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  • Meet Whitney Hansen, the creator of The Flower Pot, a truly spectacular, one-of-a-kind experiential stay in Burley, Idaho. Whitney has always been entrepreneurial — she owns her own consulting business, she hosts a podcast on investing and financial freedom called The Money Nerds, and is now also a hospitality entrepreneur. After building one of Idaho's[...]
  • Meet Derry Green — the creator and visionary behind The Secret Garden Glamping — the UK's most booked, most wished-listed, and most viewed glamping site with a 2+ year waiting list. Derry has always loved the outdoors – growing up, he and his family were avid campers. Some of his childhood memories involved playing in[...]
  • Meet Boris Mordkovich, who created Lumen Nature Retreat — a luxury waterfront glamping resort nestled in the heart of New Hampshite’s White Mountains — in partnership with his wife Susan. The idea for Lumen was born while Boris and Susan traveled from Boston to Argentina over a 6-month road trip for an extended honeymoon. During[...]
  • Meet Kristie Wolfe — the entrepreneur and builder behind some of the world’s most famous Airbnbs including the Big Idaho Potato Hotel, The Big Island Treehouse, The Hobbit Inn, and several others. Growing up, Kristie always wanted to do her own thing – she convinced her parents to let her drop out of high school[...]
  • Meet Nick Purslow, who is both the Co-Founder of Glampitect North America, an incredible educational and consulting resource for setting up a glamping site, and also the co-founder of a new start-up called Posh Outdoors, which supplies owners of iconic properties with high-end glamping units and backend support, at no up-front cost to the landowner,[...]
  • Meet Peter Fabor, an entrepreneur building a portfolio of niche hospitality businesses from marketplaces to industry newsletters.  Peter is a product designer by trade and has spent his career working in and around hospitality and technology companies.  In this conversation, Peter shares hot takes he has on the relevancy (or lack therefor) of hotel brands[...]
  • Meet Louis Thompson —  Founder and CEO of Nomadic Resorts, a consultancy that designs and builds some of the world’s most innovative and unique hotels and homes. Growing up, Louis wanted to be a chef — and while he never pursued his culinary aspirations he did wind up designing some of the world’s most memorable[...]
  • Meet Nitin Sood, Vice President of Innovation at Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy. Nitin and his team launched the first AI-powered search experience of any travel site so I invited him to come on the show to talk about how they built the tool, how folks are engaging with the experience post-launch, and what[...]
  • Meet Cameron Weeks — a former coast guard rescue swimmer turned hospitality entrepreneur. From a young age, Cameron dreamed of owning his own business — he used to listen to audio books like Rich Dad, Poor Dad with his father in the car when he was in elementary school.   After high school, Cameron enlisted[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Antonio Bafia, a 23-year-old entrepreneur who dropped out of college to pursue his dream of building hospitality businesses.  Growing up, Antonio was a competitive hockey player — he dreamed of one day playing in the NHL. And while that dream never came to fruition, the discipline he learned playing[...]
  • Meet Bella Linchenko, a muralist, STR investor, and creative finance community builder. Growing up, Bella wanted to be a dog groomer…or an olympic gymnast…or both. And while neither of those dreams panned out, she does get to apply her love of art, form, and problem solving to the work she gets to do each day.[...]
  • Howdy friends!  In this episode Zach sits down with Ben Wolff, Co-Founder of Onera and Oasi — two of the most innovative brands in the experiential hospitality space.  Ben Wolff is an incredible entrepreneur who has built some of the world's most unique and social-media-famous Airbnbs — if you haven't checked at his work, it's[...]
  • One of the newest and hottest industry events, Level Up Your Listing, host by Natalie Palmer and Tatiana Taylor-Tait, just wrapped last week — and we wanted to know what people thought about the event! In this episode, Zach sits down with Sage Nathan (Head of Partnerships at Minoan and a sponsor of the event),[...]
  • In this episode, Zach explores what Google Trends says about where to buy or build your next unique Airbnb. Zach shares fascinating insight into how search behavior for unique stays like treehouses, container homes, yurts, and A-frames has changed over time and where these searches for unique stays are most and least popular.  You're not[...]
  • Meet Elam King — founder and CEO of Kingly Vacation Renta;s, a collection of short-term rentals and soon to be motels located across Pennsylvania and Maryland. Elam grew up in the Amish community and it was here that he learned the importance of discipline, hard work and craftsmanship. After leaving the Amish community as a[...]
  • Meet Fred Boothby, Founder of Enjoy Unique Stays, a collection of 100 short-term rentals across Chattanooga, Michigan, North Carolina, and North Georgia. Fred was a banker — it seemed like a safe and stable way to build a nice life for his family. But there was something about the “safe way” that never felt quite[...]
  • Meet Landon Wilkinson, Co-Founder of Hostshare — a new platform that enables short-term rental hosts to trade unbooked nights in exchange for free travel. Growing up Landon wanted to be a spy — he went so far as to write a letter to the CIA asking them to recruit him …he even had a code[...]
  • What’s up friends got a special episode for y’all today featuring my friend Hans Lorei one of the best if not THE BEST designer in the short-term rental space. While I am a real sucker for the traditional, interview syle pod, I also know that sometimes you need content that is short, sweet, and super[...]
  • Meet Matt Whitermore, a  hospitality entrepreneur who buys, builds, and manages RV parks.  In this engaging conversation, Matt shares how he got started buying RV parks and why he believes there’s huge opportunity to disrupt and reimagine this category of travel and real estate investment. Tune in to hear: - The lessons Matt learned after[...]
  • Meet Kyle Tibbitts, Chief Marketing Officer at Wander, a network of smart, luxury vacation rentals that’s on a mission to verticalize the short-term rental experience.  If you were to have asked Kyle as a 10-year-old what he wanted to be when he grew up, he would have told you a lawyer, which, today, Kyle would[...]
  • In this episode of Behind the Stays, Zach shares five tangible and tactical ideas for how OpenAI's new Sora model will fundamentally change hospitality entrepreneurship.  Sora is an AI model that can create realistic and imaginative scenes from text instructions. Sora is able to generate complex scenes with multiple characters, specific types of motion, and[...]
  • Meet Stephanie Gutierrez, the creator of North Country Cabin Co. — a boutique collection of short-term rentals located just 90 minutes from Minnesota's twin cities in Comstock, Wisconsin. Growing up, Stephanie wanted to be an artist — her grandmother had an incredible eye for art and design and Stephanie dreamed of emulating her.  And while[...]
  • One of the newest and hottest industry events, STR Wealth Con, just wrapped last week — and we wanted to know what people thought about the event! In this episode, Zach sits down with Wil Slickers (emcee of the event), Sean Wilkinson (Co-Founder of Hostshare and first-time conferences attendee), and Heidie Henriksen ( a vacation[...]
  • Meet Jeremy Gall, Founder & CEO of Breezeway  — the leading property care, operations and messaging platform for hospitality entrepreneurs. Growing up, Jermey wanted to be a professional basketball player. And while he never made it into the NBA, he did make it into Law School. But Jeremy’s professional career as an attorney wouldn’t last[...]
  • Meet Meaghan Moylan, Executive Director of Outpost — a Vacation Rental and Property Management company located in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  If you were to have asked Meaghan what she wanted to be when she grew up, she would have told you a cat, a veterinarian, a nurse, or a lawyer — depending on whether she was[...]
  • Meet Chris Stephenson, Vice President of Global Development at Marriott Homes & Villas. Chris has spent his career building new, innovative products and services across travel and hospitality.  In February of 2019, Chris was a part of the founding team of Marriott Homes & Villas and in charge of thinking through how best to bring[...]
  • Meet Taylor Bates, the creator of The Afton House — a stunning, luxury home made for gathering and nestled in the heart of Virginia wine country. Growing up, Taylor wanted to be an architect or a Fortune 500 CEO — she’s always loved the intersection of marketing, design, and business. After working in a few marketing[...]
  • Meet Scott McIntosh, Co-Founder of Back Forty Glamping, a luxurious glamping oasis on 26 acres of land in Meaford, Ontario.  Growing up, Scott wanted to be a farmer — he loved being outdoors and the notion that you could make a life from tilling fields and harvesting crops was incredibly attractive to him. And while Scott[...]
  • Meet Dylan Barahona, General Manager at Canyon of the Eagles, a nature resort and preserve on 940 acres of land, located just 1.5 Hours from Austin, Texas. If you were to have asked Dylan at ten-years-old what he wanted to be when he grew up, he’d tell you either a professional baseball player or a[...]
