Welcome to Behind the Stays — a podcast that shares the stories behind your favorite boutique hotels, short-term rentals, and hospitality brands and the hosts, operators, and entrepreneurs who’ve brought them to life. Every Tuesday and Friday you’ll meet the military veterans, retired flight attendants, tech entrepreneurs, school teachers, single moms, hoteliers, and real estate investors who are all, in their unique ways, shaping the future of travel and hospitality. Discover how these visionaries — from all over the world — have built stunning landscape hotels in the mountains, designed bohemian bungalows on the beach, erected eclectic off-grid and nature-immersed escapes, and so much more. Behind the Stays is brought to you by Journey — a first-of-its-kind loyalty program that brings together an alliance of the world’s top independently owned and operated stays and allows travelers to earn points and perks on boutique hotels, vacation rentals, treehouses, ski chalets, glamping experiences and so much more. Behind the States is hosted by Zach Busekrus, Head of the Journey Alliance.
Episodes
Tuesday Aug 01, 2023
Tuesday Aug 01, 2023
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 to tell the team that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you there way!
Meet Julia Rossi — a Shark Tank alum turned hospitality entrepreneur.
Julia has spent the better part of her career working in corporate sales and marketing for a myriad of SaaS companies.
Back in 2015, Julia had an idea for a fairly niche product…that product was NeatCheeks — flavored face wipes for children. As a mom of young children, Julia knew how difficult it was to get kids to sit still while wiping their faces after a gooey snack, and that’s when the idea of NeatCheeks was born.
After securing an investment for Barbara Corcoran and building the brand over the next couple of years, Julia wound up exiting from the business so she could pursue her other passions of design and hospitality.
In this episode, Julia shares the founding story of her design consultancy Grey Domain, how she brought McKenzie Corner, an intelligently designed and fully-shoppable Airbnb, to life, and how Julia thinks STR hosts can leverage their spaces as more than just places to stay.
Connect with Julia on Instagram
Book a Stay at McKenzie Corner
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.
Friday Jul 28, 2023
Friday Jul 28, 2023
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 that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you their way and they’ll give you an exclusive discount when you decide to purchase their software.
Meet Kevin Reardon, founder of The Shore House Hotel — a beachside lifestyle retreat built from a mid-century motel in North Wildwood, NJ.
Kevin grew up in a blue collar family. His idea of “success” looked like working on Wall Street, become a doctor, or becoming a lawyer, so after graduating from undergrad, he decided to pursue law and wound up getting his JD from the University of Pennsylvania.
After a couple of years working at a very prestigious firm, Kevin decided that what he really wanted to do was get into hospitality…becoming a hotelier was what he’d dream about on nights and weekends in-between very late nights at his firm’s office.
And then an opportunity to buy a fairly rundown motel on the Jersey shore presented itself. And there was something about this particular motel that seemed to speak to Kevin…so, he raised a little bit of money from friends and family and decided to take the plunge.
Tune in to hear the story of how Kevin build The Shore House Hotel, why he thinks STR owners and operators can make great hoteliers, and what his hot takes on the future of travel and hospitality look like.
Follow The Shore House Hotel on Instagram
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.
Tuesday Jul 25, 2023
Tuesday Jul 25, 2023
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 how marketing has evolved in the vacation rental industry, what shifts the smartest hosts are making right now to prepare for the next generation of guests, the opportunities that exist for entrepreneurs to build new brands and companies in the space, whether or not the future of hospitality is boutique, and so much more.
Adam is a wicked smart, wonderfully dynamic, and humbly passionate guy — y’all are going to love this episode.
Oh, and before we dive in, I want to 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 that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you their way and they’ll give you an exclusive discount when you decide to purchase their software.
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.
Friday Jul 21, 2023
Friday Jul 21, 2023
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 to tell the team that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you there way!
Meet Samantha Pike, founder of The Hosting Societe — a private club for hosts who have mastered the art of experiential accommodations.
Back in 2018, Samantha launched her first vacation rental in Ontario — she had poured so much love and intention into the space that when she opened her calendar it booked out for 6 months almost immediately.
Samantha was stunned by the response and began wondering whether she had scratched an itch that the next generations of guests had for highly-curated short-term stays.
Sam started posting about her approach to hosting on Instagram and, before she knew it, folks with a similar heart for elevated hospitality began asking her to swap ideas and connect to share stories.
And it really was these requests that got Sam thinking about what it might look like to design a space where these exceptional creators of some of the world’s most beloved stays could come together.
Tune in to hear the inspiring story of how Sam built The Hosting Societe and what she thinks the future of travel and hospitality just might look like…
Learn more about The Hosting Societe
Connect with Samantha on Instagram
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.
Tuesday Jul 18, 2023
Tuesday Jul 18, 2023
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 in a hammock while on a beach in Costa Rica. While Matt had no idea what this guy did that enabled him to chillax in such a pristine aesthetic, he made up his mind then and there that he wanted to do whatever it was that this guy did.
And as it turned out, this guy had started the top luxury travel agency in Costa Rica. So Matt decided to shoot his shot and ask this guy to get together for a coffee next time he was in town…and, to Matt’s pleasant surprise, he did.
This opportunity was Matt’s foray into travel and hospitality and, while he didn’t know it at the time, this job would enable him to buy his own vacation rental management agency and, eventually, build a prolific online platform and membership community that thousands of professional operators all around the world would one day come to learn from and be inspired by.
