Oct. 22, 2025

Isaac French of Live Oak Lake: 'Less, But Better' in Hospitality and Living Life

Send us a text What if a small, story-rich resort could command a seven-figure brand premium—and what would it take to build one? We sit down with creator-operator Isaac French to trace the arc of Live Oak Lake. From building Waco's first micro resort, an early Airbnb suspension that forced an unexpected direct booking strategy, and a sale shaped by the power of narrative. Isaac opens up about the choices behind fewer, better units, and why biophilic design moves both hearts and numbers...

Send us a text

What if a small, story-rich resort could command a seven-figure brand premium—and what would it take to build one? We sit down with creator-operator Isaac French to trace the arc of Live Oak Lake. From building Waco's first micro resort, an early Airbnb suspension that forced an unexpected direct booking strategy, and a sale shaped by the power of narrative. Isaac opens up about the choices behind fewer, better units, and why biophilic design moves both hearts and numbers.

Live Oak Lake origin, design-led build, and early traction
The Airbnb suspension forcing a direct booking strategy
Unreasonable hospitality as a design and operations ethos
Brand value, opco-propco structures, and earnest money
Where social media is headed for hospitality
Biophilic design, indoor–outdoor living, and wellness
A 200-tree orchard as living artwork and venue
Farm hospitality as the next major opportunity
Values-based community, family, and craft-forward living

Subscribe to Isaac’s newsletter at IsaacJFrench.com for short lessons and stories on design, hospitality, and building a better life and business
Find Isaac on socials at @IsaacFrench_

This episode is brought to you by Clockwork Design- outdoor hospitality's top architecture & design firm. To learn more email christian@clockwork-ad.com

This episode is power by Sage Outdoor Advisory the industry leaders in feasibility studies and appraisals.

We work hard to bring you the best insights from top experts in this space- FREE OF CHARGE, all we ask is that you consider leaving us a positive review so we can keep the momentum growing. To leave a review go to the podcast home page and scroll down past some of the first episodes - we appreciate you!

00:00 - Welcome And Isaac’s Road To Tulum

03:10 - Masterminds, Azulik, And Biophilic Design

08:32 - Live Oak Lake Origin And Early Wins

11:20 - Airbnb Suspension And The Direct Booking Pivot

15:35 - Design Philosophy And Unreasonable Details

18:30 - Sponsor: Clockwork Architecture & Permitting Realities

20:05 - Brand, Exit Strategy, And Deal Lessons

26:45 - Distribution, Content Craft, And Algorithm Truths

31:05 - Decentralised Media And The Power Of Story

34:20 - A Phone-Free Resort Thought Experiment

38:00 - Family, Faith, And Life After The Sale

41:15 - The Orchard: Beauty, Craft, And A New Business Model

46:10 - Films, YouTube, And Building Worlds

51:00 - Community, Craft School, And Values-Based Living

56:12 - The Big Bet: Farm Hospitality And Wellness

01:00:10 - Final Advice And How To Connect

WEBVTT

00:00:02.080 --> 00:00:02.720
All right.

00:00:02.720 --> 00:00:06.400
Well, welcome back to the Outdoor Hospitality Podcast.

00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:11.439
I'm your host, Connor Schwab, joined by the great and wonderful Isaac French.

00:00:11.439 --> 00:00:12.000
Welcome, Isaac.

00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:13.519
Connor, thank you for having me.

00:00:13.919 --> 00:00:14.160
Thank you.

00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:15.679
It's a pleasure to be joined by you.

00:00:15.679 --> 00:00:20.800
I just we're both just at the glamping show, and Isaac was a keynote speaker there.

00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:24.800
Sadly, I missed it, but I heard great things from the people who got to see.

00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:35.520
For those of you who might be living under a rock and don't know who Isaac is, he's kind of one of the bigger names and more influential people in the unique stay and hospitality space.

00:00:35.520 --> 00:00:41.759
He's the you know founder and former owner of Live Oak Lake, which was acquired for several millions.

00:00:41.759 --> 00:00:54.640
And since then has opened the Experiential Hospitality Group, which is essentially kind of like a masterclass group for operators to exchange information and insights and to network.

00:00:54.640 --> 00:01:09.920
And then he's got at least three other properties that I'm aware of: an orchard, a train car, and a nook, all very different, but with fine, fine craftsmanship and attention to detail, of which I believe have been highly successful.

00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:14.159
And then Isaac has attracted quite a massive brand for himself.

00:01:14.159 --> 00:01:19.439
I know he's got 80,000 followers on Instagram, many, many thousand followers on X and YouTube.

00:01:19.439 --> 00:01:21.280
And uh yeah, so he's an important guy.

00:01:21.280 --> 00:01:25.519
So listen to uh he's been through the ringer, so I'm happy to have him on.

00:01:25.519 --> 00:01:27.920
And yeah, Isaac, what are you how are you?

00:01:27.920 --> 00:01:28.719
What have you been up to?

00:01:28.959 --> 00:01:29.840
It's I'm I'm good.

00:01:29.840 --> 00:01:33.280
Yeah, I can't believe we didn't run into each other at the clamping show until just a minute ago.

00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:36.400
I didn't know you were there, but that was a little bit of a whirlwind.

00:01:36.400 --> 00:01:37.760
I've been traveling a lot.

00:01:37.760 --> 00:01:56.959
So this year, earlier this year, I sort of decided because I'd been getting all these invitations to to speak, which are which is very humbling for me because I don't think I'm anything special, but I'm you know obviously flattered when people want me to come and share what I've learned and with their audiences.

00:01:56.959 --> 00:02:03.280
And so I love people, I love connecting with people in the real world even more than way more than social media.

00:02:03.280 --> 00:02:11.520
So I decided at the beginning of this year, I'm going to take advantage of as many of these as I can this year only, and we'll take it, take it from there.

00:02:11.520 --> 00:02:16.400
But you know, I want that, I want that opportunity to to build real relationships.

00:02:16.400 --> 00:02:24.639
So I've been on like a dozen trips this year for those kind of events, and then this past month, this feels like I've been traveling a ton.

00:02:24.639 --> 00:02:29.199
And right now I'm right in between two trips, so you're catching, catching me at the right time.

00:02:29.199 --> 00:02:32.639
But yeah, it's been it's it's been a whirlwind in a good way.

00:02:32.639 --> 00:02:50.639
It was in Mexico a couple days ago, was in Colorado and Tennessee just before that, and have been helping to evangelize the future of hospitality and travel, which is, in my opinion, these small experiential, story-driven stays.

00:02:50.639 --> 00:02:51.599
So it's pretty exciting.