  • Meet Antonio Gonzalez, President of ÖÖD House — the company behind the instagram famous mirror houses. Antonio is an engineer by trade, but always had a heart for entrepreneurship… So, when the opportunity to co-found Jupe along with past-podcast guest Jeff Wilson and take it through Y Combinator, the world’s most prestigious of startup accelerators,[...]
  • Meet Garett Brown, the visionary and creator behind Cameron Ranch Glamping, a collection of luxury glamping units on 11 acres just an hour outside of Houston, Texas.  Garrett is a professional music producer and traveling DJ who has always loved dabbling in real estate investing. When he wasn’t performing on stage or out on a[...]
  • Meet Brett Deas, a 19-year-old entrepreneur who owns and operates unique stay vacation rentals across the U.S. While his high school buddies were scrolling through TikTok before school and playing video games afterwards, Brett was binging Bigger Pockets podcasts to understand the world of real estate investing. After graduating from high school, Brett decided to[...]
  • Meet Mollie Reese, the host of the popular Stay in Good Company podcast and an experienced community builder who has spent her career working with leading brands across the the food & beverage and events & hospitality industries. Having recently left the world of corporate burnout and the hustle and bustle of city-living behind for[...]
  • Meet Assaf Karmon, Co-founder & CEO of Turno — a marketplace that helps vacation rental hosts and property management companies simplify and automate cleaning. Assaf was born and raised in Israel and as a kid his dream was to be a professional soccer player. And while that dream never came to fruition, in part because[...]
  • Meet Jake and Leslie, the creators of the Lighthouse Cottage, an oceanfront escape in Cape May, New Jersey.  Jake and Leslie had always dreamed of owning a beach house, but acquiring a property in the competitive Cape May market seemed out of reach. That is until one day Leslie was scrolling on Zillow and noticed[...]
  • Meet Rob Patterson, an incredible hospitality leader whose most recent post was as the CEO of Best Western in the United Kingdom. Rob grew up in a very remote town in the country of Australia. Growing up, Rob dreamed of becoming a professional footballer — so much so that when an opportunity to move to Sydney[...]
  • Meet Amber and Charlie Pledge — the founders of Kabn Company, a new hospitality brand focused on creating luxurious, and sustainable nature-immersed escapes. Amber and Charlie have always loved to travel. The couple has been fortunate enough to live and work in major hubs of innovation like London, San Francisco, and Dubai.   And while[...]
  • Meet Steve Turk — a decorated professional who has spent over two decades working in luxury hospitality. Steve’s father was a susccessful attorney. From time to time, his dad would bring him along on work travel and Steve remembers being in total awe at the hotels he and his dad would stay in. There was[...]
  • Meet Ashley and Andy — the creators of The Glass Treehouse, a stunning couple’s stay in Banner Elk, North Carolina close to downtown Boone.  Andy is a mechanic by trade.  After spending years working in the airline industry, he decided to open up his own auto body shop in Charlotte, North Carolina. While Ashely and[...]
  • You've been asking what we've got planed for 2024 —  so here's a sneak peak! I'm calling this episode our "Winter Housekeeping" pod so if you’re just here for the guests I bring onto the show and don’t care too much about what we’re building at Sponstayneous or the community we’re cultivating through Behind the[...]
  • Meet Jake Pontius — Co-Founder of Nook, a collection of North America’s most remarkable landscape hotels and outdoor accommodations.  After working as a business analyst at a timeshare company, Jake left the corporate world to pursue his passion of brewing craft beer and it was during this season of his life where he first fell[...]
  • Meet Margot Schmorak, Co-Founder and CEO of Hostfully — one of the hospitality industry’s leading technology companies.  Margot started her career working in marketing at Apple during one of the company's most pivotal eras.  She remembers the launch of the very first iPhone quite vividly since she was the only person on the marketing team[...]
  • Welcome to Episode 3 of Mastering Vacation Rental Marketing — a special Behind the Stays podcast series brought to you in collaboration with my friend, Conrad O’Connell, Founder and CEO of BuildUp Bookings, one of the most respected marketing agencies for vacation rental managers and hospitality entrepreneurs. Conrad just published an incredible book “Mastering Vacation[...]
  • Meet Paul Kromidas, an industry trailblazer who transitioned from a strategic role at Airbnb to founding Summer, a company revolutionizing the vacation rental space.  This episode delves into Paul's insights on the shifting dynamics of property management and his innovative approach to vacation home ownership. Tune in as we explore: Paul's key learnings from his[...]
  • Welcome to Episode 2 of Mastering Vacation Rental Marketing — a special Behind the Stays podcast series brought to you in collaboration with my friend, Conrad O’Connell, Founder and CEO of BuildUp Bookings, one of the most respected marketing agencies for vacation rental managers and hospitality entrepreneurs. Conrad just published an incredible book "Mastering Vacation[...]
  • Meet Tim Harper, an innovator who left the digital marketing world to create Bubble Retreats, a unique hospitality experience in Victoria, Australia.  This episode takes you through Tim's inspiring journey from a memorable stargazing night in France to becoming a winner in Airbnb's OMG campaign. In this conversation, Tim and I explore: Tim's transition from[...]
  • Meet Jeremy Hill, Co-Founder and CEO of Arcana — a next generation nature resort complete with seasonally immersive science-based experiences that help guests feel nature’s true restorative powers. Jeremy was working in banking and had climbed the proverbial and prestigious corporate ladder for years.  But one day, as he was staring out the window of[...]
  • Welcome to Mastering Vacation Rental Marketing — a special Behind the Stays podcast series brought to you in collaboration with my friend, Conrad O’Connnel, Founder and CEO of BuildUp Bookings, one of the most respected marketing agencies for vacation rental managers and hospitality entrepreneurs. Conrad just published an incredible book "Mastering Vacation Rental Marketing" which serves[...]
  • Meet Bill Faeth — one of the most popular and well-respected voices in the short-term rental industry. Bill Faeth has been involved in real estate for almost 25 years with both commercial and residential investing. In 2015, he switched the majority of his residential portfolio to short term rentals from long term after seeing an[...]
  • Meet Max Gagliardi — founder of Mountain Fork Resort, a 140-acre waterfront development in Broken Bow, Oklahoma.  Max is an entrepreneur who builds businesses across energy, real estate, & technology — he has a knack for finding opportunities in places others are convinced no opportunity exists. After stumbling upon an incredible piece of land in Broken[...]
  • Meet Brooke Phautz, founder and CEO of Vintory, the only sales and marketing platform on the planet exclusively dedicated to helping professional vacation rental managers grow their inventory.   Brooke is one of the industry's most respected experts, so it was an honor to get him back on the podcast to discuss his new book, Vacation[...]
  • Meet Brooke Pfautz, founder and CEO of Vintory, the only sales and marketing platform on the planet exclusively dedicated to helping professional vacation rental managers grow their inventory.   Brooke is one of the industry's most respected experts, so it was an honor to get him back on the podcast to discuss his new book, Vacation[...]
  • Meet David and Andy Heyman — the two brothers who brought one of the newest and most unique glamping sites in the Blue Ridge Mountains to life, which they call Glamp Blue Ridge. David has a background in finance and Andy is a graphic designer by trade. The guys had long dreamed of being able[...]
  • Meet Mike Harrington, a true legend among vacation rental managers.   Mike’s career in hospitality started by accident.  After graduating from business school, Mike received a call from a recruiter to join a vacation rental management company on Hatteras Island. He learned the ropes of the industry at this first gig, grew to love the art[...]
  • Meet Josiah Mackenzie, Founder of Hospitality Daily — a community, podcast, and email newsletter that helps hospitality professionals stay informed and inspired in this ever-changing and dynamic industry.  Josiah has spent his entire career creating, innovating and building in Hospitality. He founded a company called Hospitality Marketing Strategies which went on to become the #1[...]
  • Meet Tanner Cummings — Co-founder and Owner of Thin Spaces, a new hotel brand that’s building its first micro-resort called Cypress at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in Jasper, Georgia.  Tanner has always loved finding issues and solving problems, which is why he spent most of his professional career working in quality assurance engineering[...]
  • Meet James Varley — Founder of the Holiday Cottage Handbook and Varley Media.  James has had an impressive career in media — taking jobs around the world to work in print, TV, radio, digital advertising and social media organizations large and small. For the last ten years, James was living in Qatar leading corporate communications[...]
