Rent a New York City apartment by the hour for... well, it's up to you
Sometimes, New York City can be unbearable. Sometimes, you just need a break. Breather wants to offer you that break, in a variety of "beautiful, practical spaces" that are available by the hour. Think of it like a rentable, temporary office. Sound good? Head right here to check it out!
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Okay, are those folks gone? Now let's get down to what this is really about: rentable sex spaces. That's what we're talking about here, right? Gothamist arrived at the same conclusion as us, and asked Breather's City Manager Packy McCormick what gives. He claimed that, during a months-long beta period, there were no signs indicating Breather being used as such. "It just doesn't happen," he said. In fairness, the spaces aren't exactly strewn with mood lighting and waterbeds; they have standard office fare (WiFi, desks, power outlets -- unsexy stuff) and get cleaned after each use by Breather staff.
We got on the phone with CEO Julien Smith for more; he spoke with us from his mobile phone in San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood -- no coincidence, as that's where Breather is headed in the "next couple of months." NYC service will also expand out from Manhattan into the outer boroughs in the same time frame, with plans for Boston and other major cities in the future.
Smith also offered details on how this potentially risky proposition works, and...it sounds surprisingly slick. Breather doesn't own all the apartments it rents, but through "all kinds of different options" (revenue sharing, for instance, or renting) it's cultivating a portfolio. Don't think of it like AirBnB by the hour, as the service intends to be something very different. Smith contextualized it in light of Starbucks, which offers a meeting space/office for the price of a coffee:
"Some places are worth spending time in more than others, especially for the price. Starbucks is always the lowest option. We have to offer a higher value than that."
At $25/hour and a free first hour, it does sound like a convenient option for, uh, whatever it is you're doing in there. But it's probably sex, right? Come on.