00:02:51.599 --> 00:02:52.159
I love it.

00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:54.400
And was is was Tori and Seth down there too?

00:02:54.400 --> 00:02:55.840
I talked with them on the way out of the show.

00:02:55.840 --> 00:02:57.280
They said they were headed to Tulum.

00:02:57.520 --> 00:02:58.159
Yeah, yeah.

00:02:58.159 --> 00:03:02.960
We ran into each other in the airport, which was fun, as well as Ben Wolf, who was also at the show.

00:03:02.960 --> 00:03:04.560
And what show was this?

00:03:04.639 --> 00:03:05.759
What was what show was this?

00:03:05.919 --> 00:03:08.000
It was a it was actually a mastermind group.

00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:24.159
There's a guy named Rich Summers who does like a boutique hotel mastermind, and so he brought all the about a hundred plus folks together in Tulum, which was my first time to that area, and including some like bigger real estate names.

00:03:24.159 --> 00:03:32.319
And yeah, we it was a two-day event of lots of different sessions geared around real estate and hospitality.

00:03:32.479 --> 00:03:34.560
Did you get to do any fun stuff when you were there?

00:03:34.800 --> 00:03:38.479
You know, I did not, besides uh just hang out with people.

00:03:38.479 --> 00:03:42.159
I wanted to like go, well, Ben and I snuck away one night actually, and we went.

00:03:42.159 --> 00:03:45.199
Have you seen Azullik before on Instagram?

00:03:45.520 --> 00:03:51.439
Is that the kind of stick-built one on the coast with the really interesting architecture and like structures?

00:03:51.840 --> 00:03:52.240
Yes.

00:03:52.240 --> 00:03:57.199
It's probably like one of the more kind of like one of the OG landscape resorts.

00:03:57.199 --> 00:04:01.680
I think it was built like 20 years ago, actually, but it is quite a marvel.

00:04:01.680 --> 00:04:16.079
So Ben and I, he funny story, Ben's partner Jesse in Owassi lives over in Portugal and recently was playing tennis with this random dude who turned out to be the brother of one of the owners of Azulek.

00:04:16.079 --> 00:04:20.879
So through this roundabout connection, we got hooked up to some of the ownership down there.

00:04:20.879 --> 00:04:29.360
So we he went and got a tour, and then we went and had dinner, and you know, got to walk around the property, which which was really inspiring just to see.

00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:32.639
Tulum obviously has a lot of cool properties.

00:04:32.639 --> 00:04:42.079
It also kind of sort of has a bad rap because there's a lot of projects that are kind of half done, and we ex we got to experience that firsthand.

00:04:42.079 --> 00:04:47.040
Like the place we were staying was this incredible architectural masterpiece.

00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:54.399
Like if that place was in the States, it would definitely be getting like all of the headlines and architectural publicity.

00:04:54.399 --> 00:05:01.759
It uh it almost looks like this Colosseum, like it's this four-story, three towers that sort of make up this circle.

00:05:01.759 --> 00:05:05.600
And in the middle, there's just this huge forest and a pool and trails.

00:05:05.600 --> 00:05:29.120
And but I mean, like you drive through you drive down a dirt road that feels like you're on the moon for like half a mile just to get there, and then like immediately adjacent is this huge eyesore of a construction site that apparently was started like you know two years ago, and then they just totally abandon it during the foundation stage, and that kind of stuff is all over the place.

00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:45.439
So it's it's a weird juxtaposition of incredibly beautiful, innovative, you know, creative structures and just third-world country through and through, I guess you could say, which was that's what I love about travel.

00:05:45.439 --> 00:05:48.480
Like you see new things, you experience new things.

00:05:48.480 --> 00:06:06.720
On the architectural front, it was so cool in different places we went where the event was hosted and where I was staying, just to see, again, like what people do in other places, especially somewhere like Mexico, where labor is so much cheaper and where I feel like regulations are so much less of an issue.

00:06:06.720 --> 00:06:09.360
They just build very creatively.

00:06:09.360 --> 00:06:12.959
And that's always been an inspiration for me.

00:06:12.959 --> 00:06:15.279
But again, that was a new region for me to go.

00:06:15.279 --> 00:06:19.519
So I came away with a lot of architectural inspiration, if nothing else.

00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:21.519
You take a lot of photos.

00:06:21.519 --> 00:06:22.319
Yes.

00:06:22.319 --> 00:06:22.959
Yeah.

00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:23.360
Yeah.

00:06:23.360 --> 00:06:31.759
I I went to Tulum with my girlfriend a year ago to go scuba dive the cenote, which by the way is one of the most epic things I've ever done.

00:06:31.759 --> 00:06:35.279
So highly recommend it if you end up going back there.

00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:37.360
It's like a top five life experience.

00:06:37.759 --> 00:06:44.160
Somebody invited me to come to a private one because I know a few folks down there that like own cool properties, and I just ran out of time.

00:06:44.160 --> 00:06:47.120
But that that I've seen those pictures, they look incredible.

00:06:47.839 --> 00:06:48.560
And yeah, you're right.

00:06:48.560 --> 00:06:50.160
Tuluma is such a fascinating place.

00:06:50.160 --> 00:07:00.240
One of the best places in the world that does this indoor-outdoor concept in so much of its architecture where it's they're really meshed and it's just amazing.

00:07:00.240 --> 00:07:04.480
Obviously, they have the weather, the warm weather to support that and kind of a lack of bugs.

00:07:04.480 --> 00:07:06.560
Which makes it really easy to do that.

00:07:06.560 --> 00:07:16.160
But yeah, like even just looking through Airbnb at places to stay there is like you could do it for hours because the the places are just so beautiful and so unique.

00:07:16.319 --> 00:07:19.360
So I'm sure you're familiar with the term biophilic design.

00:07:19.360 --> 00:07:21.360
I'm not actually, so please school me.

00:07:21.360 --> 00:07:26.480
So this is definitely for me like a huge guiding light.

00:07:26.480 --> 00:07:34.160
Basically, the idea is that you're connecting people with nature through the built environment to improve health and well-being.

00:07:34.160 --> 00:07:45.680
And so obviously, natural light, plants, water, natural materials, organic forms all you know help foster that connection, that sense of calm and harmony.

00:07:45.680 --> 00:07:54.720
But I felt like multiple, again, like multiple structures and places that I visited there just crashed it out of the park with biophilic design.

00:07:54.720 --> 00:08:09.279
Like trees coming out of you know the side of a building and plants just enveloping it to where it truly feels like yeah, you're living, you're living in nature, and those lines between indoors and outdoors are blurred.