  • Meet John Andrew Entwistle, Founder and CEO of Wander, Sief Khafagi, Co-Founder and CEO of Techvestor, and Cameron Wu, VP of Investments at Arrived. I invited these incredible gentlemen onto the podcast for a panel discussion on the future of fundraising, portfolio building, and passive investing in short-term rentals. I’ve been curious, as I’m sure[...]
  • Meet John Sutton — Co-Founder and CEO of Mansion, a new fractional ownership offering for those looking to get into short-term rental investing without needing to own or operate an Airbnb. Before starting Mansion*, John was the Chief Digital Officer at Red Ventures — the parent company for brands like Lonely Planet, The Points Guy, Reviews.com,[...]
  • Meet Jake Tucker, founder of Roav — a collection of urban and luxury retreat STRs located in the Pacific Northwest Jake began co-hosting Airbnbs while in college as a side-hustle.  He had no experience in real estate or hospitality whatsoever, but after Googling "how to make a lot of money as a college kid", he[...]
  • Want to save 30-40% off West Elm purchase for your Airbnb?  Or hundreds off of instagram famous mattresses from Bear or Purple? Then you'll want to create your free account with our partner Minoan. Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you[...]
  • Want to save 30-40% off West Elm purchase for your Airbnb?  Or hundreds off of instagram famous mattresses from Bear or Purple? Then you'll want to create your free account with our partner Minoan. Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you[...]
  • Want to save 30-40% off West Elm purchase for your Airbnb?  Or hundreds off of instagram famous mattresses from Bear or Purple? Then you'll want to create your free account with our partner Minoan. Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you[...]
  • Meet Jacob Mueller, Co-Founder and CEO of Renjoy — a next generation short-term rental management firm based in Colorado Springs. Growing up, Jacob never would’ve guessed he’d be an entrepreneur, he studied economics in college and thought he’d go into policy.  But during his senior year, Jacob had the opportunity to work on a school[...]
  • Meet Stephen Pellicano — a hospitality entrepreneur in the Catskills focused on building simple glamping structures with everything you need and nothing that you don’t! Stephen is a graphic designer by trade and fell in love with travel and hospitality after winning not one, but two free, round-trip tickets to Europe on British Airways as[...]
  • Meet Eric Carrico — founder of the The Woodford Hotel, a boutique invisible service hotel in Versailles, Kentucky. Eric is a civil and environmental engineer by trade and has spent his career solving complex civil engineering problems for some of the largest heavy industrial earthwork construction projects in the country. After the housing crisis in[...]
  • Meet Dennis Goedheid, founder and CEO of Casiola — one of the hottest vacation rental management companies in the short-term rental space. Dennis is no stranger to entrepreneurship — he started and sold two companies in his native Belgium before moving to Silicon Valley to find inspiration for his next big thing. And while he couldn’t[...]
  • Meet Justin Hauge, Co-Founder and CEO of Storied Collection — a collection of castles and historical stays across the UK and Ireland.  While Storied Collection is Justin’s first rodeo as a founder, it’s not his first rodeo working in startups. Back in 2009, Justin was hired as the 13th team employee at a little start[...]
  • In this special podcast episode, Zach Busekrus, host of the Behind the Stays podcast and co-founder of Sponstayneous shares the stories behind the inception of both brands. - Uncover the story of how Zach and his wife broke their lease in Washington D.C. in the fall of 2020 to live full-time on Airbnb - Discover[...]
  • Meet Daniel Johnson, founder of Deacon Stays — a collection of curated stays near Wake Forest University.  Daniel has always been interested in real estate and investing and started his hosting as many do in the Airbnb arbitrage arena back in 2018. He thoroughly enjoyed the experience of hosting and was impressed by the returns[...]
  • Meet Sébastien Long, founder of Lodgeur — a furnished living, on-demand product that gives traveling professionals and digital nomads the service and consistency of a hotel with the spaciousness and function of a stylish home. While Sébastien has spent the better part of his professional career working big corporate jobs he actually grew up immersed in[...]
  • Meet Taylor Jones, Head of Acquisition at Techvestor, one of my favorite STR thought leaders to follow on social media, and a good friend of the Behind the Stays podcast.  After losing his sales job during COVID, Taylor spent hundreds of hours watching YouTube videos to learn all that he could about short-term rental real[...]
  • Meet Michael Goldin, Co-Founder of the Storied Collection — an exclusive collection of historic estates, castles and other unique residences-turned-accommodations, situated across the United Kingdom and Ireland. Michael and his wife were searching for a much needed vacation as covid rules across the world began to subside. They dreamed of staying in a beautiful castle,[...]
  • Meet Annette Grant and Sarah Karakain from Thanks for Visiting — one of the most popular, if not THE most popular short-term rental podcasts out there.  Sarah is an actress by trade and was hustling on Broadway when Airbnb first became available in NYC.  She somehow convinced her husband to let her list their basement[...]
  • Today you'll re-meet Emily Padan, Ben Wolff, and Isaac French, founders of Hinter, Onera, and Live Oak Lake respectively — all three of these fine people were gracious enough to come BACK onto Behind the Stays.  In this first-of-its-kind panel podcast, this dynamic trio shares their experiences of working with hundreds of influencers and creators[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and be sure[...]
  • Please give a quick thank you to our sponsor for today’s episode, OwnerRez — the most loved and trusted property management software by professional vacation rental managers on the market.  Some of my best friends in the industry swear by OwnerRez so I’d highly encourage you to check them out and be sure to tell them[...]
  • Meet Adam Norko, a former marine turned hospitality marketer extraordinaire. Adam has spent the last two decades working in sales and marketing for a number of hospitality brands — everything from the PropTech side of the house to leading growth at vacation rental and STR management companies. In this conversation, Adam and I talk about[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and be sure[...]
  • Meet Matt Landau, the founder of VRMB — a vacation rental marketing blog and community for the world’s most innovative vacation rental professionals.  When Matt was a senior at the University of Richmond, he stumbled upon an alumni magazine that wound up changing his life. On the cover of this magazine was an alum sitting[...]
  • Meet Bunim Laskin, Founder and CEO of Swimply — the Airbnb for Pools. Bunim grew up in Israel and moved to the states with his family when he was 15 years old.  He is oldest of 12 children and the idea for Swimply came to him when he was looking for a way to entertain[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and be sure[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and be sure[...]
  • In this episode Zach shares some exciting new updates on what we're building at Sponstayneous and asks for feedback from listeners on how to improve Behind the Stays.  Got ideas for Zach?  Reach out to him direct at [email protected] or find him on Twitter @zboozee or on LinkedIn at @zacharybusekrus.  About the Show Behind the[...]
  • Meet Paul Waldschmidt, Co-Founder and CEO of OwnerRez — one of the industry’s most beloved property management platforms.  Paul is a software developer through and through.  He has always loved leveraging technology to solve problems.  So, when he and his business partner Chris began experiencing problems with their property manager on their recently purchased vacation[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by StayFi!  StayFi makes it easy to collect data from and market to every single person staying in your short-term rental. StayFi lets you create a custom branded WiFi splash page similar to what you might experience when logging onto the WiFi network at your favorite coffee shop.  This[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by StayFi!  StayFi makes it easy to collect data from and market to every single person staying in your short-term rental. StayFi lets you create a custom branded WiFi splash page similar to what you might experience when logging onto the WiFi network at your favorite coffee shop.  This[...]
  • This episode is a special one!  Wil Slickers from Slick Talk invited our host, Zach Busekrus, to come and share his story on Wil's top-rated hospitality podcast.  Enjoy this rebroadcasted episode!  Be sure to subscribe to Wil's show here or wherever you get your podcast.  Behind the Stays is brought to you by Sponstayneous —[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by StayFi!  StayFi makes it easy to collect data from and market to every single person staying in your short-term rental. StayFi lets you create a custom branded WiFi splash page similar to what you might experience when logging onto the WiFi network at your favorite coffee shop.  This[...]
  • So there’s been a LOT happening over the last couple of months and I wanted to give you all a quick update on some exciting happenings at Sponstayneous and Behind the Stays... Say hi to Minoan Sign up for Minoan Subscribe to Behind the Stays on YouTube Follow Behind the Stays on Instagram  Say hi[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and be sure[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and be sure[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and[...]
