Regaining a Love of the Family Business, with Stacy Wesson of Casago Cascara Vacations

Speaker 1: 0:00

We'll start the show in just a minute, but first a word from our premier brand sponsor, casago, and co-sponsors, guest Ranger and Good Neighbor Tech.

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Casago's founder, steve Schwab, has been quoted as saying you can only be a local in one place. This simple yet profound statement is the basis of Casago's franchise model, which allows locally-owned vacation rental management companies the ability to compete at a national level by leveraging the system's software and support buying power of a much larger organization.

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As a Casago franchisee, you have the freedom to run your business with the support of a community of like-minded professionals, while leveraging the economies of scale and buying power to increase profitability and reduce operating costs.

Speaker 2: 0:41

Guest Ranger is the premier guest screening and charge back protection solution. Leveraging AI, their tool effectively detects fraudulent activity, fake IDs and underage guests, while also performing comprehensive, dynamic background checks. With Guest Ranger, businesses can rest assured that their customers are safe and secure.

Speaker 1: 1:00

Good Neighbor Tech allows you to manage your properties remotely and intelligently, protecting your owners and your guests. Their smart Wi-Fi locks allow you to provide temporary access to home and garage from anywhere and keep track of when guests and service providers are in the property. Good Neighbor Tech provides the ability for you to collect email addresses from all guests staying in a property, not just the one who booked the reservation. Every guest who connects to the internet will see your branded welcome page and be prompted to provide their email address in order to connect to the Wi-Fi.

Speaker 2: 1:29

Visit casagocom forge slash franchise guest rangercom and goodneighbertechcom for more information.

Speaker 3: 1:37

Welcome to Alex and Annie, the real women of vacation rentals. With more than 35 years combined industry experience, alex Hussner and Annie Holcomb have teamed up to connect the dots between inspiration and opportunity, seeking to find the one story, idea, strategy or decision that led to their guest's big aha moment. Join them as they highlight the real stories behind the people and brands that have built vacation rentals into the $100 billion industry. it is today And now it's time to get real and have some fun with your hosts, alex and Annie.

Speaker 1: 2:14

Welcome to Alex and Annie, the real women of vacation rentals. I'm Alex and I'm Annie, and we are joined today with Stacey Wesson, who is our Casago franchisee of Cascara vacations. Stacey, it's great to see you, good to see you, guys, as well, so we haven't seen you since Reno.

Speaker 2: 2:32

It was great to finally meet you. They had a great conversation, but we wanted to continue it and learn more about your joining Casago and your background and how you came to be with the franchise. But why don't you tell us our blister a little bit about who you are and what you're doing in the industry?

Speaker 4: 2:49

Yeah, So we are one of the oldest ones. I think there's a few others out there, but we've been in the industry for 38 years. So I started this company I think it was four or five, But yeah. So my mom was a cleaning person and my dad was a real estate guy and had a real estate buddy and said, Hey, we could be renting out these second homes that my wife is cleaning. And so that's how Cascara started. So it was really a fun experience to grow up in. My parents were always busy, but we got fun places to visit and trade doing some trades. That was a lot of fun. And then about I would say it's five years ago, but it's probably about 10 now that I came back to the family business. I was going to school to get my degree in child's family welfare, which is a job, And then I also did 911. So I've always worked in weird jobs that most people think, And I think vacation rental falls right into that weird job.

Speaker 1: 3:44

No day is the same, right. There's a whole, there's a themes within issues that you see, but every situation is different, and I'm sure that was the case in that job too.

Speaker 4: 3:52

Yeah, it really is. Every day is a new problem, a new strategy. So when I talk to new staff I'm like I can't teach you everything. you have to go make decisions because weird stuff comes up. So for the last 10 years I've just been doing this and just trucking along, that's great.

Speaker 1: 4:09

That's such a good point, though, too, that really decision making in our industry. how important leadership is to all of this of being able to equip your people with the right decision making skills, versus saying I'm going to teach you everything I know about the business because it's just, it's so nuanced and so many things are constantly changing, and I think leaders like yourselves that have stayed and sustained within the business for many years have done that because you know how to train your people to be flexible, adaptive and just having that willingness to want to solve problems, which not everybody wants to do that I always tell my staff they have to make decisions and if they make a decision, and whether it's the wrong one or the right one, they'll never get in trouble as long as they have a reason.

Speaker 4: 4:56

So they can't go. I don't know, i just make decisions but they go. The person was yelling at me or whatever thought process they had to make the decision I'm totally fine with. I just want to make sure that they make the decision and then we train afterwards. A lot of times they'll come up with better ideas than I've ever thought of, and then other times it was the wrong decision. But I work really hard to train them on okay, and next time, here's how we solve that issue. And sometimes different. Sometimes the same issue is solved in many different ways and I know staff have been frustrated over the past. Last time you told me to do it that way, it was like something changed.

