I enjoyed this. I’d be interested to read your take on what happens when the disrupter becomes the norm - e.g. AirBnB was a disrupter of hospitality. Now 15 years later is it disruptive to go back to hotels?
Thank you for reading, and that's exactly the right question to ask.
Well, disruption isn't a product category. It's a stance against whatever's dominant. The moment everyone in a category adopts the same "disruptive" approach, nobody stands out anymore. Luxury fashion minimalism proved that. Luxury fashion brands all adopted the same minimalist sans-serif logos in the mid-2010s (following Airbnb and Google’s lead), and the disruption became the new conformity. Saint Laurent, Celine, and a dozen others ended up looking identical. What started as a counter-move became the category norm, and distinctiveness vanished.
Airbnb followed the same arc. It went from disrupting hospitality to being hospitality. So, for a brand trying to carve space in that market right now, copying Airbnb's positioning isn't disruption but category conformity with a different logo slapped on.
The disruptive move is always against whatever's dominant. When "authentic local experiences" like Airbnb's are the default, the contrast is somewhere else entirely. Disruption doesn't live in the thing; it lives in the gap.
I enjoyed this. I’d be interested to read your take on what happens when the disrupter becomes the norm - e.g. AirBnB was a disrupter of hospitality. Now 15 years later is it disruptive to go back to hotels?
Thank you for reading, and that's exactly the right question to ask.
Well, disruption isn't a product category. It's a stance against whatever's dominant. The moment everyone in a category adopts the same "disruptive" approach, nobody stands out anymore. Luxury fashion minimalism proved that. Luxury fashion brands all adopted the same minimalist sans-serif logos in the mid-2010s (following Airbnb and Google’s lead), and the disruption became the new conformity. Saint Laurent, Celine, and a dozen others ended up looking identical. What started as a counter-move became the category norm, and distinctiveness vanished.
Airbnb followed the same arc. It went from disrupting hospitality to being hospitality. So, for a brand trying to carve space in that market right now, copying Airbnb's positioning isn't disruption but category conformity with a different logo slapped on.
The disruptive move is always against whatever's dominant. When "authentic local experiences" like Airbnb's are the default, the contrast is somewhere else entirely. Disruption doesn't live in the thing; it lives in the gap.
Hope that clears it up. 🙌🏻
Excellent post. I will be honest. Your article disrupted my way of thinking, which caused my to reposition myself, consider my stance. Thank you
That’s great! I’m so glad it made you think! Thank you for reading and being here!