  • This episode is brought to you by our friends at Minoan.  Minoan provides hosts with a one-stop-shop to get hundreds of discounts on the world’s leading brands, and a system where you can manage all of the ordering, tracking, returns, etc. in one place. Saving you time and money!  Create your free account here and[...]
  • Download the full free report . Oh, and be sure to start your 14-day free trial of Uplisting at  at https://www.uplisting.io/bts-podcast and, once you’ve fallen in love with all that this platform has to offer, get 20% off of your first year of Uplisting when you use the code BTS20 at checkout.  Welcome to Episode 3[...]
  • Meet Hayden Laverty, Founder of CHJ Development, a real-estate developer in Portland, Oregon focused on acquiring, designing, and constructing the city’s most significant short-term-rental residences. Hayden learned pretty early on in life that he wasn’t cut out for the traditional 9 - 5. After working at two internships during his junior and senior years of[...]
  • Download the full free report . Oh, and be sure to start your 14-day free trial of Uplisting at  at https://www.uplisting.io/bts-podcast and, once you’ve fallen in love with all that this platform has to offer, get 20% off of your first year of Uplisting when you use the code BTS20 at checkout.  Welcome to Episode 2[...]
  • Meet Robin Craigen, Co-Founder and CEO of Moving Mountains —a luxury collection of lodging properties in Steamboat Springs, Beaver Creek, Vail, and Breckenridge, Colorado. Robin began his hospitality entrepreneurship journey alongside his wife Heather at sea. Yes, you heard that right, the Craigens ran a luxury yacht charter business around the British Virgin Islands. And[...]
  • Download the full free report . Oh, and be sure to start your 14-day free trial of Uplisting at  at https://www.uplisting.io/bts-podcast and, once you’ve fallen in love with all that this platform has to offer, get 20% off of your first year of Uplisting when you use the code BTS20 at checkout.  Welcome to a special[...]
  • Meer Eric Moeller, Founder + CEO of Freewyld — a curated collection of properties designed to inspire awe and bring people together launching this summer in Idyllwild, California. Eric is no stranger to hospitality entrepreneurship. He is the co-founder of Overnight Success which is the engine behind short-term rental educational brands like Legends X 90-Day[...]
  • Meet Amy Dourson from Red River Gorgeous, a collection of unique cabins, treehouses, and instagram-famous cliff houses in Kentucky’s Red River Gorge.  Growing up,  Amy wanted to be a doctor.  So, she spent a lot of her time studying as she was determined to go to medical school. But, after a series of adventurous and[...]
  • Meet Ben Wolff — Founder and Creator of Onera — a truly one-of-a-kind collection of unique escapes in the Texas Hill Country.  Ben is no stranger to hospitality entrepreneurship. Prior to starting Onera, Ben founded and grew ProTripper, a property management services platform, and Blink Hospitality, a data-driven, vacation rental company with hundreds of properties[...]
  • Meet Chelsea Dunckley  — the Founder of Digs Co, a hospitality company that specializes in creating elevated vacation rentals in Central Washington and the Greater Phoenix area.  Chelsea and her husband Luke have always loved real estate.  After getting married, you’d often find the couple working on nights and weekends flipping homes while discussing the[...]
  • In this special episode, Zach sits down with Amy from Allbelongco to discuss the viral story behind her missing painting.  One of Amy's recent Airbnb guests stole a painting and then REPLACED it with one of his own.  Amy posted about this on Instagram and TikTok...and it went viral! Tune into the riveting, somewhat unbelievable[...]
  • In this special episode, Zach sits down with Amy from Allbelongco to discuss the viral story behind her missing painting.  One of Amy's recent Airbnb guests stole a painting and then REPLACED it with one of his own.  Amy posted about this on Instagram and TikTok...and it went viral! Tune into the riveting, somewhat unbelievable[...]
  • Meet Jacob Halverson, the General Manager of Mendocino Grove — a luxury glamping resort on 32 wooded acres in Mendocino County, California.  After studying hospitality management at Lakeland University, Jacob started his career as a front desk manager at Custer State Park Resort in South Dakota. Since then, he’s helped launch luxury boutique hotels, started[...]
  • Meet Jenny Power, the creator of  The Cornerstone Cottage, a carefully restored historic home near Acadia National Park in Lamoine, Maine.  Jenny wasn’t looking for a vacation rental — and while she enjoys hosting at her home in Houston, Texas the idea of becoming a short-term-rental host wasn’t remotely on her mind. Jenny’s family are long-time[...]
  • Meet John Stokinger — Co-Host of the No BS Short-Term Rental Podcast and the Director of Sales at Direct, a SaaS platform for short-term rental property and reservation management. In this wide-ranging conversation, John and I talk about his time at the popular start-up, Hopper, how to build better technology platforms for short-term rental hosts, the[...]
  • Meet Travis Wilburn and Rebecca Lombardo — the founders of The 100 Collection, a curation of the best properties from trusted vacation rental brands on a mission to set the gold standard for hospitality. Travis has built and run companies in travel and hospitality for well over a decade. His working knowledge spans every level[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Doug Heestand, the owner of the Desert of Maine, a unique and intriguing roadside attraction located in Freeport, Maine.  In this podcast interview, Doug shares his journey of transforming the Desert of Maine from a simple tourist attraction to a thriving hospitality company. We explore the origins of the[...]
  • Meet Janice Stitzer, the creator of The Back Country A-Frame in Kremmling, Colorado.  One afternoon Janice was flipping through a Dwell magazine when she stumbled upon a piece about a new start-up called DEN, which was selling plans for some of the most beautiful cabins she had ever seen.   Janice was so impressed by the[...]
  • Meet Andrew Kitchell, a hospitality and proptech entrepreneur currently leading the team at Wheelhouse — a technology platform that helps you manage your short-term rentals as professionally and efficiently as major hotels—from understanding performance to better nightly pricing. Andrew is no stranger to tech or hospitality…in fact, he was building companies in Silicon Valley while[...]
  • Meet Jen and Michael Penchansky, the creators of Casa Nevana, the first short-term rental in the couple’s newly founded portfolio, Nevana Properties.  Michael and Jen met while working in the fashion industry in New York City. Michael founded a software company in fashion tech and Jen was employee number one, so the couple know a[...]
  • Meet Wil Slickers — founder of Hospitality FM, the largest network of hospitality podcasts, and the co-founder of Recreation Rentals, a boutique collection of vacation rentals with luxury hotel-like operations. While working as a hotel manager in the pacific northwest, Wil stared a podcast called Slick Talk — a show that explores the dynamic nature[...]
  • Meet Michael Albaum — a professional remote real estate investor, Airbnb superhost, and fellow podcaster. After getting an engineering degree and moving to the Bay Area, Michael stumbled upon a book that would forever shift his perspective on work and wealth…and that book was Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad, Poor Dad. In this episode of Behind[...]
  • Meet Jonah Hanig, Founder and CEO of Rove — a premium portfolio of luxury Airbnbs designed for discerning travelers. Jonah grew up in the Chicago suburbs and always had a knack for tinkering with business ideas. After going to school in New York, Jonah decided to pursue his dream of becoming an entrepreneur and was[...]
  • Welcome to Marketing Mondays — a new, weekly segment on the Behind the Stays podcast that covers specific marketing strategies and tactics that Airbnb hosts and hospitality entrepreneurs can immediately use to promote their stays. On this third episode Zach covers all things Email A/B testing!  Email A/B tests are incredibly important...yet many Airbnb hosts[...]
  • Meet Jeff Iloulian — Founder and CEO of HostGPO, a buying group for the short term rental industry. After graduating with a degree in Economics from Columbia, Jeff thought he wanted to be an attorney, so went to Law School. But after practicing law for a few years, Jeff was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug so[...]
  • Meet Devon Loerop, the creator of The Pacific Bin — a luxurious escape made of 5 shipping containers, just an hour outside of Seattle. Devon grew up in the midwest but was born with a New York City mindset — from the time he was young, he hustled hard, and enjoyed proving people wrong when they[...]
  • Meet Michael Romanowicz, the founder and CEO of DEN Outdoors.  Mike is a software designer by trade, but has always had a love for the natural world. So, when he wasn’t busy leading the product team at Conductor, which was a content marketing platform owned by WeWork, Mike was tinkering with some designs for a[...]
  • Meet Chase Charifa, the creator of the Lightfoot Cabin — a cozy, unique escape nestled in the foothills of Big Bear Mountain in Southern California.  A few years ago, Chase and his wife April started a production studio as a side hustle.  The couple regretted not having a videographer at their wedding and this inspired them[...]