Speaker 2: 5:27

Yeah, it always depends on the situation, but that's a really great. Again to Alex's point, a leadership quality that we have been finding more and more as we talk to some of these legacy management companies around the country is that in order for them to keep people wanting to be in this business, you have to want to nurture their spirit and nurture their learning process, And there is no black and white answer for everything, because every guest is different, every experience is different And if you equip them with the skills to make decisions and make good choices, it just gets better over time. So, Pudo is to you for doing that and recognizing that's something that you needed to do for your team.

Speaker 4: 6:03

Yeah, a lot has changed in 38 years.

Speaker 2: 6:05

Yeah, a lot.

Speaker 4: 6:07

Yeah, i know my husband does our marketing and when he came in he was looking through some old files and he's what's? the registered guards, the adult times. I'm like that's how we used to advertise before the internet. We would put the ad out in the local newspapers not our local newspapers, but in our drive market and the Sunset Magazine. I think that was our biggest advertiser, sunset Magazine and Seattle Times newspaper And so he was just blown away because he hadn't thought about oh, how did you advertise before computers? It's so funny.

Speaker 1: 6:33

It's such a good point. I, just before I've gotten to know you through CASAGO, just as I've learned about your business, and then, after knowing you through CASAGO and knowing Greg as well, i've always noticed there's so many similarities between your business and, i think, just probably your market in general, as there are two where I'm at in the Myrtle Beach area that somebody your stories of that is literally the story of my life. that when I started at Condo World, i remember looking through the history books literally, and it's like we had these binders of newspaper ads that were dated back for years but that was literally what the owner of the company did, like him being the marketing person was he was writing copy, picking out pictures, and that was really it, but there was nothing digital at that point. But I think also in your market it sounds like you guys are, you're involved with the Chamber of Commerce and you've got some just similarities that these historically very tourism destinations all kind of share.

Speaker 4: 7:32

Yeah, and we have one of I always call it the HOA Geico commercial. We have that HOA that if you're, they're gonna cut your mailbox off if it's too tall for you, oh really, yeah, when? I lived here back in the day we grew up here until my brother and I got in sports and then they decided it was easier to drive to Thunderbird or work than to drive in to Bend, which is the bigger town 20 minutes away. For sports, my brother and I but yeah, it was you couldn't have a beach towel on the back deck to dry. They are so strict and they've actually gotten a lot more lenient, but it's still. There's, i think, 20 house colors now, but it's all shades of brown and green that you can have.

Speaker 1: 8:08

It is you can't do anything at all Okay, that's very different than a door, but yeah. I didn't realize that about your market. That's really interesting.

Speaker 4: 8:17

So we laugh because it is. It's this really horrible HOA that is just so picky about anything, and it's because it's got. We got a mix of retired people and vacation rental, but this is a vacation rental community And so everything. Here you don't have restaurants, you don't have stores without us, because the full-time owners are only about 30% And it's a lot of retirees, which always cracks me up because very cold here, like to me, this is not the place to retire.

Speaker 2: 8:45

Yeah, maybe it's from Canada, maybe it is, but you bring up a good point And I think that goes into something that is probably the biggest hot button item for vacation rentals right now. It's like regulation, and so there are a lot of areas where it's mixed use, where you've got retirees or you've got residents and you have vacation rentals And it's how do those types of those types of regulations affect each other? And you have retirees, you do have a lot of time to go around and enforce and pick and find, and then you've got the vacation people that are in and out all the time. They're not worried about the fact that they have a towel hanging off their deck. So how do you work within your community to make sure that you find a balance between those people that are living there and then the people that are coming in, and so there's not a lot of friction? that would ultimately lead to regulations, or bad regulations, i should say.