00:08:09.279 --> 00:08:11.759
So that was one of the most inspiring parts.

00:08:12.079 --> 00:08:13.120
Yeah, absolutely.

00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:14.480
It's it's super cool.

00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:20.160
With that weather and lack of regulation, it you it really produces some incredible stuff.

00:08:20.160 --> 00:08:23.600
I'm very jealous of that, both those things that they have.

00:08:23.600 --> 00:08:24.079
Yeah.

00:08:24.079 --> 00:08:33.519
What uh so I mean, I want to spend a little bit of time just talking about Live Oak Lake simply because that's important to kind of your backstory, but I don't want to spend too much time on it.

00:08:33.519 --> 00:08:35.279
I want to get to what you're working on now.

00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:40.960
But maybe could you tell the audience just a little bit about that project for their own context?

00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:41.759
Sure.

00:08:41.759 --> 00:09:00.159
So the story of Live Oak Lake in a nutshell is five almost five years ago now, I had a dream to create something that I didn't think ever had existed, which was this charming village of caverns in the middle of Central Texas around the lake.

00:09:00.159 --> 00:09:28.480
And so through a through a 12-month period of just sheer determination and a lot of luck, good timing and willpower and team effort, was able to buy five acres and design and build seven really beautiful modern cabins, dig a dig a lake, create a common space and trails and just this really rich outdoor experience.

00:09:28.480 --> 00:09:42.159
And then launched the brand in January of 2022 and had this terrific, you know, terrific reception from everyone, really.

00:09:42.159 --> 00:09:49.360
We were getting like rave reviews and tons of income, and like all of the risks seemed very validated.

00:09:49.360 --> 00:10:00.399
And then two weeks after opening, I woke up and my entire life changed because our entire account on Airbnb was suspended with no warning, with no recourse.

00:10:00.399 --> 00:10:07.600
And it was a much bigger deal than I expected because Airbnb basically told me, tough luck, there's absolutely nothing we can do.

00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:12.000
You cannot talk to that department, and sometimes these properties never come back online.

00:10:12.000 --> 00:10:21.759
And at that time, there were very few examples of and I really didn't know of any of you know Airbnb properties marketing directly.

00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:53.519
And so through through meeting a mentor randomly, because I wasn't really on social media at the time, I got the idea to run a giveaway with an influencer, spun up a website, threw up an Instagram page, Venmoed the lady $950, and you know, seven days later we had $40,000 of direct bookings, all yeah, all direct and over 5,000 followers, kind of starting from from scratch.

00:10:53.519 --> 00:11:02.159
And then just as luck would have it, or God or something, like two days later, Airbnb restored the entire account.

00:11:02.159 --> 00:11:06.639
So if it hadn't been for that window, I never would have took took that leap.

00:11:06.639 --> 00:11:16.080
And we doubled down and went all in direct and grew a pretty big following, about 130,000 followers in the first year.

00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:29.440
And then at the 18th, 18 month mark, with you know, with a million dollars top line the first 12 months, $550,000 of bottom line profit, 80% of all bookings direct.

00:11:29.440 --> 00:11:36.559
We sold the property and the brand for about three times what it cost us to build.

00:11:36.559 --> 00:11:43.120
And yeah, and now since then it has continued to expand the brand has the follower count.

00:11:43.120 --> 00:11:44.639
And so that's Live Oak Lake.

00:11:45.279 --> 00:11:46.399
Cinderella story.

00:11:46.399 --> 00:11:48.799
You know, it's that's amazing.

00:11:48.799 --> 00:11:52.240
And what what would you attribute that success to?

00:11:52.240 --> 00:11:53.759
You know, was it the location?

00:11:53.759 --> 00:11:55.279
Was it the property design?

00:11:55.279 --> 00:11:56.320
Was it the unit design?

00:11:56.320 --> 00:11:58.559
Was it how you marketed it online?

00:11:58.559 --> 00:12:00.559
Like what do you attribute that to?

00:12:00.960 --> 00:12:02.080
It's really difficult.

00:12:02.080 --> 00:12:04.639
I think it's impossible to pinpoint one thing.

00:12:04.639 --> 00:12:17.200
Specifically, I think it is the culmination of a ton of little things, little ordinary decisions that were made with just like an unreasonable amount of care and intention.

00:12:17.200 --> 00:12:19.120
And specifically in the design of it.

00:12:19.120 --> 00:12:33.360
So everything from the site plan and how we kind of leaned into the natural features of the property, the you know, the topography, we dug out this, we turned this swampy marsh into this beautiful lake.

00:12:33.360 --> 00:12:40.480
We cleared out all these briars to expose these incredibly beautiful live oak trees, and then we really built around that.

00:12:40.480 --> 00:12:47.919
And instead of trying to squeeze as many units as we possibly could to juice our numbers, we cut back on the number of units.

00:12:47.919 --> 00:12:50.320
We spent more money than we should have.

00:12:50.320 --> 00:12:59.679
And, you know, just in every way, even though the utilities cost us a lot more, the access did, we wanted to create the most magical experience possible.

00:12:59.679 --> 00:13:04.879
And I think you, I think the takeaway there is like you have to be a visionary.

00:13:04.879 --> 00:13:16.879
You have to be, and you have to have conviction because a lot of people are going to try to steer you away from, you know, again, spending, in that case, like $250,000 per 400 square foot cabin.

00:13:16.879 --> 00:13:23.440
And that's with, you know, with no design or construction management fees, because I was kind of doing all of that.

00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:27.600
There's so like I wasn't being driven by the numbers.

00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:35.200
I knew just like in my heart of hearts that the feeling would be there and the numbers and the money would follow if the feeling was there.

00:13:35.200 --> 00:13:41.759
And so the feeling was the product of all those little decisions, all the way down to you know, the silverware that's in the drawers, literally.

00:13:41.759 --> 00:13:51.279
And so I think that just being again unreasonable about all of those details, including in the hospitality itself.

00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:54.240
So I assume you've read that book, Unreasonable Hospitality.

00:13:54.720 --> 00:13:58.000
I've I haven't read it like cover to cover, but I've like read sections.

00:13:58.000 --> 00:13:59.200
I'm very familiar with the concept.

00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:00.799
It's like my favorite book.

00:14:00.799 --> 00:14:02.480
Definitely my favorite business book.

00:14:02.480 --> 00:14:12.000
But so yeah, I mean, I just love how simple he makes it because it applies to pretty much every business and every industry.

00:14:12.000 --> 00:14:21.679
But the you know, the the concept actually let me just look it up because there's this great quote that from Penn and Teller, the magic show.

00:14:21.679 --> 00:14:24.080
So this was Teller.