  • Welcome to another Marketing Mondays on the Behind the Stays podcast feed! In this episode we chat ALL about SEO and how Airbnb hosts can leverage the power of great keyword research to increase their organic rankings on Google.  In today's lesson we share a lot of screenshots and data...so...you MAY wish to WATCH this[...]
  • Meet Brooke Pfautz, founder and CEO of Vintory — a sales and marketing platform exclusively dedicated to helping professional vacation rental managers and short-term rental entrepreneurs grow their inventory.  Brooke built one of the largest mortgage banking firms in the DC Metro Area, but when the financial crisis of 2008 hit, Brooke began to reconsider what[...]
  • Welcome to Marketing Mondays — a new, weekly segment on the Behind the Stays podcast that covers specific marketing strategies and tactics that Airbnb hosts and hospitality entrepreneurs can immediately use to promote their stays.    On this second episode of this new Behind the Stays segment, Zach covers: Why you should build a website[...]
  • Meet Levi Kelly — a creator whose cabin tour videos have garnered nearly 80 millions views on YouTube. Growing up, Levi used to goof around and shoot funny videos with his buddies and then edit them on the iMovie app on his phone. In high school he realized that shooting and editing video was more than[...]
  • Meet Whitney and Andrew Bradberry, the creators of the Front Range A-Frame in Bailey, Colorado, just an hour outside of Denver.  Whitney is a freelancer marketer by trade, and her husband Andrew is a firefighter paramedic.  Given their non-traditional jobs, the couple has always enjoyed tinkering on creative projects together. Whitney’s father loved Colorado and[...]
  • Welcome to Marketing Mondays — a new, weekly segment on the Behind the Stays podcast that covers specific marketing strategies and tactics that Airbnb hosts and hospitality entrepreneurs can immediately use to promote their stays.  On the first episode of this new Behind the Stays segment, Zach covers: Why you should work with creators A[...]
  • Meet Emily South — the creator of The Appalachian A-Frame in Sugar Grove, North Carolina just 20 minutes outside of downtown Boone. Emily and her husband John are entrepreneurs.  Emily is a yoga instructor and John owns and runs a production studio. Given their non-traditional career paths, Emily and John don’t have some of the benefits[...]
  • Meet Jamie Kraus, the creator of Chestnut Hill — a beautiful appointed home located 5 minutes from Main Street in Breckenridge, Colorado.  Jamie and her husband have three young adult sons and live in the great state of Texas.  Growing up, Jamie would vacation in the Colorado mountains with her family and dreamed of one[...]
  • Meet Chris Broomfield, the creator of Evergreen Cabins — one of Instagram’s favorite collections of luxurious cabin rentals in the Adirondacks. Growing up, Chris loved to tinker. At the age of 14 he started building picnic tables and bar stools with his next door neighbor that he’d sell to local patrons. It was at this[...]
  • Meet Tiffany Lund — the creator of The Havarti Haus, an accessible, Scandinavian-style retreat in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, opening in late 2023. Tiffany and her family love to go on adventures — the outdoors has always been a place of restoration and reinvigoration for them. Tiffany and her husband Jim have an incredible son[...]
  • Meet Mike Iannetta, better known as Mike Will Travel, a YouTube creator and hospitality marketing specialist. Mike started his first business at the age of 17.  He raised $5,000 on Kickstarter to start what he thought would be the next big board shorts brand. Now, the clothing line didn’t quite pan out, but it solidified[...]
  • Meet John Andrew Entwistle, Founder and CEO of Wander, one of the most exciting startups in the travel and hospitality space today.  John Andrew had a non-traditional schooling experience.  He started and ran a game server company when he was just 13 years old, so focusing on homework wasn’t a high priority.  In high school,[...]
  • Meet Ty and Mary, the creators of The Northwoods A-Frame and Tiny Cabins near Itasca State Park in northern Minnesota.  Ty and Mary both have demanding jobs – Ty is an architect and Mary a nurse. So, in October 2020, after months of lockdown, the couple was in dire need of a getaway. Mary had[...]
  • Meet Addie Wales, the creator of The Ely Cabin Collective — a boutique collection of Airbnbs near The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota.  Growing up, Addie always wanted to be an entrepreneur. She remembers pitching her first business to her dad as a 10 year old which was for an ice cream shop[...]
  • Meet Justin and Shaun — the creators of The Chal-A Frame, a beautifully curated escape nestled between the Stratton and Mt. Snow ski areas in Vermont. Justin and Shaun are both architects.  They were roommates in college and have been close friends ever since. One day while hanging out with the rest of their crew,[...]
  • About the Episode: Meet Melissa Hessney Masters — the founder of Tanglebloom and the creator of the Tanglebloom Cabin.  Melissa has always been creative.  Growing up in the fingerlakes region of New York,  she found herself mesmerized by natural beauty — whether it be wildflowers or waterfalls, Melissa was transfixed by the innate purity of the[...]
  • Meet Connor Gross — an entrepreneur in his mid-twenties who is currently focused on building a portfolio of self-storage units across the state of Texas. Connor graduated from Northeastern University in 2020.  As a part of a co-op program at Northeastern, he was able to spend a semester building his first start-up, Cardly, with his co-founder[...]
  • Meet Connor Gross — an entrepreneur in his mid-twenties who is currently focused on building a portfolio of self-storage units across the state of Texas. Connor graduated from Northeastern University in 2020.  As a part of a co-op program at Northeastern, he was able to spend a semester building his first start-up, Cardly, with his co-founder[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Natalie Palmer — an Airbnb Ambassador, a 17x superhost, and the creator and host of the popular No Vacancy podcast.  Natalie was never really sure what she wanted to do when she “grew up”...but she was always quick to say “yes” when opportunities to step outside of her comfort-zone surfaced. [...]
  • Meet Alexis and Skeeter — the creators of The Kingdom A-Frame, a quintessential New England escape in Burke, Vermont.  Alexis and Skeeter love mountain biking and have traveled to Northeastern Vermont to traverse the Kingdom Trails for years!  These trails are known as the crown jewel of East Coast mountain biking. Alexis and Skeeter have three[...]
  • Meet Damian Sheridan, founder of The Book Direct and Scale Rentals Shows — a couple of the leading events for short-term rental hosts and property managers interested in building their direct booking strategies. Growing up, Damian wanted to be a professional footballer…but, he quickly learned that in addition to passion for the game, you needed[...]
  • Meet Janice Smith, the creator of the Cozy Rock Cabin (@cozyrockcabin), a 750 square-foot cabin on 3 acres of wooded land in Freeport, Maine. Janice has always had a knack for project management — and this skill has served her well as she led an ed-tech startup, launched her own video production agency, and brought not[...]
  • Meet Sara Roitman,  the creator of Field and Lake, a new collective of boutique vacation rentals on the shores of Lake Michigan. Sara is an attorney by trade and lives in Chicago with her beautiful family.  A few years back, Sara and her husband had purchased a vacation home on Lake Michigan so that they[...]
  • Meet Ethan Abitz — one of the OG Airbnb Instagram Influencers. Ethan first started using Instagram in high school to promote an apparel line he started. This was when Instagram let you upload a photo and select from just a handful of filters before posting your shot — no stories, reels, etc. In college, Ethan thought he[...]
  • Meet Spenser and Marcy Kernea, the creators of the Retreat at Fall Branch Falls, a pristinely crafted escape in Georgia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.  Spenser has always been a big dreamer.  And while Marcy is fond of big ideas herself, she often has to counterbalance Spenser’s idealism with just a smidge of realism. Spenser once had[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Jamie Lane, Vice President of Research at AirDNA. After spending a decade at CBRE, one of the country’s largest American commercial real estate services and investment firm, Jamie was itching for a change…   He had always loved the hospitality space, and the short-term rental space in particular, so when[...]
  • Meet Emir Dukic, founder and CEO of Rabbu. Rabbu helps investors find and manage short-term rentals.   Emir started working in tech via a cold email.  He reached out to the founder of Kick, which was a social network dedicated to talking about all things soccer, asking if he could help the company grow in any[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll  meet Evan Dolgow, Head of Predictive Hospitality at Jarvis ML.  Jarvis ML was founded by the guys over at Google who built the machine learning platforms powering Google Ads and Payments.  Evan and his team have a vision of democratizing the data and technology that OTAs have and making these[...]
  • Meet Lauren and Cam Green, the founders of The Fort Treehouse Company — Canada’s premier luxury treehouse company. Cam and Lauren met at summer camp.  They were a part of the same friend group for more than 15 years before they started dating, but once they did, it was clear that they were a perfect match.[...]