Speaker 4: 9:34

Yeah, i always feel myself lucky because we're in a resort community. I don't ever per se have to worry about restrictions too much, but I do think still to help facilitate any kind of restrictions. And so recently the HOA had wanted to do a nuisance property It's not a law but it's just a regulation And so I got on the board of that and try to get on many boards, and what I found first by just being on the board of that thing that we were working on, is that so many owners that were on there didn't realize how much as vacation rental managers that we do, they didn't know that we don't want bad people in the home. They just think we want to. Again, i think big box companies have put that vibe out that we don't care, it's about money, it's about getting people through the door where we're like no, we want this community to be like when I grew up and it's family oriented and so much fun, but we've had to. It was just amazing to me how many people were like oh, you do care about the community. So I think going forward. I think we have got to, as an industry, get out in every little market, every little homeowners association and really get out there and show them what actual vacation rental companies do, Because that has been the hardest thing. I'd say about 4% are really tough. Like they'll call the SROA or the police because we have a smaller police department and be like there's a boat in the driveway. People literally just got there and they actually like 48 hours to have that boat in the driveway, but they will call. We had an owner the other day that one of the renters took some of his wood and he lost his mind and they were like hey, we borrowed some of your wood, have a good day. Oh my gosh. I think there are some that are just the bridge is too far gone, but I've been working on trying to get all these. I'm going to actually speak at the HOA next month and just tell them the top 10 things that we do and that good property managers do, so they can maybe realize that there is some good there and not get so on the hate train, Because I just feel, especially in today's world, it's just so easy to be like oh yeah, they're horrible, And like would you know anything about them? No, they're an Airbnb?

Speaker 2: 11:39

Yeah, exactly. We're not Airbnb.

Speaker 1: 11:43

Yeah, we've talked about this with several people on the show that back during COVID, when the state of Florida went to Governor DeSantis and we're trying to get the ban on short-term rentals lifted and showed him how our industry uses guest screening and digital locks and so many different things to keep our guests and the properties protected, and he didn't know that short-term rentals did any of this stuff Like. We really surpassed a lot of hotels and a lot of the technology that we have, but not everybody is aware of that. So I think that's great that you're going and being active in that community and hopefully they'll listen to you. If I was them, i would, because you're very educated on all that stuff. You're a good person to speak on it.

Speaker 4: 12:22

Yeah, and the nuisance thing we came up with was really good because we had a few of its property managers on there, because we were like, okay, if somebody's being a nuisance, being loud, being disrespectful, not following all the rules, the homeowner will get fine And so. but we're like but how much noise And wait a minute we can have three bad renters in a row, Cause if you get fine multiple times, it's like you could lose the ability to rent. I mean, it was like but it was like, yeah, so we were trying to be really, and the owner just kept getting higher and higher fines. I'm like, well, we can have three bad renters in a row. They wouldn't be sorry, let me back that They wouldn't lose the ability to rent, but they would be known as a nuisance property. And so I cannot remember what all that details, but I know it's fines and stuff like that, but it was so. We made it so that, yes, if you have a weekly renter and each one just happens to be a little rough, then we're not gonna get too much trouble. But I haven't had any nuisance properties on mine, And so I've been like, yes, we've had no complaint. We've really amped up the rules by telling people in 18 different forms of how to text phone calls, emails, stickers in the house without it being so like, here's all the 80 rules you have to follow. But so I think it's good at getting in there and doing something like a nuisance property, because I do think there are some bad players and they need to be punished. But I want people to see, because then we can go back year after year and go okay, how many nuisance properties are there? Okay, who are the property managers on there Nine times out of 10, it's not gonna be local.

Speaker 2: 13:49

Yeah, yeah, The out of town. you absolutely understand.

Speaker 4: 13:51

And then maybe they'll start to see oh, this is the problem, not all vacation rentals And I feel like if certain areas could get in there with their HOAs or they're just community chambers and be in charge of it because I don't like regulations at least be in charge of it and come up with ideas that would help understand. So they just don't do these blanketed. No short term rentals. Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 1: 14:12

Yeah, it's about responsible tourism. at the end of the day, tell us a little bit about what you're doing to that effect. What are some of the things that you're going to say next week? I'm sure the guest screening would be a big part of it. Like what technology or what strategies are you using right now?

Speaker 4: 14:27

Yeah, i'm going to talk about, obviously, guest ranger, which is awesome, does the background checks. I'm going to talk about how often we send people stuff. We have a rubro guidebook, which is amazing, that tells guests all the things. We don't use Noiseware yet but with our partnership with Costco, we'll probably start bringing that in. But I know some of the other property managers use it. I'll be talking from all of us property managers.

Speaker 1: 14:48

Yeah.

Speaker 4: 14:48

Yeah, talk about Noiseware, talk about just what we send to guest. I'm a procrastinator so I haven't got it all together yet, but just trying to think of some of the hot topics, like when renters come in with the boats in the parking, can't park on the side of the street, and just talk to how we're alleviating that, sending surveys out to guests before they arrive to find out what are you doing here? Why are you bringing anything? Oh, you have that uncle that's bringing his trailer. Yeah, you can't do that. I'm trying to reach out and get the rules to the guest. Then just talk about how we're boots on the ground. Yeah, What's your seven days a week. Call us, because I'm sure you have had this happen. What drives me nuts is an owner will come to his house twice a year. His neighbor will tell him everything that happened in the last six months. Then the owner comes to me and I'm like I don't know which people had a dog. If your neighbor tells me immediately. I can figure that out. We started sending letters to all of our homeowner. We get a new homeowner on the street, we'll send a letter to all of the neighbors that say, hey, we're managing this home. If anything is wrong, please reach out to us. A good advertising thing, too. I love that. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, but at the same time, it's letting them know here's who you call. Please call us. Don't call the cops, don't tell the owner in six months, because that's the last thing they want to hear is all the little things that went wrong.

