Brian Chesky's 3-Stage Blueprint for Building a Legendary Company

Brian Chesky, the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, didn’t just build a billion-dollar business—he redefined an entire industry. But beyond the headlines and IPOs lies a powerful blueprint that every entrepreneur needs to understand.

In one of his most insightful reflections, Chesky broke down the startup journey into three essential stages. Each one builds upon the last, guiding founders through the chaos of creation to the calm of operational excellence—and eventually, back to creation again.

Let’s explore each of these stages in depth, with iconic examples and lessons that can help you navigate your own entrepreneurial journey.

Stage One: Building the Product

Every great company starts with a product. For entrepreneurs, the first phase is about turning an idea into something tangible—a solution that truly fits the market’s needs.

Embracing the Early Chaos of Innovation

In the beginning, there’s nothing but an idea and a profound belief that it can change the world. For Brian Chesky, this was the stage where Airbnb was just a spark—a concept to transform the way people travel.

Whether it’s launching a website, developing an app, or refining a service, the goal is to achieve product-market fit: the point where your product isn’t just used, but loved by its audience.

As Chesky explains this vital initial stage:

“When you start a company, you go through three stages. The first stage is you build the product. That stage ends when you get to basically product market fit.”

For many founders, this phase is a blend of trial and error, relentless iteration, and the thrill of discovering what really resonates with customers. Think of it like sculpting: you start with a raw block of marble and gradually chisel away to reveal the masterpiece within. It’s messy and uncertain, but it’s the foundation for everything that comes next.

Example: Facebook’s Early Days

Think back to the early days of Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg didn’t launch a global platform on day one. He launched TheFacebook at Harvard, targeting only students on his campus. The result? Massive adoption and virality.

Why? Because the product solved a real problem: a better way to connect with peers. Once students at other colleges heard about it, demand exploded. That’s the power of product-market fit.

The key in Stage One is to obsess over your users. Airbnb went door-to-door to photograph listings themselves. Dropbox made a simple explainer video. You must do things that don’t scale—because nothing matters until the product sticks.

Stage Two: Scaling the Company

Once the product has found its place in the market, the next challenge is to scale up—to transform a small, promising venture into a thriving organization that can serve an ever-growing customer base.

Transitioning From Product to Organization

The excitement of the first stage gradually gives way to the complexities of scaling. Now, it’s not just about the product itself; it’s about building a sustainable organization around that product. At this stage, companies must evolve their operations, expand their workforce, and secure the capital required to support growth.

Brian Chesky captures this transition vividly:

“Then stage two starts. And stage two is now you build the company that grows the product. And so now you've got to hire people, and you scramble. This is typically when you're raising a lot of money.”

With the success of the product secured, the focus shifts towards creating systems and processes that can handle rapid expansion. This is the era of hustle—a period of sleepless nights, frantic hiring, and the constant drive to establish the company’s footprint in a competitive marketplace.

Example: Uber’s Blitzscaling Era

Uber is a textbook case of Stage Two intensity. After initial traction, they expanded aggressively into cities around the world. That required not just a great app, but massive hiring, local operations, and capital.

CEO Travis Kalanick raised billions to pour fuel on the fire. The company became a global powerhouse in record time. But with that growth came growing pains—internal conflict, culture clashes, and eventually, leadership changes.

This stage is all about operationalizing your vision. You need to:

Hire top talent fast
Create a culture that scales
Raise funds to fuel growth
Build systems and processes that keep chaos in check

Airbnb, too, had its share of growing pains. Chesky had to go from being a product designer to a CEO managing hundreds of people. He learned to delegate, hire specialists, and let go of control in order to let the company thrive.

Stage Three: Become a Professional Organization

Stage Three is the one many founders resist. It sounds boring. Corporate. Administrative. But it’s where true sustainability is born.

Once a company has scaled, the next challenge is to refine its operations by building a professional, administrative structure that can ensure long-term success. This stage is about transitioning from a fast-paced startup to a mature organization with a dedicated executive team and robust management processes.

Embracing Structure and Strategy

In this final phase, the focus is no longer solely on rapid growth but on creating a sustainable model. Companies need to recruit experienced leaders, implement structured processes, and establish a clear, long-term vision. It’s the stage where founders must often make a difficult transition—delegating critical responsibilities to professionals who can ensure that the organization continues to thrive.