00:14:24.080 --> 00:14:31.120
He said, sometimes magic is just someone spending more time on something than anyone else might reasonably expect.

00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:32.879
I think that's what it comes down to.

00:14:32.879 --> 00:14:41.519
It's just that that extra 20% in all those little details that produces that, you know, 80 or 800% effect.

00:14:41.519 --> 00:14:54.480
And if it means doing 50% less in terms of quantity or like footprint that you're trying to accomplish, but being more concentrated, this is the theme I try to drive home more than any other.

00:14:54.480 --> 00:15:06.320
If you want my number one piece of advice to build a world-class micro resort and it's that's just gonna crush it, or if you want my advice to like live a really meaningful life, I'm not that necessarily qualified to give it, but it's the same.

00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:08.879
Do less things and do them better.

00:15:08.879 --> 00:15:12.639
Do fewer things and do them better, build fewer units and spend more money.

00:15:12.639 --> 00:15:14.480
And so I think that that was the product.

00:15:14.799 --> 00:15:17.600
Connor, do you want to talk about glamping permits for a second?

00:15:18.080 --> 00:15:19.840
Yeah, it's it's hugely important.

00:15:19.840 --> 00:15:27.279
The two biggest roadblocks to getting you know glamping projects built is the funding and the entitlements and the permitting.

00:15:27.279 --> 00:15:29.360
So it's it's a really big deal.

00:15:29.759 --> 00:15:43.120
Yeah, and it can be a very challenging and you know, sometimes quite intimidating process, not just putting all the materials together, but presenting it to the county, often going through the public hearing process, which can be really scary and sometimes quite nasty.

00:15:43.120 --> 00:15:47.679
And that's why it does help to have people who are used to doing this on your side.

00:15:47.679 --> 00:15:53.279
And that's why we're delighted to announce that uh today's sponsors are Clockwork Architecture and Design.

00:15:53.279 --> 00:15:55.759
They're an architecture firm based in Kansas City.

00:15:55.759 --> 00:16:02.559
They have a specialist outdoor hospitality division that have done tons of work in the glamping and RV resort space.

00:16:02.559 --> 00:16:08.320
They're experts at designing and permitting glamping resorts or whatever kind of outdoor hospitality project it is.

00:16:08.320 --> 00:16:20.480
They'll come to your property, walk the land with you, work at work through a concept with you, design the whole layout of the site, and then gather all the materials for the county, deal with the county, deal with the public hearings if you'd like them to.

00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:24.320
And they're just you know all-round fantastic partners to have on your side.

00:16:24.320 --> 00:16:28.720
And Connor, I know you and Sage have had some pretty good experiences with clockwork as well.

00:16:29.279 --> 00:16:34.960
Yeah, we've we've been working with clockwork literally the entire time that I've been at the company, so for four years.

00:16:34.960 --> 00:16:38.000
And so we've done dozens and dozens of projects with them.

00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:43.519
And love the chance to get to work with them because you know they are the best and most experienced in the industry.

00:16:43.519 --> 00:16:48.320
They they really know outdoor hospitality and they've designed some world-class sites.

00:16:48.320 --> 00:16:50.720
It's just, yeah, they're they're very talented.

00:16:50.720 --> 00:16:52.799
You'd be in good hands to work with them.

00:16:53.279 --> 00:16:57.679
Yeah, and I can't vouch highly enough for Christian Arnold at Clockwork, the owner.

00:16:57.679 --> 00:17:03.840
He's a you know fantastic guy who cares about what he does, looks after his clients, very reliable communication-wise as well.

00:17:03.840 --> 00:17:06.480
And yeah, we're we're super excited to partner with them on this.

00:17:06.480 --> 00:17:15.759
So if you are looking for site designs, you know, entitlement help, whatever it may be in that field, then do con contact Clockwork Architecture and Design.

00:17:15.759 --> 00:17:21.279
And the way you can do that is by emailing Christian at clockwork-ad.com.

00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:23.440
Uh, all the details will be in the description as well.

00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:24.799
So go check that out if you want.

00:17:24.799 --> 00:17:26.799
Um, so yeah, thank you, Clockwork.

00:17:26.799 --> 00:17:28.240
We couldn't recommend them highly enough.

00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:28.960
Go check them out.

00:17:29.279 --> 00:17:36.960
I was perusing your website, isaacjFrench.com, and I I want to read your manifesto because I I think it's so poetic and eloquent.

00:17:36.960 --> 00:17:39.200
Beauty matters, and it starts small.

00:17:39.200 --> 00:17:41.839
Beautiful communities begin with welcoming homes.

00:17:41.839 --> 00:17:48.240
Before great towns, build warm kitchens and rich traditions, build for children to play and neighbors to gather.

00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:50.720
If you want to change the world, start small.

00:17:50.720 --> 00:17:55.359
Plant a tree, sweep your street, break bread, break bread with a stranger.

00:17:55.359 --> 00:17:57.440
Together we can make the world more beautiful.

00:17:57.440 --> 00:18:00.480
One corner, one space, one story at a time.

00:18:00.480 --> 00:18:03.519
Which god dang Isaac, that is like that just hits.

00:18:03.519 --> 00:18:15.440
And then your mission statement is I make art in nature, restoring old train cars, building cabins and villages, planting orchards and gardens, and making places that make you feel alive.

00:18:15.440 --> 00:18:19.599
But these aren't just spaces, they're immersive little worlds, they're experiences.

00:18:19.599 --> 00:18:25.279
Every moment and detail is designed to draw you in, a little like your favorite art or music does.

00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:32.400
And I think that's why your uh your you know personal brand and your uh properties have done so well.

00:18:32.400 --> 00:18:41.680
You're like the least uh commercial, like least a corporate guy I've ever, you know, followed who's you know so successful in business.

00:18:41.680 --> 00:18:52.480
For someone who's so successful in business, you seem to care very little about what most people in business care about, whether that's like profitability, bottom line, nail and scale, like IRR.

00:18:52.480 --> 00:18:54.960
Like I don't really hear you ever talking about those.

00:18:54.960 --> 00:19:00.559
It's it's it's more about like I'm gonna take care of the other person and the rest will take care of itself.

00:19:00.559 --> 00:19:05.359
And I think that's a huge key to your success in a really wholesome way.

00:19:05.359 --> 00:19:11.839
So like I I I love I love that aspect.

00:19:11.839 --> 00:19:15.200
And then how how how did this acquisition come about?

00:19:15.200 --> 00:19:21.039
Is it something you were expecting, or did you did you design with that in mind, or did someone just approach you?