Speaker 3: 16:07

That we can't easily kick.

Speaker 4: 16:09

Then we'll just talk about our procedures, like if we have a bad runner, we will absolutely kick them out. Then I think I'm going to talk about Airbnb and Verbo and explain what they are and maybe some of the big box companies in our area that are not the same thing, so that they can be educated on how they're different and hopefully stop calling us Airbnb and Verbo. Well, send you the t-shirts if you want to.

Speaker 2: 16:30

Yeah right, I think you exemplify something that Steve Schwab says all the time from the CEO of Costco will fail the time. It's going to be a local in one place And I just love that saying because it's having been in property management and I've worked in other markets but it really is so incumbent upon a local person to be the good steward of the business and to be out there and be talking and really making people understand what it is that you do and try to quell any misconceptions because there are. to your point, there are some big box companies that operate in hundreds of markets and they just can't be local. They can't know everything that's going on. They can't know that Jed is living next door to Sam and Sam's going to tell Jed all these crazy stories when Jed comes into town. There's just things that an out-of-town company can't do. So I think that's what's really great about how you're operating is that you understand the value of being active in your community and getting out there and talking to people and being ahead of it before it becomes a problem.

Speaker 4: 17:25

Yeah, and that, i think, is big, and that's why what's funny is we also met with our local. We have a small local fire department and police force and after Paradise in California, we only have two exits out of Thunder Rush, so our fire safety is a huge deal. And so we have all it's all propane barbecues, no charcoal, no fireworks, nothing. And the fire department started talking to us at a meeting and they're like, hey, we want to print out these flyers. I'm like, yeah, no flyers, that's going to get lost. Let's do a fridge magnet. So we helped them create a fridge magnet that has that QR code that when guests are here, they can scan it and it will give them the alerts in the area. Oh smart, yeah. And so it was a really good idea, and I think that's another good idea, just with fire safety and all the safety issues, with the caseurinals that they need that information. We also have fridge magnets on our fridges that tell them where they're at, because nine times out of ten renters will not know in an emergency where they're staying. Yeah, no clue what the address is, so we put it right on the fridge. That's where you're staying, because, safety wise, it's just. Yeah, there's a lot of things that no one thinks about or pays attention to. When you drove in where you were going, sure Yeah.

Speaker 1: 18:33

Stacey, obviously a lot has changed over the years what we just spoke about in regulations and that side of things. But what else have you seen has changed? And I guess I would ask that question in the lens of what made you be interested to become part of Costco, because I imagine there's got to be some things that have changed over the years that you realize this was going to help you streamline the business, but can you just tell us a little bit about your thought process and what was going on?

Speaker 4: 19:00

Yeah, so last April, last April, years have gone together because of COVID Last April I was burnt. I just I've been in the industry 10 years. I've been through my whole life and I've left a few times. It always calls you back, but I was just feeling frustrated. We had some two major companies come in in the last couple of years in our area that are just super aggressive, have lots of money just to throw around and stomp on us little guys And I just was getting very frustrated, wasn't feeling the love of the business. I think the last couple of years have been different, but before that even Verma had this. I've been to it a few times and it's not what it was And I just felt the whole industry was. For me is my experience. But having just this, i don't know very clubby, you have to be the right people. The area that I live in I was trying to get to other property managers Hey, let's get together and talk And it was like they have too much history together for 20 years of history.

Speaker 1: 19:57

Yeah.

Speaker 4: 19:58

And so it was just really. It was very frustrating to me And I was like I don't know if I want to be in this business. It's a lot of work to not have the joy at the moment. Right, so we were going to go to NWVRP and I'm like I don't know we should be even go. I'm speaking, i guess I have to go. I'm like I better go, And my husband, greg, who I will sign up for anything. I'm just that person.

Speaker 1: 20:20

I'm like, Oh, what's this?

Speaker 4: 20:21

Let's sign, shiny new object. Greg's not easily swayed And so he went to a talk with Ryan And we got to look into this And I was like, okay, what is it? And I read about it. I'm like they do what I do. What is cosplay? I don't understand Everything they do. We already do. We already do it. Yeah, what do we need them for. And so he's going to. Ryan explained it all And I'm like okay. so we sat down with Ryan And I was like Oh, this sounds really interesting, i love it. And then I went up to Matt Land.

