EP08: The Limited Edition Episode

Nov 15, 2017

The vacation rental industry has exploded in the last few years with big players. Big players like AirBnB, HomeAway & Booking.com have been rapidly consolidating the industry, creating an industry with more familiarity that’s palatable to the average consumer. But what does this mean for the “mom-and-pop” style businesses who don’t want to grow? Those who would rather create a small limited edition business infused with personality. In this round-table episode, we discuss the big picture history of the hospitality industry Andrew McConnell. We’ll learn how Kristie Wolfe creates and operates a boutique tiny home vacation rental business, and how Tara & Josh Conger walk the fine line of creating a scalable business while preserving their unique experiences.

 

Show Notes

 

Andrew McConnell

• Understanding the differences between commodity and limited edition vacation rentals
• How fragmented the vacation rental industry is
• Andrew McConnell discusses the history of the “cottage industry”
• How fragmented industries tend to consolidate
• What the “big players” in the hospitality industry did that the “small players” didn’t
• Building a lifestyle business versus a major venture backed business
• How the nature of vacation rentals is designed not to scale
• The hazards of being “stuck-in-the-middle” of a boutique personality based business versus a growing commodity business
• Discussing the potential winners and losers in the future of the industry
• Being unique versus pretending to be unique
• Being something to everyone, versus being everything to someone

Kristie Wolfe

• On building and designing tiny-home vacation rentals
• Why Kristie prefers to not meet guests at her unique homes
• How Kristie designs unique experiences for her guests (that sometimes involve trespassing)
• Kristie’s unique advantage when building tiny homes
• Kristie’s advice on doing vacation rental projects that get you excited

Tara & Josh Conger

• Creating a limited edition vacation rental company that can scale
• Having a private island as a vacation rental
• Building custom homes to be vacation rentals
• How Tara & Josh leverage concierge services
• Building a new website for the business
• Balancing the scaling of a business while maintaining a boutique personal touch
• Using CRM systems to improve guest experiences

 

Resources

 

• Rent Responsibly (Sponsor)
• Andrew McConnell With Rented.com
• Steve Milo, Vacasa, Turnkey
• Kristie Wolfe - Tiny House on the Prairie
• Kristie Wolfe’s Hobbit Home
• Kristie Wolfe’s Tree House
• Conger Collection & Conger Brokerage Services

 

Lastly….

 

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Learn more about the host, visit https://mattlandau.com/

Get marketing strategies for vacation rentals, visit https://www.vrmb.com/

Collaborate with other professionals in https://community.vrmb.com/