This episode is brought to you by OwnerRez — the smartest property management software for vacation rental hosts. You can get a 30% discount on your first 3 months by mentioning Behind the Stays after booking a call or requesting more information from their team.
Learn more about OwnerRez here.
Learn more about the VRMB Community
Behind the Stays is brought to you by Sponstayneous — a carefully-curated newsletter that sends subscribers 150 of the best last-minute deals and upcoming steals on Airbnb twice a week. You can subscribe for free at www.sponstayneous.com.
Behind the Stays is hosted by Zach Busekrus (@zboozee) — Co-Founder of Sponstayneous. If you know of an Airbnb host you think we should have on the show, please reach out directly to Zach at zach@sponstayneous.com and he'd be happy to talk with them.
Friday Jul 14, 2023
Friday Jul 14, 2023
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 his younger siblings in the heat of a New Jersey summer.
His next door neighbor had a pool that she didn’t use much and Bunim asked her if his family could use the pool when she wasn’t using it they agreed to pay 25% of the pool’s annual costs…to his surprise, she agreed.
Tune in to hear the remarkable story of how Bunim raised his first million dollars, wound up pitching Swimply on SharkTank, how he and the team navigated COVID, and what the next 12 months for the company will look like (hint: it includes being able to book more than just pools!).
This episode is brought to you by OwnerRez — the smartest property management software for vacation rental hosts. You can get a 30% discount on your first 3 months by mentioning Behind the Stays after booking a call or requesting more information from their team.
Learn more about OwnerRez here.
Behind the Stays is brought to you by Sponstayneous — a carefully-curated newsletter that sends subscribers 150 of the best last-minute deals and upcoming steals on Airbnb twice a week. You can subscribe for free at www.sponstayneous.com.
Behind the Stays is hosted by Zach Busekrus (@zboozee) — Co-Founder of Sponstayneous. If you know of an Airbnb host you think we should have on the show, please reach out directly to Zach at zach@sponstayneous.com and he'd be happy to talk with them.
Tuesday Jul 11, 2023
Tuesday Jul 11, 2023
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 to tell the team that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you there way!
Issac French, Creator of Live Oak Lake, joins Zach for a chat about his latest project — a Masterclass on Experiential Hospitality.
This 9-hour, 45-videos-course, is your complete guide to financing, designing, building, marketing, and automating a boutique hospitality experience.
I’ve interviewed over 100 hospitality entrepreneurs on my podcast, Behind the Stays, and I’ve never met someone in this industry so committed to excellence in ALL he does.
Isaac is humble, smart, and has zero tolerance for ‘just OK.’ What he’s built at Live Oak Lake is truly extraordinary and I for one can’t wait to see what he does next.
A few decades ago, a young entrepreneur named Issy from Canada had a simple vision for creating exceptional experiences…that vision became Four Seasons.
If I was a betting man, I’d bet that the creator of the “next generation” Four Seasons might come from Waco, Texas…and chances are his name will be Isaac.
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.
Friday Jul 07, 2023
Friday Jul 07, 2023
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 to tell the team that Zach from Behind the Stays sent you there way!
Meet Hector Hughes, Co-Founder of Unplugged — a collection of off-grid cabins around the UK designed and optimized for guests seeking a digital detox.
Hector started his career working in sales at a start-up, but it wasn’t really his thing. So, he gave product management a try and, well, that wasn’t much better. So he was REALLY excited when he finally got the opportunity to join the growth team…but, as it turns out, that wasn’t really his thing either.
So Hector did the only thing he could do…he went soul searching at a two-week silent retreat in the Himalayas.
Tune in to hear how that retreat inspired him and his now-Co-Founder Ben to build a hospitality business focused on helping young professionals from the city escape the matrix for a couple of days by locking up their phones, disconnecting from the internet, and booking a stay in an impeccably-designed tiny cabin nestled in nature.
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.
Friday Jun 30, 2023
Friday Jun 30, 2023
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 zach@sponstayneous.com or find him on Twitter @zboozee or on LinkedIn at @zacharybusekrus.
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.
Tuesday Jun 27, 2023
Tuesday Jun 27, 2023
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 rental in the Blue Ridge mountains, the technical duo saw an opportunity.
Tune in to hear the story of how Paul and Chris bootstrapped the creation of one of the most respected, loved, and powerful PMSes for STR owners and property managers.
In this episode, Paul and I discuss:
- The history of PMSes in the vacation rental space
- Why Airbnb invests tens of millions of dollars each year on UX/UI design
- Why so many direct booking websites suck
- The opportunities that exist to build new software and tooling in the industry
- And much more.
Finally, Paul and his team have generously offered a 30% discount for new customers for their first 3 months. Just mention Behind the Stays after booking a call or requesting more information from their team.
Learn more about OwnerRez here.
Behind the Stays is brought to you by Sponstayneous — a carefully-curated newsletter that sends subscribers 150 of the best last-minute deals and upcoming steals on Airbnb twice a week. You can subscribe for free at www.sponstayneous.com.
Behind the Stays is hosted by Zach Busekrus (@zboozee) — Co-Founder of Sponstayneous. If you know of an Airbnb host you think we should have on the show, please reach out directly to Zach at zach@sponstayneous.com and he'd be happy to talk with them.