Speaker 1: 20:47

I'm like okay, matt are these because I never see people.

Speaker 4: 20:51

I'm like are they the people the real deal? Like I've never heard of them. And so he's yes, he's, we just did the video for them. So I went up the skirt. we've seen everything. We spent a lot of time with the cops because they are the real deal. And so it's funny. because, yeah, we met with Ryan and I'm like, okay, we're going to meet Steve and like he's going to be the arrogant there always seems to be in the high level business is always like nice guy and then the arrogant guy. And so Steve traveled like 14 hours on a motorcycle to meet us. So that, right, there is like wow, and I'm like he's not arrogant at all, like these are the two coolest guys I've ever met. And I just thought, anytime I've tried to do business stuff, i would feel like with corporate or they just not. Yeah definitely. And they are beyond cold. These guys would give the shirt off their backs to help you in any way they can. And so we started meeting them and it was like, okay, they're going to help me in so many different ways combat these bigger companies. I still going to be myself, i can still be who we are. Every I looked at what their credo was and all that. I'm like, okay, that's ours, perfect, i'm just going to copy theirs because I was okay we got a right, i'm like no, there's we'll just take theirs, and so it's that. I just saw the opportunity of community. also, the Costco people are just amazing. It is every time I turn around. every study you talk to is just so nice. Oh, do you do this? Oh, let's share this. And that was what I was missing with at the vermas and the local companies is Hey, we all have the same problems. Let's talk. And so that's what I get with Costco People are sharing their contracts with everybody, like their owner contracts to give ideas. There's ways you can get it. Let's just stop them to make owner to get your stuff. But it's just been a really cool experience And I think that's what gave me a total like joy in the business.

Speaker 1: 22:34

Again, costco gave me and gave me this joy of Oh, this is a fun business, i just have to find the right people And I think that's a pretty common thread that I hear as I talk to managers is that they just feel like they're on an island and it's just. It's not fun anymore. And when you think about it as a case for a manager, you have to know so many things that it's not just about property management. Property management is only like a fraction of all the things you actually have to learn If you're running this business, from the marketing to the business development and everything like there. It is such a wide ranging business that it's just really tough for people to feel like they can keep up with the latest and greatest. And to Greg's point of not always jumping after the shiny penny thing, it's sometimes I can see both sides on that. Sometimes it's you want to, but then you can get burned really easy too And making the wrong decision can really put you behind on things. So it's worth really vetting. But I think the community part is huge And you and Greg obviously have blamed into it a lot And I think the more that you put into something, the more that you're going to get out and those relationships they just they really they just start to multiply in terms of the value that both sides receive.

Speaker 4: 23:46

Yeah, and I think that we're very much. Greg's a loyalist to companies. When he goes in, he's all in, and that's how we are. We go all in, we bleed cost to go orange Yeah. Because, that's the way you have to do it to really get in there. And I talked to so many people that are looking to come on at Costco. I'm telling people about cost to go And I'm always like, okay, I've got to find something, that, because I don't want to be that there's nothing bad. I'm like I can't tell anything because everything I've signed up for things before And I know that fear of, okay, they told me they're doing all this And even with Costco I'm like, yeah, they told me they're going to do all this, but I'm waiting till I see the bottom line, because I've signed up for too many things where the sales guy just gets you and then you go into it and you're like, wait a minute, this isn't right And they have honored everything and almost better. I feel like there's too much because everyone's okay, let's try this. I'm like I haven't done these things yet, Don't get too much work here, But it's just really neat the way they do things in. The orange. Meetings are so cool And I do those with my staff. We do one every other week because in this industry we actually are rare. We have actually housekeeping in-house staff. This is the first year I've actually used vendors. It's just not been something in our area that's been done. But post COVID we have a huge shortage of staff And so vendors popped up And I don't have the vendors come yet. That might be something I add in later, But I have the housekeeping staff as always. What does front desk do? They sit in the air conditioning building all day. They just bar quarters at us And so I'm like, no, we all need to get in the meeting, come in, meet, so they all get to know each other. And it's been awesome for them to see each other, for them to understand we're the ones to get yelled at by the guests when things aren't wrong and just really build this relationship. And so we've had such good reviews with the staff. I currently was just amazing staff Like. Last month we had 50 students, 42 of them are five-star.

Speaker 1: 25:32

That's awesome Good for you.

