Skift Forum Europe Preview: Airbnb’s Jeroen Merchiers on the Battle With Booking

One of the biggest stories in the travel industry this year involves Airbnb and its perceived battle with Booking Holdings to assume the title of being the No. 1 platform for private accommodations in the world, or simply being the No. 1 online travel company. While it's clear there is a battle brewing between the two online travel giants, Jeroen Merchiers, Airbnb's managing director for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), thinks there's plenty more to discuss beyond the competition alone. The EMEA region is responsible for generating more than half of Airbnb's global business, and its importance to the company's growth isn't lost on Merchiers. A longtime Airbnb executive who's served as both a country manager for Spain and Portugal as well as a general manager, Merchiers assumed the role of Airbnb's EMEA managing director when Booking poached Olivier Gremillon to be its new vice president of Booking Homes in October. Skift recently interviewed Merchiers to ask him a