Airbnb secures a $1 billion loan and Omnicom plans layoffs, furloughs: Wednesday Wake-Up Call

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Airbnb secures $1billion loan

Airbnb has lined up a $1 billion loan amid more speculation that it will delay its planned IPO due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to Bloomberg News, the cash will come from a group of more than 20 investors including Silver Lake, BlackRock and Fidelity Investments. The company confirmed it had secured commitments for a $1 billion syndicated loan although it didn't give further detail. 

Brian Chesky, Airbnb's CEO and co-founder, said in a statement: "I deeply appreciate the confidence and trust that so many have shown in our company even as every sector in travel is going through the storm of the pandemic. All of the actions we have taken over the last several weeks assure that Airbnb will emerge from the storm of the pandemic even stronger, regardless of how long the storm lasts."

The loan comes as Airbnb is offering "online experiences" on its site, in order to offset losses from its travel business. As reported by Forbes, these include meditation with Buddhist monks in Japan, virtual visits with dogs in Chernobyl and cooking with a Moroccan family. 

Omnicom starts layoffs, furloughs

As the pandemic hits agencies where it hurts, the cuts, layoffs and furloughs are coming thick and fast at the big networks. Following Dentsu Aegis announcement of salary cuts and furloughs on Monday, yesterday Omnicom Group Chairman-CEO John Wren warned employees in an all-staff memo obtained by Ad Age that furloughs and staff reductions will be carried out "across many of our agencies."

Ad Age's Lindsay Rittenhouse reports that "layoffs and furloughs are expected to start this week," according to one person familiar with the matter.  In the memo, Wren noted, "Where possible, our agencies will use furloughs rather than permanent reductions, so we can bring people back if, and when, conditions improve and client demand recovers."

Wren also said that he will be waiving his entire salary through the end of September and Omnicom's executive leadership team would be reducing their salaries by a third.

FTC cracks down on coronavirus claims

The Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on companies that are making fake claims related to COVID-19. Ad Age's Garett Sloane reports that on Tuesday, the FTC sent warning letters to 10 companies that allegedly overstated the power of their products to combat coronavirus. It targeted companies running Facebook and Instagram accounts and Amazon sellers, hawking products and services like Vitamin C injections, face cleansers, and wellness devices that are claimed to treat the virus. For example, one Texas company, Resurgence Wellness, used hashtags like "covid19" and "coronavirustreatment" on its Instagram posts.

Just brieflyP&G raises its quarterly dividend: Procter & Gamble is raising its quarterly dividend by 6 percent, even as many other companies slash or suspend theirs, CNBC reports. P&G also said it would announce its fiscal third-quarter earnings on Friday, ahead of its previously announced date of April 21.

Maurice Lévy won't work: The former Publicis Groupe chief executive's stint as WeWork's marketing chief quietly came to end a few weeks ago, Campaign is reporting. Lévy left his post as interim chief marketing officer of the beleaguered office-sharing business at the end of February, after only three months.

Out-of-home in a pandemic: How does out-of-home advertising survive in a pandemic lockdown when nobody is supposed to be outside? Ad Age's Jeanine Poggi speaks to Barry Frey, CEO of the DPPA, the organization for the digital out-of-home industry, about the subject in the latest edition of Ad Age Remotely. It's not all bad news: Frey says that while OOH ad revenue is certainly taking a hit right now, he expects most ad dollars to shift later in the year once people get back outside. He also believes the situation will also lead to innovation in content and a stronger desire for out-of-home to serve news and entertainment to consumers.

Small Agency extended: Ad Age is extending the deadline for the 2020 Small Agency Awards to May 7. To apply for this year's contest, go here. And note that while entries will still require revenue figures, due to this year's extraordinary circumstances, no entry will be penalized for showing a loss.

Dropped: McDonald's is dropping its sponsorship of Nascar driver Kyle Larson after the professional athlete was recorded using a racial slur. Larson is a member of Chip Ganassi Racing, an organization McDonald's has sponsored for more than a decade.

Corona creativity of the day: Heineken is encouraging drinkers to "socialize responsibly" in quarantine in a new spot created by Publicis Italy—a country where lockdown has now been in force for over a month. The ad shows people socializing  the "old way," with handshakes, high fives, hugs and kisses, before moving to the new way of doing things that we're all becoming familiar with, like catching up with friends over a few beers via video call. Watch it here. 

That does it for today's Wake-Up Call, thanks for reading and we hope you are all staying safe and well. For more industry news and insight, follow us on Twitter:@adage. 

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