Skift Q&A: Hospitality Investor Lee Pillsbury on 100 Years of Industry Disruption
Photo Credit: Lee Pillsbury, left, the owner of Thayer Lodging Group, is seen above with Patrick Bosworth, right, co-founder of Duetto Research, at the Revenue Strategy Summit in New York City in November 2013. Gary Kane
Skift Take
If anyone could predict what's in the pipeline for the hospitality industry, it'd be Lee Pillsbury. But the pace of innovation today means that his venture fund is also in search mode to find what the next Hilton or Expedia will be.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of startup founders that would pay for the insights that Lee Pillsbury, co-founder and CEO of Thayer Lodging Group and advisor at Thayer Ventures, has accumulated over the years.
After his company joined the top five percent of hotel investment firms, Pillsbury worked with the principals of Quest Hospitality Ventures to launch Thayer Ventures. It has since invested in travel companies including Hipmunk, TripBam, Duetto, and Liftopia.
Pillsbury says he built a venture capital fund focused on the travel industry due to the founders' industry knowledge, the vast opportunities present in the enormous global sector, and the fund's ability to help portfolio companies succeed.
Skift spoke with Pillsbury at the Revenue Strategy Summit in New York City last month. Pillsbury talked about what he looks for in a startup, why he's not worried about Airbnb, and how hotels could likely be the next industry that Apple disrupts.
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