  • Meet Ali Nichols — Co-Founder of Getaway. Getaway is on a mission to make vacation rental real estate accessible to the next generations  of investors and to reimagine travel memberships by allowing investors to stay in the premier homes they own.  Ali has been interested in real estate since she was a young child.  She’d come[...]
  • Meet Heather Davis, the creator of the Stone City Treehouse in Hardwick, Vermont. Heather grew up in New York but always had great affinity for the Green Mountain State — so much so that her only criteria for where to go to college was that it had to be in Vermont.  In 2012 Heather started[...]
  • Meet Daniel Rusteen.  Daniel is the self-proclaimed “world’s best at Airbnb.” And before you laugh or roll your eyes, he’s got a pretty solid case for why this title is fitting.  Daniel worked at Airbnb for several years, launched his own Airbnb property management business, is building his own collection of luxe Airbnbs, has a[...]
  • Meet Nate Ritter — founder of Room Steals, a travel membership that provides customers with incredible deals on hotel rooms. Nate is a technology executive who has started, bought, and sold companies and who has also consulted for companies like Microsoft and Land Rover. Fun fact — Nate also popularized the use of the hashtag[...]
  • Meet Bryce Garcia.  Bryce works in sales for a SaaS company by day and is building his own collection of STRs by night. When Bryce’s mom found out he had bought a condo in Austin,  site unseen, during the middle of the pandemic, and planned to live in one room and rent out the other[...]
  • Meet Jon Kreye — an award-winning Airbnb and VRBO photographer. Growing up, you’d often find Jon in the backyard snapping photos of trees, flowers, and wildlife — he has always been moved by the beauty nature offers.  Jon dreamed of being able to do photography full-time, but was sober to the fact that making it as[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Joel Holland, CEO of Harvest Hosts —  an RV membership program that allows travelers to stay overnight at unique locations around the country including farms, wineries, breweries, and more. Joel is what you might call a creative hustler.  As a young teenager, you could either find him selling DVDs[...]
  • Meet Tyann Marcink  — the Queen of Guest Experience at Touch Stay, a digital guidebook platform for short-term and vacation rental hosts.  Tyann has a knack for charting her own path. She’s a resilient creative who owns 2 rental management brands and has been active in the vacation rental industry since 2007. Discover Tyann’s hot[...]
  • Meet Marcus Rader — Founder and CEO of Hostaway.  Marcus grew up in Finland.  He was quite a curious kid, but struggled to develop any lasting hobbies as he was easily distracted. After flying for the first time as a six year old, Marcus’ dream was to become a pilot.  Something about being at 30,000[...]
  • Meet Marc Hostovsky, Founder and CEO of Minoan —  a customizable, curated retail platform for short-term rental hosts.  Marc is a self-proclaimed boutique geek and is passionate about the future of retail.  After spending nearly 6 years working at Jet.com and then Walmart (acquired Jet.com), he quickly realized that the best product experiences don't happen[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Heather Bien and Adam Shapiro, the creators of Rosehill Cottage — a charming river house on the Rappahannock River in Virginia.  Heather works in marketing at a tech start-up by day and runs her lifestyle and travel blog by night, and Adam works for the federal government.   While the[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Vinny Breslin, founder of Uplisting — one of the industry’s leading short-term rental software & channel manager platforms.  Vinny was born and raised in Ireland. If you were to stumble into his room as a young kid, you might find Vinny taking apart a computer or a radio. When[...]
  • Meet Arthur Colker, Founder and CEO of StayFi.  Growing up, Arthur thought he wanted to be a politician.  He was intrigued by how power and influence could move society forward. After going to school in DC and interning on The Hill, Arthur realized that while he loved following politics, working in it wasn’t quite for[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Jason Neil — the creator of Golden Tiny Homes – a collection of minimalist short term rentals in Golden, British Columbia. Growing up, Jason liked working with his hands.  He always had an eye for making things better and this perspective ultimately led him to become a builder — like[...]
  • Meet Chad Ludeman, Co-Founder of Post Green Homes and Lokal Hotel. Chad moved around a lot as a kid, but spent high school in upstate New York.  He’s an engineer by trade, but an entrepreneur at heart. Courtney, Chad’s wife and business partner, was Chad’s most critical sounding board — she shot down most of[...]
  • Meet Dylan Petrich — Co-Founder of Wilder Ways,  a Texas-based hotel brand and management company.​ Dylan was born in Paris but grew up in London. After graduating from university he went to work in finance and split his time between London and New York. While finance was fascinating, Dylan grew tired of just looking at[...]
  • Meet Conrad O'Connell (@conradoconnell), Founder and CEO at BuildUp Bookings, a digital marketing agency that helps STR hosts increase direct bookings & build their brands. Conrad was working at a marketing agency after college.  This agency onboarded a new client in the boutique hotel space and Conrad was assigned to the account. Pretty instantly, Conrad[...]
  • Meet Debbie Todd, creator of The Woodlands at Hocking Hill. Debbie is a physical therapist and mother of three by day, and an STR host by night.  Debbie and her husband Jeff were looking for a vacation home that they could get away to a couple of weekends a month.  The idea of renting it[...]
  • Meet Madison Rifikin — Founder and CEO of Mount, a platform designed to help short term rental hosts upsell their guests.  Madison has always been a tinkerer. In 5th grade, she had the opportunity to enroll in an innovation program…and she was pretty much hooked on building things after that. One of the first products she[...]
  • Meet Jack Buck — a hospitality entrepreneur working on his first luxe vacation rental concepts in Sedona, New Orleans, and The Boulders in Arizona. Buck fell in love with travel after taking a motorcycle trip across Vietnam a few years ago. The beauty and adventure the country offered, coupled with the community he found while[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Justine Palefsky, co-founder of Kindred — a members-only community for home swapping. Growing up, Justine loved to read, ideate, and create. Her parents originally moved to San Francisco to follow the Grateful Dead and encouraged Justine to dream big and take bold risks even if others didn’t quite get it.[...]
  • Meet Jami Jenkins — the creator of The Carpenter’s Cabin — a top-rated, luxe cabin stay in Southeastern Ohio's Scenic Wonderland - Hocking Hills.   Jami has always had a knack for the creative. She remembers drawing up floor plans of beach cottages in elementary school and building furniture for her Barbies.    A graphic designer and[...]
  • Meet Jeff Wilson, the founder and CEO of Jupe.    Jeff is a serial entrepreneur in the real estate technology industry.  If you were to have asked Jeff as a child what he wanted to be when he grew up, he would have either said a “garbage man”, “a doctor”, or “a builder of solar-powered[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Billy Chu — owner of The Blue Bungalow, a chic escape in Palm Springs, California.    Billy and his wife Becky are both doctors who live in Los Angeles and parents to young twin girls.    A couple of years ago, Billy and Becky joined an online community of[...]
  • Meet Stephanie Hays and Peter Woolcock — winners of Airbnb’s Live Anywhere contest.   Last summer, Airbnb announced that they were looking for 12 individuals who’d be willing to live full-time via stays booked on their platform for a year — and over 314,000 applicants from all around the world applied for this once in[...]
  • Meet Isaac French, the creator of Live Oak Lake, a collection of seven stunning cabins nestled around a small lake in Waco, Texas.  Isaac is what you might call a curious creator.  He was homeschooled growing up and his parents enabled him the freedom to pursue a plethora of interests — from art, to architecture, and[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Taylor Jones, Head of Acquisition at Superhost Labs.    Taylor was working in sales when COVID hit.  A few weeks after the world shut down, Taylor’s job was put on a two-month pause and he knew he had to start looking for a new frontier.   Taylor had always[...]
  •  In just a moment, you will meet Katrina Kuhn and Kathy and Sayres Dudley — the dynamic trio who brought to life The Dwelling Place, a special, peaceful escape in Radford, Virginia. Kathy was the 12th child in her family and was born on the land that would become Iron Heart Vineyard in Southwestern Virginia.  Kathy[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Hillary and Jason DeMeo — the creators of the IROX ONE, a Scandinavian modern retreat in Asheville, North Carolina. Hillary and Jason are serial entrepreneurs. A few years ago, the couple left their respective day jobs to go all in on an idea they had dreamed about for years.  And[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Megan and Darrin — the creators of the Lakeview Hilltop, a coastal-chic cottage on Claytor Lake in Radford, Virginia.  Originally from the California Bay Area, and a graphic designer by trade, Megan has always had an awareness of the role space plays in inspiring new ideas and perspectives. Darrin,[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Andrew Hunter — the creator of Airstream Island, a mid-century, tropical hideaway in Atlanta, Georgia. Andrew is an actor.  He will never forget the first time his mother took him to see Fiddler on the Roof.  He was transfixed by the characters in the show, but more bewildered by the[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Ryan Killeen — General Manager of The Annex Hotel. You might call Ryan a child of the hospitality industry.  He grew up traveling the world with his mom who worked in the luxury hotel space, and had the privilege of encountering a diverse set of cultures and experiences all around[...]