00:19:21.359 --> 00:19:29.440
In the back of my mind, the whole time we were building, I entertained the notion that one day we would sell, or at least we'd you know be open to it.

00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:53.599
It's really weird because when you go through, I mean, you've you you know you're an industry veteran, but like when you go through the blood, sweat, and tears to like give birth almost to a property like that, you become emotionally attached to some degree because it feels like your baby, but it but you also, like, for me at least in the moment, I was so burned out, to be honest.

00:19:53.599 --> 00:19:57.200
Like I was loving it, don't get me wrong, I loved it through and through.

00:19:57.200 --> 00:20:21.359
But the stress that comes even maybe it's just, you know, when you're compressing a timeline like that and all the things you have to battle through to make that happen, you know, the hundred-hour weeks nonstop, the delays, the setbacks, the price increases, the budget shortfalls, just everything, it adds up, and you sort of get a little bit burned out at times, and and you're like tempted to sort of take the payout.

00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:25.279
Now, in the moment, you can never do that because you've got to actually bring it to birth.

00:20:25.279 --> 00:20:32.160
Like, you've got to have that one thing, that one thing on your resume that will like hopefully help set their trajectory for the other things.

00:20:32.160 --> 00:20:40.079
But in the back of my mind, I was like, look, if somebody came along and wanted to pay us a bunch of money, I'm not gonna be sad.

00:20:40.079 --> 00:20:46.640
So it was a little bit of like that mixed with, I'm gonna be very sad because this is where I've emotionally invested my life.

00:20:46.640 --> 00:20:51.759
And it's the culmination of so many of my own personal passions and dreams.

00:20:51.759 --> 00:21:00.880
But basically, the way it happened is we listed the property for sale at four months in for what I thought was a crazy price.

00:21:00.880 --> 00:21:02.640
It was like six million dollars.

00:21:02.640 --> 00:21:06.480
We had we had spent, for context, 2.3 million to build it.

00:21:06.480 --> 00:21:12.240
And we got a ton of interest all of a sudden from buyers, which surprised me.

00:21:12.240 --> 00:21:14.720
What seemed to be interest, but I'd never been through the process.

00:21:14.720 --> 00:21:16.480
And it was really just tire kickers.

00:21:16.480 --> 00:21:27.200
It was people that, you know, had seen all of the hype around the property and really wanted to like dig into the numbers and just kind of, you know, glean whatever they could glean.

00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:41.440
And so the takeaway there was no serious buyer is going to entertain you if you don't have 12 months at least of operating history, no matter how strong your cash flow is, your follower growth, your projections, all that.

00:21:41.440 --> 00:21:50.079
I guess I didn't expect that because on the other hand, the bank had reappraised the property at four months in for twice what their initial appraisal had been.

00:21:50.079 --> 00:22:02.160
And we had refinanced it, we had completed a refinance six months after opening for a hundred percent of the entire construction cost, plus around $400,000, which is crazy.

00:22:02.160 --> 00:22:10.240
So we were we now had, you know, everybody paid off and we had $400,000 tax-free to reinvest however we wanted at four months, uh, six months.

00:22:10.240 --> 00:22:20.240
But the buyers like are they mean business and they want to see serious historical numbers at a T PL, a trailing 12-month PL.

00:22:20.240 --> 00:22:25.920
So we took it offline about a month later, and then at 12 months, relisted it.

00:22:25.920 --> 00:22:39.599
It also helps because we had a more specialized broker, shout out David Dumental with the Intrepid Group, who did a great drop, great job of just like sending it specifically to experiential buyers.

00:22:39.599 --> 00:22:48.319
And we got a bunch more interest now that we could demonstrate that those number that those projections actually came true.

00:22:48.319 --> 00:22:50.799
And we got under contract.

00:22:50.799 --> 00:22:53.920
So I'll just tell you the story real quick of like how it all happened.

00:22:53.920 --> 00:22:59.039
We got under contract for six six and a half million, which just seemed like a great price.

00:22:59.039 --> 00:23:04.000
The second time we relisted, we were a million higher than the first.

00:23:04.000 --> 00:23:14.319
But we came down a little bit, six and a half, and the buyer put down like 20 grand of earnest money, and uh they did due diligence, everything checked out.

00:23:14.319 --> 00:23:26.640
We were a day away from closing, and they scheduled this celebratory call, which I should have been suspect right away, to sort of just like, I guess, congratulate one another on the transaction before it had actually closed.

00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:33.279
So we get on the call, and their lawyers on the call, and he's like, actually, we need to tell you that we had a little hiccup with the financing.

00:23:33.279 --> 00:23:35.279
We want an additional two weeks.

00:23:35.279 --> 00:23:40.559
And I should have known right then and there, but basically the deal was through.

00:23:40.559 --> 00:23:43.279
They had already the deal was had fallen through.

00:23:43.279 --> 00:23:51.440
They had already, you know, for like several weeks at that point, been searching for a different loan because their original lender backed out and they never told us.

00:23:51.440 --> 00:23:56.319
So we ended up, you know, the next day they were like, sorry, we can't do it at all.

00:23:56.319 --> 00:24:06.079
So we we were now, you know, had no prospects on the line, but I had emotionally invested that we were about to sell, and so it was just a roller coaster.

00:24:06.079 --> 00:24:11.279
Uh we could barely like cover the attorney's fees with the earnest money that we had because they didn't have nearly enough.

00:24:11.279 --> 00:24:18.079
And then three days after that fell through, we get another LOI for seven million, so another half a million dollars.

00:24:18.079 --> 00:24:21.920
And the six and a half was the highest we'd gotten by a good margin.

00:24:21.920 --> 00:24:27.519
And so we got after a little negotiation, they wanted us to sell our finance a piece of it.

00:24:27.519 --> 00:24:38.240
I didn't want to do that, so we we negotiated it, but we got under contract for seven million, and then sure enough, that deal almost fell through, basically did fall through like three different times.

00:24:38.240 --> 00:24:52.880
We could have walked with a couple hundred thousand dollars of earnest money at one point, but we didn't want to, and so we gave them extra time, they got a loan, and we closed, you know, four months later, five months later.

00:24:52.880 --> 00:24:58.160
There's that great saying, fish swim, birds fly, and deals fall through.

00:24:58.160 --> 00:25:00.640
And we definitely experienced that.

00:25:00.640 --> 00:25:24.400
But yeah, so all in all, it was it was a very educational experience, the selling process, which honestly, as a kind of a lifelong learner and just like a very curious person, similar to the building of Live Oak Lake and not just the the property and the construction and the design aspects, but the brand and the marketing and the operational aspects, I just love learning.