Speaker 4: 25:34

Yeah, eight were four star and the four star One was a clean issue dog here, but no clean issues and it was dated homes, which I think, yeah, new big problem in our industry is the dated homes. I told them hey, let's sit in the summer, let's all go paddleboarding together, bowling, whatever you guys want to do, send me your ideas and we'll do it as a group. If we continue to have these great reviews And just also talking about why the reviews are important, i read reviews of what guests did complain about and their private notes. Not complain, but just say, hey, this would be helpful because I thought it was really good for my staff to hear this. Yeah, i just didn't think it was that important. That switch didn't work. I don't know what it does and, oh, that did this. That point if you're struggling putting a blind up or opening something or trying to figure something out, the guests is gonna struggle to. We want that information. So having those orange means which cost to go started. It's just been so cool to use with my staff. And then even the cost to go orange means that we have weekly with all the managers. It's been really cool because we get to know each other and talk about the same problems We have, and then there's always an educational piece at every meeting on Friday. So that's been super Game-changing in this industry, because I just read a. I swear there's a new thing in this industry.

Speaker 2: 26:47

Yeah, so you. So you decided you were gonna go with cost to go. So what is that onboarding process look like for you? So again, you said there was a lot of similarities in the way You were operating your business, in what cost to go was already doing. So you felt like there was a lot of it like just easy peasy, just synergies, right from the start. But there wasn't. There was a process you had to switch over to do some of their operational efficiencies, and I'm not sure if you were actually I don't think you were on Streamline before you went to that. So what did that look like and how did you feel like their support was there? Because I think that's something that we hear from a lot is that people worry about. If they're gonna make a change, it's gonna be a broad change. It's gonna upend the way they do their business. But I think it seems to be different with cost to go in the way that they have the depth of support from the very beginning. I'd love to hear more about it.

Speaker 4: 27:30

Yeah, it's really great. So we did. We had to switch entire software And that was the other reason in April is thinking we need to switch software. Are the older and wasn't cutting up. But I was on the board of that software company, so it's really awkward. Software, yeah, but I we had to make a change and that's what we found instead of changing software. And so when we switched we had to switch all new software, which at the time it was like myself. I'm in my mid 40s. My office manager She's a little older than me and we've decided we can't switch again. So cost to go cannot switch their software at all because it's too hard to learn new software. It is, oh my gosh, but they make it so easy. Like we Michelle, my husband, i all went down to Mexico because they have you go down to Mexico and They did all the reservations. We didn't have to enter all the reservations from a previous company.

Speaker 2: 28:18

They did it for you. Oh yeah, they took your. My god.

Speaker 4: 28:22

We go down to Mexico, it's. August but we're like dying. Is it so hot down there? Yeah, but it was the coolest thing because everybody down there is just amazing, like lifelong relationships with everybody at. Costco University and Polar is amazing and I did all my homework, says afraid of her, but No great, she's not very business like. I'm like I gotta get my homework done. But yeah, we went through the training and they it was like a fire hose of training And I made them think of not going right back to work. I went to another retreat that I had to go to and so by the time I got back I'm like what, how do I do things Learning software, and I haven't done front desk stuff and so long that I'm like how do I make reservation? What do I do? But it was where it's a little down there We'd work all day and then we'd have a little fun and then we'd have homework that night and I think at one point Greg was totally done on the homework, because you have to make reservations and save it a screenshot. So you actually did the work and I think one night he was done and he put photos of our family as the homework and so the next day at university They're like I'm sure this was accidental and you didn't know what your family thought is and not your homework, and Greg Knew that was me. So the next night, like you got it to your homework. So it was making reservations, which he doesn't do. He's in marketing. I'm like, okay, here's the deal, you start making the margaritas, i'll make all your reservations. And so I traded homework for drinks. It was a lot of The secret has been unveiled.

Speaker 1: 29:49

I think we're sending you guys back to Mexico.

Speaker 4: 29:55

I know we might need a refresher And it's they're so in debt. I just feel like, even if someone's been in industry 38 years, i learned a ton down there and When helped to facilitate some things down there for them to help out with, most of the people they get aren't in business for a long time. So how do you teach the people that have been in business for 25 years plus and the people that are never done it before? There is a little bit difference of that, because some of the stuff a guy We already know how to do that, but so it's very interesting. It's the craziest thing, i think, is I've onboarded many things and It was the easiest. So they can't hold in the whole way, because most companies they give you the thing and then they're like out, like we've shown you the week long version. Here you go, we're out and it's like they handled. I think my other favorite thing is you get a weekly call with them every week, with someone down in Mexico to go over Things that you don't know how to do, things that aren't working, all of that, and so I'm constantly in connection with cost ago and I think that's what makes it Stay so strong. It's not, it's not something you sign up for and you never see them again. They're hard, absolutely, and we get this huge. You can see in the background maybe, but Binder operations, binder before cost ago, it was all in my head in my office, managed to be keep talking about. We have to get things out of our head And I think, yeah, but even in his three over 20 years It's all in their head. Oh yeah. I have to get it out, and so they have this standard operating procedures and it's perfect. It's all there. Why recreate it? Why retype it and just change it? for a few things we may have to do differently because of our area. But yeah, it's just like you're being handed a business I and you have everything you need, and if you've already been in business, you just tweak what you need and it's been great.