  • Meet Margaret Shutze — the creator and owner of Flat Mountain Farm, a luxury escape and events venue in the Appalachian Mountains of Highlands, North Carolina. Margaret has helped design some of the world’s most incredible luxury hotels working on projects for The Ritz Carlton, Belmond, Waldorf Astoria, and the Four Seasons.  And it was[...]
  • Meet Alex Breen, founder of BnB Buyer — a biweekly newsletter that brings subscribers a list of new Airbnb and other short term rentals that are for sale. Alex grew up vacationing in short term rentals —  in fact his family was an early adopter of VRBO.  One afternoon, while Alex was in Dublin, his[...]
  • Meet Mike Belleme — the creator of The Nook, an obsessively handcrafted Airbnb just outside Asheville, NC. Growing up, Mike loved to skateboard — at one point he even thought he might go pro.  But as he grew up, another craft he had dabbled in began to pique his interest even more.   And that craft was[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Joshua Nunnally, the creator of The Shelltown Sanctuary in San Diego, California.  Joshua is an artist.  Originally from Fresno, Joshua moved to San Diego to go to architectural school. A few years afterwards, in late January of 2020, he stumbled upon a home in southeast San Diego that seemed[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Steven and Kylee Niederhauser, the founders of Arrivls, a boutique vacation rentals management company based in San Diego, California. Steven and Kylee have always loved to travel.  They are the kind of people that would rather book a last-minute weekend getaway than wine and dine at California’s latest Michelin[...]
  • Get ready to meet Amy Corbett Co-Founder of All Belong Co — a collective of short term rentals based in Lynchburg, Virginia.  Amy and her husband Marc have a rich story.  The couple has been married for over twenty years and have two amazing children through the gift of adoption. After working in campus ministry for[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Navid Safabakhsh, the creator of Safa Farms —  a boutique eco-hotel featuring a collection of cabins outside of Guadalajara, Mexico. Navid is a serial entrepreneur. He founded an agency that helped build products for companies like eBay, Comcast, and LinkedIn before founding a company called Placeit which was a[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Kayla Stormont — the creator of The Apex Cabin in Big Bear, California. When Kayla would go to a toy store or jewelry shop as a kid, and ask her mom for a trinket or a pair of earrings, her mom wouldn’t often say, “No, I’m not buying you that,[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Kelly Cronin — the creator of Cronin's Castles, which is a new collection of unique short-term rentals.  Kelly has always loved to travel and refers to herself as a professional travel hacker — she once scored an $11 Southwest flight from Wisconsin to Puerto Rico!  By the time she visited[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Annie Sloane — Co-Founder and CEO of The Host Co. Have you ever been in an Airbnb and wished you could buy one of the coffee mugs, rugs, or pieces of artwork from the home?   Or perhaps wished you could order some groceries ahead of time so that you arrive[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Emily Padan — co-creator and co-owner of Hinter Company.  A few years ago, Emily left her career as a school teacher in Montreal to pursue entrepreneurship full time with her now husband, Mauricio.  The creative couple had a vision for building a luxurious, eco-friendly escape in the Canadian forest. [...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Tim and Cindi Spaulding — the builders, designers, and hosts of Salamander Ridge — a charming tiny cabin in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.  Tim and Cindi, along with their three children, love the outdoors — the Spaulding family are avid campers, hikers, creek walkers, and trail runners.  One afternoon, after[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Daniel and Fawn Shear, the founders of Seasons' Yield Farm. Daniel, like his father before him, served in the military after graduating from college. During his first deployment to Afghanistan, his wife Fawn mailed him a book by Chad Robertson titled Tartine — a book of sourdough bread baking[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Michaela Carozza, the creator and host of one of Carmel Valley’s top-rated Airbnbs.  Michaela had been in the market for a property in Carmel Valley for many years.  She loved the diversity of beauty that the central California coast offered, but needed to find a place with both a[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Alla and Garrett Hohn — the creators of The Hohnstead, which is a mini-glamping resort featuring a collection of tiny cabins about 20 minutes from Missoula, Montana. Garrett’s father had always dreamed of buying a plot of land that the whole extended family could enjoy, so when he stumbled upon[...]
  • In just a moment, you’ll meet Andrew and Bianca — founders of the Serenity Hill Group, a growing collection of luxury Airbnb escapes in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.  Andrew and Bianca live in Boston, and while they love all that the city has to offer, their hearts have always found peace in the[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Louisa Conrad, Co-Founder of Big Picture Farm.  Big Picture Farm is a Vermont farmstead goat dairy and confectionery whose award-winning caramels have won over a dozen national awards...and while these candies are undeniably decadent, there is more to Big Picture than just the goat dairy…   After leaving their[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Maris LeBlanc and JR Amantea, the creators of The Little House of Essex — a chic cottage near the Connecticut River in the most quintessential of quintessential New England towns.   Maris has spent her career in real estate — mostly brokering luxury, waterfront homes along the Connecticut Shoreline.[...]
  • In just a moment you’ll meet Laura Gentry and Carollani Sandberg — the creators of The Sagecliff Satori, a luxurious Airbnb cabin in Quincy, Washington.  Laura and Carollani are what you might call “experience optimizers”.  They love to travel, try new restaurants, and explore off the beaten paths, but can’t help but do so with[...]
  • On this episode of Behind the Stays, you’ll meet Eli Clark and Alexa Lang from Clark Family Silos.    Eli grew up on a farm in Kalispell, Montana (about 30 minutes outside of Whitefish in the North-Western part of the state). After studying design in college, he moved to Carlsbad, California to work at a[...]
  • In a minute, you’ll meet Valerie Malone — Creator and Founder of Quill Decor, a design consultancy that specializes in short-term rentals.   Valerie studied interior design at Auburn University, but always had a knack for entrepreneurship. After running a successful Airbnb out of her basement in Bloomington, Indiana, Valerie fell in love with the Airbnb[...]
  • The idea was born on a road trip from Waco, Texas to Ferndale, California.    Merritt Brodt and her daughter, Callie Alexandre, had gone to the Lone Star State to source antiques for their artisan shop, The Farmer’s Daughter, in downtown Ferndale.    Callie, whose husband's married family owns and operates Alexandre Farms (one of[...]
  • They met at a Starbucks.  Amber was working as a barista and Tyler had just moved from Utah to Tennessee.  They didn't know it at the time, but just a few years later they would not only be life partners but business partners as well. The story behind the vision and building of the Little[...]
  • Meet Katie Denton — a mother of three small children and a lifelong lover of travel and fine hospitality.  On this episode of Behind the Stays, Katie shares the origin story of Bees Nees Getaways — a boutique rental home collection she founded with a focus on unique and dreamy experiences in the Outer Banks[...]
  • Suzie has spent most of her life working at the intersection of travel and customer service.  She traveled the world as a flight attendant for many years, before deciding to become a full-time Airbnb host. But there's so much more to her story... My wife and I stayed at this impeccably clean and serene cottage[...]
  • When they purchased their home in 2016, the Smith family had no idea what adventures lay ahead. On the far edge of their property sat an empty WWII train and a historic aircraft hangar... Fast forward just a couple of years, and these historic spaces have been transformed into gorgeous stays. Tune in for an exciting[...]
  • On this epsiode of Behind the Stays, Zach interviews Kristen Bishop — a real estate professional who purchased the historic guest on the Filene family's estate that would become "Camp Adelaide." The Filene family owned and operated "Filene's Basement", also called The Basement, which was a Massachusetts-based chain of department stores that was owned by[...]
  • Welcome to Behind the Stays — a podcast that shares the stories behind your favorite Airbnbs and the hosts who’ve made them memorable.

