Vacasa has named Rob Greyber as CEO of the vacation rental management platform, replacing current chief executive Matt Roberts.
Greyber, whose appointment will take effect September 6, previously served as president of corporate travel business Egencia from 2009 to 2020. Egencia was part of Expedia Group before the online travel company sold the division to American Express Global Business Travel in May 2021.
Roberts, who previously served as CEO of OpenTable and joined Vacasa’s board in 2018, was appointed interim CEO in February 2020 following the departure of founder Eric Breon. He assumed the full-time CEO role in May of that year.
During his tenure, Roberts helped Vacasa achieve a nearly four-fold increase in gross booking value. He also led the acquisition of TurnKey Vacation Rentals and took Vacasa public in December 2021.
“I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished to date as I pass the reins to Rob as the company’s next CEO,” Roberts says.
“Based on the strength of the business, our leadership team and our positive momentum, this is the right time to make this transition. I look forward to Vacasa’s continued success under Rob’s leadership.”
Path to IPO
Founded in 2009, Portland, Oregon-based Vacasa manages more than 35,000 homes across more than 400 destinations in North America, Belize and Costa Rica. In addition to offering direct bookings on its website and app, Vacasa provides inventory to channel partners such as Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo.
Acquisitions – or a “portfolio approach” - have been a key component to Vacasa’s strategy over the years. It has made more than 200 acquisitions. Notably, it acquired TurnKey for an undisclosed sum in March 2021. The deal, a combination of equity and cash, added 6,000 properties to Vacasa’s portfolio.
In 2019, it bought the remainder of Wyndham Destinations’ Vacation Rentals unit for $162 million. Additional acquisitions include Oasis Collection and Colorado-based Resort Lodging Company.
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In October 2019, Vacasa achieved unicorn status with a $319 million Series C round, which was followed by a $108 million Series D strategic investment led by Silver Lake amid the pandemic in June 2020.
Vacasa announced its plans for a public listing via the SPAC TPG Pace Group in July 2021, which at the time forecast the company at a $4.5 billion valuation.
For the second quarter of 2022, despite macroeconomic uncertainty and a stock price that was down nearly 70% since its SPAC debut, Vacasa raised its full-year 2022 guidance for revenue and adjusted EBITDA and said it expects to achieve profitability by the end of next year.
Egencia to Vacasa
At Egencia, Greyber led a team of more than 6,000 and set strategy and product direction as the company rose in status among global travel management companies. It remains the fourth-largest travel management company in the world.
With the company, Greyber also expanded the business from five to 65 countries across North America, Europe, the Nordics and Asia Pacific and helped the company achieve six-fold revenue growth while growing EBITDA from breakeven to $100 million annually.
Much of Greyber’s tenure at Egencia was under former boss and mentor Dara Khosrowshahi, former Expedia Group CEO and current Uber CEO.
“As president of Egencia for more than a decade, Rob grew the scale, profitability and competitive position for a complex, international business. His skill set is an ideal match for Vacasa at its current stage and Rob is a perfect CEO choice for the company,” Khosrowshahi says.
When Greyber officially steps into the role, his initial focus will be on execution and value creation, he told CNBC. “There’s been pressure overall in the market over the last six to 12 months. My focus is going to be on doing the things that are going to create value in the long run.”
With the appointment, Greyber will replace Roberts’ seat on the board of directors.