Airbnb fund: Kiwi wins $100k nest egg to build designer bach

Writer and Multimedia Producer·NZ Herald·

20 Oct, 2022 02:00 AM2 mins to read

Airbnb's OMG Fund Recipients featured everything from giant blooms to lava grottoes. Photo / Supplied

A New Zealand woman has won a share of US$10million to build her dream bach.

Jacqueline Y's designs for a quirky 'birds nest' BnB was among the winning entries in Airbnb's OMG! Fund. At the beginning of June, the listings website invited budding hosts to submit designs for an unusual rental property. The weirder the better.

Out of tens of thousands of entries, a final 100 were chosen across 23 different countries to be given up to US$100,000 ($177,000), to make their ambitious bach designs a reality.

Jacqueline was the sole winner from Aotearoa. The 'Kiwi Bird's Nest' won over the judging panel for its use of former farm buildings and a tower to create a raised kōhanga to sleep in. The finished design promises 360-degree views from a rooftop perch.

Hot design: A lava cave in an extinct volcano. Photo / Supplied

"New Zealanders are looking for not only unique accommodation but also unique destinations to help take a break from everyday life," says Airbnb's country manager for Australia and New Zealand, Susan Wheeldon.

From UFOs in north Canterbury to Yellow Submarines in Whanganui, unusual properties have been a hit on Airbnb. Wheeldon says the OMG! Fund was started to add more unusual properties to the platform.

Judges complemented Jacqueline's artistic vision. Australian architectural expert Koichi
Takada was a fan of the "feathered lampshades, egg chairs and hay features".

The plan also promises free range eggs and goat milk for guests, during their visit to the smallholding farm.

She now has just 10 months to hatch plans and build the quirky designer bach.

Jacqueline Y's proposed a self-contained 'nest' with a birds-eye view sleeping space. Photo / Supplied

While entries were asked for unique accommodation proposals, there were definite themes to the submissions.

Airbnb had 1214 lofty proposals to build - even more -treehouses.

Heavily themed designs were also popular. This included 509 toadstool-inspired designs and 777 submissions for giant fruit.

Tim Harper's Bubble design. Photo / Supplied

Across the ditch, four Australian designs also secured funding - including a concrete Eco-Igloo a floating pod dubbed the 'Kngaroom' and a mountain top Bubble.

Here is a selection of the $10 million OMG recipients: