE model, potential owners pool their resources to buy shares in high-end holiday properties in popular holiday destinations, with equity investment’s starting at €50,000, which gives you access to the property at least 6.5 weeks per year.
The difference this time around is proptech, of course. Benjamin Habbel, CEO Limestone Capital, said: “This €40m round, the largest in the European proptech sector this year, underscores our commitment to supporting technology-driven platforms that redefine industries. This aligns perfectly with our strategy of backing platforms that unlock value in the experience economy and we are confident that MYNE’s strong leadership, and unique offering will drive continued growth and success in the European proptech sector.”
Setting aside the exit issues with timeshare based on individual properties, the main problem has always been WHO GETS THE TWO WEEKS IN JULY. In the wider timeshare market, the market has evolved into a points-based system to resolve this (and the exit). You are not buying a chunk of that hotel in Marbella, you are buying, say, points which equate to two weeks in a three-star hotel in the place of your choosing. You can pay to upgrade to five star or peak, or down to off-peak. Flexibility borne of years of screaming and throwing carriage clocks has made the market more limber. Timeshare is still not an investment, but it has its fans. And for the operator, it’s a money-spinner, falling into that handy zone of ‘people think they’ve already spent the money so they spend loads onsite’.
Back to MYNE and proptech and the group’s solution is that the owners are matched according to their preference. So a family with kids who want the property on those two weeks in July, with people who want to come off peak for the hiking. Online dating for property sector? We’re interested to see how it plays out and whether long-term happiness can be found. If even the Gallaghers can reunite, there is hope for us all.