00:25:24.400 --> 00:25:35.759
And so I felt like I was just getting like a master's level education in all of these different disciplines and aspects of business, of real estate, of life, of negotiation.

00:25:35.759 --> 00:25:37.039
And so yeah.

00:25:37.359 --> 00:25:40.960
What was your biggest takeaway from the transaction of like actually selling?

00:25:40.960 --> 00:25:46.880
And I'm interested because I'm going the brokerage route myself, so I'm gonna be help focused on helping people buy and sell these types of properties.

00:25:46.880 --> 00:25:48.880
So I'm curious selfishly as well.

00:25:49.200 --> 00:25:54.640
I mean, I would have probably done some things differently before long before we sold, like in the way we structured the business.

00:25:54.640 --> 00:25:57.200
I'm a big fan of an opco propco model.

00:25:57.200 --> 00:26:03.039
When I set up Live Oak Lake, it was just all under one entity, and so the beauty of it is very simple.

00:26:03.039 --> 00:26:08.640
We just sold the whole thing as it was, and it certainly depends on what your goals are.

00:26:08.640 --> 00:26:28.400
But knowing now, without giving too many specifics, because a lot of this just is kind of hypothetical, but there is a high premium placed on the brand component of that exit, but the brand encompassing the social media following, you know, the newsletter, and obviously the reputation and goodwill.

00:26:28.400 --> 00:26:32.559
But the intangibles themselves were a lot of money, a big portion of that.

00:26:32.559 --> 00:26:43.279
And so, you know, is there a case where you could sell the real estate and keep hold of the brand and do like a franchise agreement?

00:26:43.279 --> 00:26:44.640
Yeah, absolutely.

00:26:44.640 --> 00:26:49.920
And I I think that that model is like really, really great if you do it well.

00:26:49.920 --> 00:26:56.480
So that's one thing I would have at least split out to have again as just an option when we sold.

00:26:56.480 --> 00:27:04.640
And and we could have also made that change probably like retrospectively before we sold, but the broker didn't tell me about it.

00:27:04.640 --> 00:27:09.440
We didn't, I didn't really think it through, and we ended up, you know, selling for a good price for the whole thing anyway.

00:27:09.440 --> 00:27:10.480
So it worked out.

00:27:10.480 --> 00:27:11.519
That's one thing.

00:27:11.519 --> 00:27:25.440
And I guess the other big thing is like I already mentioned it, but like have plenty of earnest money, and this applies to all real estate transactions, but like there is so much work that goes into it, and there's attorneys' fees and so many other things.

00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:27.920
And I just totally blew it on that first time.

00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:31.759
We did not, we did not have nearly enough in the contract.

00:27:31.759 --> 00:27:41.599
Obviously, like it's not gonna go hard until due diligence is done, and that's good because they need to be able to fully underwrite everything and and have a full you know look behind the hood.

00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:51.200
But after that period of time, you've got again, you've invested so much of your own time and resources and attorneys and all of that, you want to cover yourself.

00:27:51.200 --> 00:27:55.359
So definitely have like more than enough hard earnest money.

00:27:55.599 --> 00:27:58.319
Yeah, that is that is super interesting.

00:27:58.319 --> 00:28:07.119
And if I recall correctly, because I've looked, Isaac made public a lot of the details of your operating history and I think the acquisition itself.

00:28:07.119 --> 00:28:10.799
And the they gave you quite a large premium for the brand.

00:28:10.799 --> 00:28:11.839
Wasn't it like a million?

00:28:11.839 --> 00:28:14.799
Like out of a seven million dollar deal, wasn't it like a million placed on the brand?

00:28:15.200 --> 00:28:25.039
They didn't specify that, but based on based on knowledge that I have firsthand of just being a party to the transaction, it was.

00:28:25.039 --> 00:28:26.480
It was a it was a big portion.

00:28:26.480 --> 00:28:30.799
It was, you know, uh it was probably seven figures.

00:28:31.279 --> 00:28:32.720
It doesn't usually go that way.

00:28:32.720 --> 00:28:40.480
I feel like oftentimes brands aren't given a seven-figure value, especially one that's been around for twelve, twelve to sixteen months.

00:28:40.480 --> 00:28:45.200
So, you know, kudos to you for for creating something with that much value.

00:28:45.200 --> 00:28:54.480
That's interesting that you would have so you would have held on to the maybe the Live Oak Lake brand and just sold the property and maybe done it in a couple more markets, basically.

00:28:54.880 --> 00:28:56.079
Yeah, potentially.

00:28:56.079 --> 00:29:05.680
I mean again, with my philosophy and especially just wanting to be able to control every aspect of the experience.

00:29:05.680 --> 00:29:13.359
I'm not sure that that's the way I would I would want to go if I was gonna be, you know, whether it was I own the real estate or I own the brand.

00:29:13.359 --> 00:29:16.880
Because the thing is like you're losing control, inevitably.

00:29:16.880 --> 00:29:24.240
Like you can maintain more control over the experience if you own the brand, because depending on the agreement, you can stipulate that.

00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:39.200
But I mean, you just don't the owner, no one cares, no one cares about anything like the person who created it, and you know, even more so.

00:29:39.200 --> 00:29:47.119
Well, let me say it like this no one cares about anything like the person who owns the thing, but even more so, no one cares about it like the person who created it.

00:29:47.119 --> 00:29:48.720
And there is a distinction there.

00:29:48.720 --> 00:29:59.920
And so I think it was best that I that I sold everything wholesale, but I I think I see a lot of other transactions and a lot of other sh you know transactions.

00:29:59.920 --> 00:30:07.839
Trajectories of similar types of properties that I feel like are most optimized by having the separation there.

00:30:07.839 --> 00:30:20.960
Because, you know, if you look at like all of the top brands in the space, brands, the top players, they are at least a bipart, usually a tripart structure where they have a brand, an operating company, and a real estate company.

00:30:20.960 --> 00:30:25.440
So I think it gives you maximum flexibility if you do want to scale.

00:30:25.440 --> 00:30:48.160
And I do think at some point, though the future certainly seems to be more decentralized than the past in terms of brands, in terms of distribution, in terms of customer preferences and whatnot, there will be, there will certainly be some merit to having to having a brand that is overarching and to having the loyalty, the trust aspects that come with that.

00:30:48.160 --> 00:31:11.839
Whether it's soft, a soft brand association or, you know, something like an Amon style branding, which we could geek out all about brands, but I love particularly because like they keep the Amon name and all the properties, but then they have a different ending that sort of mysteriously ties into the local terrar and the story of the place of every one of their resort locations.