Speaker 1: 31:32

Yeah, i know that's a great point. Did have you brought on any new employees since he transitioned two costs ago, and have you been able to use that binder and our standard operating procedures to help in that training process?

Speaker 4: 31:45

This is the first person I've brought on. I had to let go of my operations manager three weeks ago Right four summer awesome time to do that. So I've been working on 14 hour a day, Oh wow. Two days off in the last month because this is the industry. But it was amazing and I'm excited. but we just signed her up with the Costa app and all of the training And then I'm actually hoping I think it's just a treat because we're bringing her on the middle of summer is send her down to training. I think she would love to go down to that area And I think it'd be a great. it's a treat because you're going to Mexico.

Speaker 1: 32:19

So yeah, i'm gonna get cold here. It really it builds loyalty with the people that you send down there. Also, i know we've got our Myrtle Beach operators that they're heading down in July And I think there's five of them going And I was just talking to them yesterday and I said those four people that you're bringing with you, they feel really important. So that's a big thing for a company to say I'm taking you all the way out there. I want you to learn this alongside me. We're in this together And I think that just it speaks volumes to staff when they feel like they're being valued. And people want to be trained. People want training more than I think we all give employees credit for.

Speaker 4: 32:54

They really do And they want to know how to do their job really well. And because the job is so complex, i think the Work-Aver-The-Fire who is training over summer but I thought it would be really nice to have her and her husband does all our maintenance, so I thought he's a contractor, but I thought we'll send them down. They can go together. He doesn't have to go to the classes. He doesn't want to, but maybe as a vendor he'd want to see what it's like, and but they can go together and go down there. So I think it'd be a fun treat for them. But there's no one out there that has this kind of training that I've seen. It's just you learn the software on your own And there's nothing, because sometimes I wouldn't mind going back down and having a refresher, because there's all software's also changing. I learned about something which is why the weekly calls are so good, cause I learned about something last week that I didn't even think I'd learned about or it just went over my head, but it was a way to track some guest issues And I'm like that is so cool, and so that's what the beauty of those weekly meetings are, is I can go to them and go okay, this isn't working. How do I do this? What report should I run for this? Cause they use Streamline. It is compared to our last sub. It's so big, there's so many things that's in Streamline that I guess half the time people aren't even using Like they don't even turn on all things. So it's so overwhelming to learn how to do stuff And if I can quickly get on a call and be like Hey, how do I do this? The other beauty is we have a WhatsApp channel with all the managers, and that's super cool too, that we can talk about.

Speaker 1: 34:13

Yeah, that's going off all day long. It's like a new social media channel.

Speaker 4: 34:19

Oh my gosh, what now? And then I get caught up in it and I'm like there's two hours left.

Speaker 1: 34:23

Yeah, exactly The news tickers.

Speaker 2: 34:26

But that's really great that you've got like a broad support group, not just within Casa Go booth, within the other owners and franchisees, like that. You guys are all supporting each other and wanting the success of each other And there's nothing better than to have that team environment and going back to it with your employees. Like, if you can create a raving fan from your employee, they're going to create raving fans from your guest And it's just a cycle that will continually fulfill the prophecy of being a great company. And so it sounds like you just you made a good choice and it aligned with the way you guys were already doing business. So great job Casa Go has been good for you and it's good to hear. I hear so many great things about it And it's been a pleasure to get to know Steven Ryan and their team. I haven't met Pilar yet, but just getting to know the franchisees and what they offer it is nice, because you don't you're right, You don't hear of this level of support with other organizations.

Speaker 4: 35:16

Yeah, and I think what's exciting about the industry that I'm actually seeing lately is a lot more camaraderie. Yeah.

Speaker 3: 35:23

Yeah, i went to.

Speaker 4: 35:24

Burma my first Burma in a long time. it was in Kansas city, so it wasn't the best area. I was like I don't think people want to fly there. It was just a low turnout, but one of the a couple of the vendors got together and did pickleball. I've never played pickleball and it was the most fun.

Speaker 1: 35:38

They said that was the most fun.

Speaker 2: 35:39

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 35:39

I know, i know, i know When did we miss that? We missed it.

Speaker 4: 35:42

It was an epic photo of me floating around, i think, where they said use your best game face when we took the photo at the end. So I did this and I had this big, huge like. So you're really serious. It was horrible because no one. Everybody else was like I went all for it.

