Founded in 2016 by Brian Carrico & Chris Herndon, The Guild ran a collection of apartment hotels across seven US markets. Despite the team’s heroic efforts to keep the dream alive, we closed up shop in 2023. 

Guild guests were treated to roomy, vibe-led spaces within vibrant urban neighborhoods. In many locations, artisans and merchants would immerse our guests into the nearby scene. 

We teamed up with apartment buildings to convert designated floors into nightly accommodation. We used tech to enchant our guests and remove friction from the experience. Happy guests begat brand loyalty which begat best-in-breed direct booking rates. 

We built an extraordinary team. We worked hard. We played hard. Often too much of both. Guild alums have proceeded to launch and run important companies across tech and hospitality.

We got in over our skis. We signed a few risky leases. We bought lots of furniture. Turns out used mid-century-mod side tables aren’t worth much on Craigslist. We expanded faster than we could scale our strong service culture.

The Guild was among several startups that emerged in 2013-2018 with a vision to combine the best of hotels and AirBNB. Travelers love the concept. Despite all that demand, nary a company has cracked the code on scale + profitability. 

While it would be easy to blame COVID, we won’t go there. Cracks in the business model began to appear in 2019. With the benefit of hindsight, we jotted down some takeaways.