00:31:11.839 --> 00:31:29.759
So there is definitely a lot to be said for having you know that overarching brand structure, and especially if you're eyeing some kind of more institutional level exit, because as you and I both know, there's been multiple transactions, even in our space, in the hospitality space over the last few years that are just crazy.

00:31:29.759 --> 00:31:50.559
I mean, obviously way more impressive than Live Oak Lake and on a on a bigger scale, whether that's graduate hotels selling for $150 million just for the brand, for a 50-unit portfolio, again, no real estate, just the brand, or getaway, which included both, but clearly a big premium being placed on the brand that was amassed.

00:31:50.880 --> 00:31:51.039
Yeah.

00:31:51.039 --> 00:32:00.720
And do you know what it, you know, for your buyers, do you know what it was that made them attracted to your property and your deal and like what they valued most about it?

00:32:00.720 --> 00:32:01.599
Do you have any idea?

00:32:01.920 --> 00:32:02.960
He was the brand for sure.

00:32:02.960 --> 00:32:09.680
The the following and the hype and the the PR and yeah, the the distribution.

00:32:09.680 --> 00:32:30.960
I again I said it's going to be decentralized, and that means that the gatekeepers, the traditional gatekeepers are being pushed out of the way, whether it's the OTAs or you know, traditional media in in every genre, gatekeepers are being pushed aside, and there's never been an opportunity like there is now to own your own destiny.

00:32:30.960 --> 00:32:47.359
And I think the play for them was more or less we can we can jumpstart our own ambitions to create a brand and to leverage a brand to create other brands, specifically even with the social media following.

00:32:47.359 --> 00:33:02.720
What if I may without being too critical, what I think that some people miss, and this may apply to even the Live Oak Lake story, is that having, and everyone knows follower account means less and less than ever before.

00:33:02.720 --> 00:33:27.200
Having the distribution built in, whether that's 130,000 followers or you know, an 80% historical direct bookings rate or a 20% repeat direct bookings rate, whatever the metric looks like, is very different from being able to continue to grow that audience and to reach new people and to nurture the existing the existing people.

00:33:27.200 --> 00:33:34.480
And you can't take that like it's easy to take that for granted by having all these great numbers, especially follower account, I feel like.

00:33:34.480 --> 00:33:49.920
So I think that that was maybe a little bit, a little bit of a misnomer because the ability to create the content and to constantly innovate in how you are reaching new people is you know, it cannot be overstated.

00:33:49.920 --> 00:33:51.279
I guess that's what I'm trying to say.

00:33:51.279 --> 00:33:59.920
So there's a kid right now, you've probably seen him on Instagram, 22 years old, just graduated from the University of Virginia, was inspired by Live Oak Lake.

00:33:59.920 --> 00:34:12.880
And so he and a and a and a fellow student scraped together, he sold shoes for like during his college years, like resold shoes on eBay to save up enough money to get a down payment to buy like one acre.

00:34:12.880 --> 00:34:18.880
And then, you know, got a loan, but committed early on, he was going to document the journey on social media.

00:34:18.880 --> 00:34:27.119
And so every single day, it's been about four to five months now, I would say, he's posted a reel, like day, and it's in a series format.

00:34:27.119 --> 00:34:32.719
So day one or day 66 of building Virginia's number one luxury short-term rental.

00:34:32.719 --> 00:34:33.920
Like that's his hook.

00:34:33.920 --> 00:34:43.199
And he has gotten like literally hundreds of millions of views and hundreds, like he's up to over 500,000 followers in like four months with this one project.

00:34:43.199 --> 00:34:52.880
I mean, he's like, I just saw today he posted a story talking to Gary Vee, like he's talking to absolutely everyone because he's just the most viral kid, pretty much, on the internet right now.

00:34:52.880 --> 00:34:54.480
And he's building this cabin.

00:34:54.480 --> 00:34:59.039
So that ability to be able to create, and there's a lot of reasons for that.

00:34:59.039 --> 00:35:02.639
He's great at like compressing a storyline.

00:35:02.639 --> 00:35:04.639
He's just great at content, like all the things.

00:35:04.639 --> 00:35:17.119
He knows how to do a hook, he knows how to do the correct cuts, he knows how to tell a micro story, he knows how to tie those stories together into like episodes almost into this entire season, this entire project.

00:35:17.119 --> 00:35:27.440
And I mean, he's about now he's closing, he's under contractor on 40 additional acres, has like millions of dollars committed because they a bunch of investors now want him to like build a whole resort.

00:35:27.440 --> 00:35:41.199
So that skill set, if someone's smart, they would they would make that a talent play and not buy his property or buy his following, but buy him basic, basically, like recruit him to be part of a team to market.

00:35:41.199 --> 00:35:45.360
And and that is worth its weight in gold, like what he has there.

00:35:45.360 --> 00:35:57.760
And Gary V's advice, it's funny because right before we jumped on this, I just happened to see this story, and it was funny because he was replaying this little screen recording from their call was basically like, dude, you need to quadruple down on what you're doing now.

00:35:57.760 --> 00:36:04.400
And this kid's posting one reel a day, like it's almost all he does because he has to go around, shoot the whole thing, like it's pretty much his full-time job to post content.

00:36:04.400 --> 00:36:08.880
The guy, and Gary Vee's like, which, you know, do I subscribe to that mentality?

00:36:08.880 --> 00:36:12.159
Like, okay, maybe at his stage of life, that's that's great.

00:36:12.159 --> 00:36:14.320
He doesn't have a family, like that's his life.

00:36:14.320 --> 00:36:18.400
And I think that you need to make those sacrifices in those different seasons in your life.

00:36:18.400 --> 00:36:21.840
But anyways, I think it's I think there is definitely something there.

00:36:21.840 --> 00:36:45.199
Like, if you find, if you find that, you know, that little vein of gold, you need to go all in on digging that thing out and and not just guarding what you have or just sort of like idolizing what you've already accumulated, which would be analogous to buying a big follower account, you know, account that doesn't include any of the actual ability to go out and and get more.

00:36:45.599 --> 00:36:46.559
That is super interesting.

00:36:46.559 --> 00:37:07.679
And it kind of jump leads into a question I was going to ask you, and you mentioned it a little bit earlier, but the decentralization and the removing of the gatekeepers, I assume you're basically referring to like the power of social media and the power for any individual to get an audience and capture attention, regardless of their size, basically, as long as you're good at content like this kid, you know.

00:37:07.679 --> 00:37:11.440
He's just he's just a 22-year-old with no money, and now he's huge.