Speaker 1: 35:56

I love that.

Speaker 4: 35:56

It's pretty funny, it's a great picture, but I think I love it. Eating some people and then into Beaver P since I've been back, has just been or gotten into that has been phenomenal. It's very friendly, everybody's friendly, and I know Burma. I think, since I've had issues like seven years ago. They have trying to change the tune of how Burma is And I think it's just interesting. There's so many new players. There are older players that are hungry for this friendships and these connections that I'm excited to see where this goes, cause people are just it's different than when I was in it growing up and 10 years ago. It's not. It was very enemy driven, okay.

Speaker 2: 36:32

Here's the competition. Like I've been, a game where my local competition doesn't even talk to me.

Speaker 4: 36:37

I'm like I'm still talking to each other. We're not like, like it's weird, Like there's been that strong of connection. I think some of that is those businesses and that's how they obviously tell their employees to, that speaks to me and some inner stuff, maybe going on the company, of how they treat the competition and all that. But it's just been really good And I'm excited for all of these And I think some of the newer people getting into the game have brought it more to the hey, this is fun industry. What are we doing? And they'll talk and they're not. They don't have 30 years of. Yeah, exactly making it out with everybody fighting. So I think they're the new people coming to the game are very refreshing And I think they're bringing the joy a little bit back and just the hey, let's work together, let's take on the big box stores. Let's take on the people that aren't doing what we do, because there is a huge difference.

Speaker 1: 37:23

Yeah, absolutely So. what's next for the company Stacey? Where do you see the trajectory of growth for this year and beyond?

Speaker 4: 37:32

Yeah, so our big growth comes in the fall after busy season. But we're at, i think, 80 homes. We want to get back up to 100. That's just the sweet spot for me, because we really are really high-end hands-on with our guests and making sure they're having the best time delivering flowers. We had a guest that was in a head-on collision. Their car got totaled And so my staff member that morning went to the local bakery, got a bunch of pastries and delivered to their front door, knowing they're not going to have anywhere to get food, and then helping people out. So we have high attention on our guests that we just want to always help as much as we can. So to me, and with the way staffing is lately, i don't foresee us getting to the 200 level. We're wanting to maybe fit in that more boutique-style vacationer-on-campaign. So we're going to try to get the best owners, the best renters, all that The good people in. The people that don't want to fix up their houses we're going to eventually have to part with, because now there's too many homes in the industry And so those older homes are just going to get kicked to the curb or not get any rentals, and so we're going to try to get them up to par and then move on from that. But if they don't want to fix up their home but other than that, just really building that, i also don't want to be in the business forever. So I'm looking at ways that I can really step back, maybe go to do more speaking events at all the conferences, reach out in other ways, maybe some HOA stuff and maybe even government stuff. I like to speak and do that stuff and I don't like to sit at a desk and do the monotony of work. So that's where I'm searching hopefully that I can get my business set so I can step away and then next year to really focus on not being as much of the business but really helping out the industry as a whole. And I wear my clothes, so hopefully be going.

Speaker 1: 39:22

I think that's a great plan. I think you're going to do wonderful at that, and the best part is we get to see you at most of the conferences that we go to. So that's also a really nice part of having you part of Casa Go, and then also we've just come into each other's orbits in the last year or so. But looking forward to this fall.

Speaker 4: 39:40

I want to be weird. I'm a conference junkie. I'm a board. Put me on a board. I don't know. For some reason I love just meeting with people and talking, so I'm helping them in our board. another owner's board I'm on this month is they're putting in Dog Park and Centerverse. I'm helping them figure out where the best place for that is all the things, yeah, i always have for my husband's board. are you on now?

Speaker 1: 40:01

Yeah, that sounds like me too. Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, that's great.

Speaker 2: 40:06

We need that, we need that energy, and I think that you have just this spirit that you want to share with everybody And I first time I met you. It's very evident You are what makes this industry so much fun And so great to be a part of, and I just hope that you'll be able to continue to share that with all of us and maybe run for the Verma board someday, yeah that's right.

Speaker 4: 40:24

That's really great energy.

Speaker 1: 40:26

That's great. It's gonna be my next thing. Awesome, stacey, if anybody wants to get in touch with you, what's the best way to reach out?

Speaker 4: 40:35

Usually I'm on LinkedIn. email Stacey at castcarevacationswithanestcom is the best, and I'm on LinkedIn too. Just the usual ways to find me, or in my office. if you're in the area, come see Awesome.

Speaker 1: 40:50

We will include that in the show notes for everybody, and if anyone wants to get in touch with Annie and I, you can go to alexandanipodcastcom. And until next time. Thanks for tuning in everybody.