Bruce Vaughn, the former Chief Creative Executive at Walt Disney Imagineering, will now lead Airbnb’s Experiental Creative Product team. Vaughn will help shape Airbnb’s “offline” products.
Vaughn will report to Catherine Powell, Airbnb’s Global Head of Hosting, who also was a longtime Disney Parks exec. Powell joined Airbnb last year.
Vaughn’s team will be responsible for designing and delivering more immersive experiences in the real world for both Stays and Experiences on Airbnb. This will include potentially new ways to host on Airbnb and exciting new offline experiences for guests. Vaughn will command the strategy and evolution of Airbnb’s experience business as well as its experiental marketing.
“We have just scratched the surface of the opportunities that hosting provides,” said Brian Chesky, Co-Founder, and CEO of Airbnb. “We are a creatively-led business and Bruce brings with him a huge amount of creative firepower to help us design exciting new ways to host.”
“I feel privileged to join Airbnb at such an incredible time in the company’s growth,” said Bruce Vaughn, VP of Experiental Creative Product. “There is so much momentum behind the brand and, with the world starting to open for travel and exploration once again, I can’t imagine a better company at a better moment in time to connect guests and hosts though truly unique, positive, life changing experiences.”
“I had the pleasure of working with Bruce at Disney and he is the master of immersive storytelling,” said Catherine Powell, Global Head of Hosting at Airbnb. “He was able to bring a story to life through every aspect of the experience at the Disney Parks — from rides to food to shops. I look forward to working with him to bring these unique connections to our guests and Hosts.”
Vaughn joins Airbnb from Dreamscape Immersive, which uses the most advanced VR technologies to create an entirely new form of mainstream location-based entertainment. Prior to this, he was Chief Creative Executive at Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) where he led the integrated creative teams of WDI, Disney’s Creative Entertainment, and WDI Research and Development. Vaughn was also responsible for product development and innovation across theme park attractions and special effects, innovative theater experiences, and new business opportunities that leverage emerging technologies.
Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times
