US: Francis Davidson, co-founder and former CEO of Sonder, has stepped down from the company this week with chairperson of the board Janice Sears holding an interim CEO title.
Writing on LinkedIn, Davidson announced his departure from Sonder.
He wrote: “Building Sonder was an epic journey. From a college-student experiment to $143 million revenues in five years, through the COVID collapse and reshaping of the American city, an IPO as the window was closing, growing to over $600 million of annual revenues, and launching a pivotal 20 year strategic deal with the largest hospitality company in the world.”
Sonder was founded in 2014 by Davidson and Martin Picard. The company grew successfully for five years before being hit hard by the pandemic.
In early 2022, the company went public via special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). Several months later, a restructuring led to cuts within the corporate and frontline teams.
The following year (March 2023), Sonder laid off 100 corporate employees representing 14 per cent of its team. The same year, the company also faced a potential Nasdaq delisting as its common stock had fallen below $1.00 per share for 30 consecutive business days.
Then in February 2024, Sonder announced that it was cutting 106 jobs in its corporate team – representing 17 per cent of the company’s corporate workforce – in order to save around $11 million a year in the long term.
“Because we had signed so many properties pre-pandemic, the company still grew quite a bit to over $600 million of annual revenues and made steady progress toward profitability,” Davidson continued. “Maybe the right answer was to align ourselves with a major hospitality group?”
In the summer of 2024, Sonder announced a 20-year licensing agreement with Marriott, rebranding as Sonder by Marriott Bonvoy. The integration, which began an early access period in October 2024, is now complete.
Davidson added: “I’m a builder at heart – I thrive in the early stages of company formation, when growth and customer experience are the top objectives. It will be hard to leave such a talented team behind, and to let go of a brand and company I’ve spent my entire adult life building.
“Without the support of my co-founders, my teammates, my investors, and our countless partners, none of it would have been possible. A huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who was part of this epic tale.”
Highlights:
• Francis Davidson has resigned as Sonder CEO after leading the company from startup to more than $600 million in annual revenue.
• Sonder went public via SPAC in early 2022 and underwent major layoffs in 2023 and 2024.
• Most recently, Sonder rebranded as Sonder by Marriott Bonvoy following a 20-year strategic licensing deal with Marriott.
• Board chair Janice Sears will serve as interim CEO.