Brian Chesky summarizes this stage succinctly:

“And stage three is you become more professional, a little more administrative, and you hire an executive team. If you succeed to do all of that, you succeed to go back to step one, which is to create a new product.”

This statement underscores the idea that professionalization isn’t the end of the journey; it’s a launching pad for continuous innovation. A truly great company never stops reinventing itself. Instead, it uses the stability gained from professional management to fund future innovations and explore new opportunities.

Example: Google’s Shift from Startup to Institution

In Google’s early days, Larry Page and Sergey Brin were famously anti-management. But as the company scaled, they realized they needed experienced leadership to keep the machine running.

Enter Eric Schmidt, brought in as CEO to help "adult supervise" the company. Schmidt helped Google grow up without losing its soul. He brought structure while allowing innovation to flourish.

Airbnb followed a similar arc. Chesky brought in veterans from Apple and Amazon to lead functions like finance, legal, and operations. This freed him up to focus on vision and creativity.

Stage Three is about building a business that can last. One that survives leadership changes, market shifts, and competition. It’s when a startup becomes a legacy.

Full Circle: Returning to Creation

Ironically, the reward for completing all three stages isn’t rest. It’s the chance to start all over again.

"If you succeed to do all of that, you succeed to go back to step one, which is to create a new product."

This is where the magic happens. With a stable business running smoothly, the founder can return to their original passion: building.

The final piece of Chesky’s insight reflects the idea that entrepreneurship is a journey without a finish line:

“And that's what we started getting to by the end of [our early days]. We built the product, scaled the product, hired an executive team. It was running really well, or fairly well. And now we are ready to start all over again.”

This statement is a powerful reminder that true entrepreneurship is marked by perpetual reinvention. An organization that continuously revisits its foundations can sustain long-term success by never resting on its laurels.

Imagine the cyclical journey of Amazon. Beginning as an online bookstore, Amazon evolved into a retail behemoth and then expanded into cloud computing, digital streaming, and more. Each step of the cycle served as a foundation for the next, proving that the willingness to innovate continuously is what truly sets disruptive companies apart.

Lessons for Every Entrepreneur: Practical Steps

Drawing on Brian Chesky’s time-tested strategy, here are some actionable steps to help you navigate your entrepreneurial journey:

1. Focus on Creating a Product People Love

Embrace the chaos: Understand that the early stages will be messy. Experiment relentlessly until you achieve product-market fit.
Engage with your users: Gather feedback and refine your product based on real-world input.
Be resilient: Overcome early setbacks by staying committed to your vision.

2. Build and Scale Your Company Thoughtfully

Hire strategically: As your product proves its worth, focus on building a team that shares your passion.
Secure the right funding: Understand that scaling requires capital—be prepared for the scramble, but stay focused on your mission.
Cultivate company culture: Ensure that rapid growth does not dilute the values that made your product successful.

3. Professionalize While Keeping an Eye on Innovation

Recruit seasoned leaders: Bring in talent that can manage complexity without stifling creativity.
Implement efficient processes: Establish robust operational frameworks to support long-term growth.
Plan for reinvention: Remember that professionalization is not the end—it's the foundation for your next innovation cycle.

4. Embrace the Cycle of Continuous Reinvention

Stay curious: Always look for ways to improve and disrupt your own market.
Celebrate each stage: Recognize that every phase—from product creation to scaling to professionalization—is a stepping stone to even greater achievements.
Never settle: The willingness to start over and build something new is the hallmark of enduring success.

Conclusion: The Startup Journey Is a Cycle

Brian Chesky didn’t just give us a roadmap—he gave us permission to embrace the ups and downs of startup life. Each stage is messy, exciting, and full of growth.

So where are you in your journey?

Are you still chasing product-market fit? Are you scaling your team and burning through midnight oil? Or are you stabilizing your company and dreaming up what’s next?

Wherever you are, remember: the goal isn’t to exit. It’s to build something that matters.

And if you do it right, you’ll find yourself back at the beginning—with more wisdom, more resources, and an even bolder vision for what comes next.

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Source: Brian Chesky | Full Q&A | Oxford Union