00:37:11.920 --> 00:37:42.639
Essentially, TikTok's TikTok changed the entire trajectory of social media and of media a few years ago because their algorithm discovered before anyone anyone else that how to create a curate a feed for an individual user, no matter what their likes or preferences were, that would keep them scrolling and engaged on the platform for longer than anyone else could, regardless of what the content was and quicker than anyone else could.

00:37:42.639 --> 00:37:54.639
So then all the other platforms essentially have followed suit in how their algorithms have changed, which means a net result of follower account means less and less and less.

00:37:54.639 --> 00:38:01.920
If you have 5,000 followers, or if you have 500,000 followers, it really doesn't make a huge difference.

00:38:01.920 --> 00:38:11.760
What makes a huge difference is depending on the format, let's let's say it's Instagram or TikTok, the first three seconds and the first 10 seconds of your video, do those capture people?

00:38:11.760 --> 00:38:15.280
If it's YouTube, what is the first two minutes?

00:38:15.280 --> 00:38:18.559
And then like what is the retention at 50% of the way through?

00:38:18.559 --> 00:38:27.519
So again, like the regardless of the platform, having the ability to hook people and tell a story is what matters more than ever before.

00:38:27.519 --> 00:38:33.280
And and that's great for new creators because going from zero to one is easier than ever.

00:38:33.280 --> 00:38:42.159
And then if you zoom way out, yeah, so the booking channel of the future, I think, is social media for sure, hands down, no question about it.

00:38:42.159 --> 00:38:52.320
So there will always be inventory on the OTAs, whether it's booking.com or Expedia or Virgo or Airbnb, that will be commoditized type of stays.

00:38:52.320 --> 00:38:57.920
That will be, you know, standard apartments and undifferentiated homes.

00:38:57.920 --> 00:39:07.440
But for any type of unique, you know, kind of story-driven properties, like there's such a huge advantage to going so to going direct.

00:39:07.440 --> 00:39:08.800
I just don't see why anyone wouldn't.

00:39:08.800 --> 00:39:24.480
And if sure, and that's sure enough, what has happened over the past few years, even since we've sold and continues to happen, which so not only is the media and the distribution being decentralized, but the actual creation and the actual type of product that's coming online, that's being decentralized as well.

00:39:24.480 --> 00:39:30.079
So you now you have a 22-year-old college kid literally building Virginia's number one short-term rental.

00:39:30.079 --> 00:39:36.480
And I think that's great because I am all about like empowering the little guys, and we constantly need that disruption.

00:39:36.480 --> 00:39:37.760
We need to disrupt ourselves.

00:39:37.760 --> 00:39:41.119
Like it's so easy to figure out the status quo.

00:39:41.119 --> 00:39:46.960
I mean, no, I'm not trying to get on my soapbox here, but take Live Oak Lake, for instance.

00:39:46.960 --> 00:39:53.760
This, the cabin style that was fairly innovative and unique, like when we did it, has become so ubiquitous.

00:39:53.760 --> 00:39:55.199
And I don't mean that in a bad way.

00:39:55.199 --> 00:39:58.639
Like, I think it's cool, like it's a classy, kind of timeless style.

00:39:58.639 --> 00:40:01.280
And I think a lot of people appreciate Nordic design.

00:40:01.280 --> 00:40:06.079
But I mean, just go on Pinterest, go on Instagram, go on Airbnb, and look.

00:40:06.079 --> 00:40:13.599
Like, there are so many black, Scandinavian, modern cabins and A-frames.

00:40:13.599 --> 00:40:17.760
And I'm not saying I was the first one, but so you need disruption.

00:40:17.760 --> 00:40:19.519
You need people doing new things.

00:40:19.840 --> 00:40:20.719
Hello, listeners.

00:40:20.719 --> 00:40:23.840
This is Sherry Halala, founder of Sage Outdoor Advisory.

00:40:23.840 --> 00:40:27.360
If you're launching an outdoor hospitality project like Lamping, we can help.

00:40:27.360 --> 00:40:29.599
We offer feasibility studies and appraisals.

00:40:29.599 --> 00:40:37.840
What that means is we look at your specific market and proposed business offering and complete an in-depth analysis to make sure that your planned business will be profitable.

00:40:37.840 --> 00:40:45.679
Getting a second opinion on your proposal and forecasted financials is critical to understand before you spend years of your time and hundreds of thousands of dollars.

00:40:45.679 --> 00:40:50.639
This is particularly important if you are looking to raise money for your project from a bank or private investors.

00:40:50.639 --> 00:40:56.320
They are going to want to see this type of deep dive analysis from an independent third-party specialist in the industry.

00:40:56.320 --> 00:41:04.960
We at Sage have completed well over 250 feasibility studies and appraisals in outdoor hospitality in North America in the last four years.

00:41:04.960 --> 00:41:08.880
So we understand what it takes to bring a project from concept to reality.

00:41:08.880 --> 00:41:15.679
If this sounds like it could be helpful to you, you can go to our website, SageOutdoorAdvisory.com, and schedule a call with our team.

00:41:15.679 --> 00:41:19.280
While you're there, check out our proprietary glamping database map too.

00:41:19.280 --> 00:41:19.840
Thanks.

00:41:19.840 --> 00:41:20.800
Now back to the show.

00:41:21.119 --> 00:41:36.239
I I love the way that you described social media as what was a a portal inviting an opportunity to connect in real life was the most optimistic and that that made me like social media you know more more than I do.

00:41:36.239 --> 00:41:37.599
So I love that description.

00:41:37.599 --> 00:41:58.000
And all right, I've got I've got a I would like to own and operate my own property, and my dream and vision for it is, and I have no problem sharing this, but my whole thing is the entire experience is based around turning in your cell phone and all screens when you arrive at the gate of the premise.

00:41:58.000 --> 00:42:07.440
And that is the you know, it's an adults-only experience where uh the entire experience is built around yeah, turning in all your screens and technology, and it's a mandatory requirement.

00:42:07.440 --> 00:42:11.519
Like you cannot bring phones, laptops, tablets, any of that.

00:42:11.519 --> 00:42:12.960
It's not allowed on the property.

00:42:12.960 --> 00:42:21.360
And like the in and you know there's obviously a nature component and an experiential component after that, but like that is the it's like, hey, get away.

00:42:21.360 --> 00:42:24.400
Like this is a real, a forced disconnect.

00:42:24.400 --> 00:42:26.239
And uh yeah, I was just curious.

00:42:26.239 --> 00:42:42.320
And I I'm almost interested in taking it one step further, or if I launch this, you know, philosophical property, is that we have no social media and we have we we even don't have photos of the property on the website, it all remains uh an enigma.

00:42:42.320 --> 00:42:46.079