From Apple Intern to Hospitality Tech Entrepreneur: How Margot Schmorak Built Hostfully

Meet Margot Schmorak, Co-Founder and CEO of Hostfully — one of the hospitality industry’s leading technology companies. 

Margot started her career working in marketing at Apple during one of the company’s most pivotal eras.  She remembers the launch of the very first iPhone quite vividly since she was the only person on the marketing team to NOT receive a phone since she was just an intern at the time.

In this conversation, Margot and I discuss:

  • The lessons she learned about marketing, startups, and company culture during her time at Apple
  • Where the idea for Hostfully first came from
  • How Hostfully grew from a digital guidebook to a full-fledged property management platform 
  • How much money Hosttfully has raised so far
  • Why she started a community for venture-backed founders who are also moms
  • The gaps she seems in the hospitality tech space
  • And so much more…

Learn more about Hostfully here

Listen to Margot’s Episodes of The Pitch Podcast

This episode is brought to you by Summer. 

Summer takes the headache out of owning a vacation rental by taking care of sourcing, designing, furnishing and managing your home.

What makes Summer especially unique is the pathway to ownership that they offer — think of this as an option to “try before you actually buy an Airbnb” 

Here’s how Summer’s Gradual Ownership model works:

  1. You work with Summer to find the perfect vacation rental — one that’s in a market that you want to vacation to and also in a market that makes sense for a vacation rental.
  2. Summer guides you through the whole discernment process of where, when and what kind of home to buy.
  3. When you find the right home, put down a downpayment of 15+% but Summer buys the home for you and holds it for up to two years — during this time you can buy back the home from them any time you are ready or, after the two year period you can decide you DON’T want the home and get a full refund of your down payment.
  4. Also, Summer covers all of the closing costs and fees for the upfront purchase on the home, as well as furnishing and design. This means you pay far less out of pocket than you would if you bought the home yourself from day one.

So if you’ve been looking for a way to beta test the whole Airbnb game, this is your sign. Go and chat with my new friends at Summer and tell them that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you there way.

Have you signed up for Ping yet?

Ping makes it easy for guests to be notified when their favorite Airbnbs become available — and it’s the secret tool the best Airbnb hosts use to maximize bookings.

Sign up today at bnbping.com

About the Show

Behind the Stays is brought to you twice a week by Sponstayneous — a free, biweekly newsletter that brings subscribers the best last-minute deals and upcoming steals on Airbnb.  

You can subscribe, for free, at www.sponstayneous.com. 

Behind the Stays is hosted by Zach Busekrus, co-founder of Sponstayneous, you can connect with him on Twitter at @zboozee.