You've survived your first year. Now what? How do you break through the growth plateau and scale from 20 properties to 500+?

In Part 2 of my Building It conversation with Dennis Goedheid, founder of Casiola, we dive into the playbook for the scale-up. Dennis reveals his unconventional but brilliant growth hack: buying contracts directly from his competitors.

He gives a step-by-step masterclass on how to find, value, and structure these small acquisition deals—covering everything from asset deals and escrow to the non-compete clauses you need to protect yourself. This is one of the most tactical episodes we've ever done.

SHOW LINKS

Casiola: https://www.casiola.com

Franchise: https://www.casiola.com/franchise/

#DirectBookings #ScalingSmart #AccommodationShow

📋 In this episode, we discuss:

00:00:00 - Intro: Part 2 - After the First Year Failure

00:01:24 - The Founder's Trap: Focusing on Operations Instead of Sales

00:04:28 - Why Founders Get Stuck and Avoid Growth

00:07:41 - A Growth Hack: Buying Contracts From Your Competitors

00:13:21 - The Playbook for Acquiring STR Contracts (A Masterclass)

00:15:00 - Asset Deal vs. Business Purchase: How to Avoid Liability

00:15:40 - The Most Important Clause in a Management Contract

00:17:36 - How to Use an Escrow to Protect Your Acquisition Deal

00:23:39 - The ROI of Buying Contracts vs. Traditional Marketing

00:27:36 - The Pandemic Pivot: De-Risking by Expanding to New Markets

00:30:04 - The Aruba Case Study: From Partnership to 150 Homes in 2 Years

00:35:50 - A Crucial Lesson for Scaling: SIMPLIFY Everything

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🥊 Hotel - BNB - STR Owners! 🥊

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Don't forget to hit that subscribe button! This also keeps us going and creating more useful content for free!

ACCOMMODATION OWNERS AND MANAGERS FREE RESOURCES!

📧Join the mailing list for freebies and critical industry updates: https://news.theaccommodationshow.com/

🌍The Accommodation Owners and Managers Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/AMoFacebookCommunity

🗨 Connect with Bart Sobies for more industry insight: https://www.ibooked.online/bart/

🎙 Subscribe to the podcast to listen later: https://www.theaccommodationshow.com

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Disclaimer: The content shared on this YouTube channel, Podcast, or associated posts reflects personal opinions and insights. This content is not intended as legal, financial, or investment advice. Always consult with licensed professionals before making decisions. The hosts and guests disclaim liability for any consequences of using this content. Actions taken should be based on your personal due diligence.

Affiliate Disclaimer:

This blog, podcast & youtube channel; will occasionally contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission on a purchase without additional cost to you, if you buy something through my links.

This show aims to educate viewers and share everything I know about improving your accommodation, STR and AirBNB business. I believe in the products and services we link to and that you may benefit from them.

If you do purchase through my affiliate links; I want to thank you for your support.

What if the smartest way to start in a crowded market isn't to start from scratch?

In this episode of Building It, I sit down with Dennis Goedheid, the founder of Casiola, who took an unconventional path. He bypassed the initial grind by acquiring a 20-property business to get his start.

We break down his playbook for buying a business, the brutal honesty of his first-year failure (with negative growth), and the standardization strategy he used to scale to over 550 properties. This is a masterclass in creative and resilient entrepreneurship.

Connect with Dennis:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dennisgoedheid/

Casiola: https://www.casiola.com/

Chapters:

00:00:00 - Intro: The Founder's Shortcut to Starting an STR Business

00:01:15 - Scaling Global: Taking a US Vacation Rental Brand to Europe

00:02:22 - The Onboarding Filter: Setting Property Standards for Your STR Brand

00:05:20 - The Scaling Mandate: Why You Must Standardise Your Operations

00:08:13 - Startup Strategy: Buying a Vacation Rental Business vs. Building From Scratch

00:09:45 - The Vacation Rental Myth: The Brutal Reality of "Passive Income"

00:11:36 - The Buy vs. Build Playbook: A Shortcut for STR Entrepreneurs

00:12:17 - Acquisition 101: How to Value & Buy a Property Management Company

00:20:31 - Due Diligence Tip: The Power of Property Location Density

00:23:27 - The First-Year Failure: Overcoming Negative Growth as a Founder

00:31:55 - Accidental Branding: How a Simple Colour Built Their Brand Identity

00:37:25 - Founder's Final Playbook: Creative Financing & Strategic Partnerships

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

🥊 Hotel - BNB - STR Owners! 🥊

Need more direct bookings or a brand new website?

The trusted tech partner you can count on. We deliver results.

🥊 https://www.ibooked.online ​​​​​​​​​​​🥊 ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Don't forget to hit that subscribe button! This also keeps us going and creating more useful content for free!

ACCOMMODATION OWNERS AND MANAGERS FREE RESOURCES!

📧Join the mailing list for freebies and critical industry updates: https://news.theaccommodationshow.com/

🌍The Accommodation Owners and Managers Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/AMoFacebookCommunity

🗨 Connect with Bart Sobies for more industry insight: https://www.ibooked.online/bart/

🎙 Subscribe to the podcast to listen later: https://www.theaccommodationshow.com

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Disclaimer: The content shared on this YouTube channel, Podcast, or associated posts reflects personal opinions and insights. This content is not intended as legal, financial, or investment advice. Always consult with licensed professionals before making decisions. The hosts and guests disclaim liability for any consequences of using this content. Actions taken should be based on your personal due diligence.

Affiliate Disclaimer:

This blog, podcast & youtube channel; will occasionally contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission on a purchase without additional cost to you, if you buy something through my links.

This show aims to educate viewers and share everything I know about improving your accommodation, STR and AirBNB business. I believe in the products and services we link to and that you may benefit from them.

If you do purchase through my affiliate links; I want to thank you for your support.

It's one of the biggest success stories in the Australian short-term rental industry: a founder builds a brand from the ground up and navigates it to a headline-making $50 million+ acquisition by a global giant. But how did he actually do it?

In this episode of Building It, I sit down with Quirin Schwaighofer, the Co-Founder of MadeComfy, to get the full story behind one of Australia's most recognised STR brands. Quirin reveals the powerful 15-year plan he created at age 30, which became the blueprint for his entire career and eventual exit.

This isn't just an inspiring story; it's a deep dive into the mindset and strategy required to build a truly valuable asset. We break down the brilliant pivot that gave MadeComfy a huge competitive advantage and the inside story of how the landmark deal with OYO really happened (starting with a single message on LinkedIn).

Quirin Schwaighofer is the Co-CEO & Co-Founder of the Australian accommodation innovator, MadeComfy. A seasoned expert in scaling high-growth businesses, he raised over $20 million in capital before leading MadeComfy to one of the largest exits in the history of Australia’s short-term rental industry.

Guest & Company Links:

MadeComfy Website: https://www.madecomfy.com.au

Quirin Schwaighofer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/quirinschwaighofer/

OYO Website: https://www.oyorooms.com/

Chapters:

00:00 - Intro: Building an Airbnb Business to a $50M+ Acquisition

02:08 - A Founder's 15-Year Plan for Financial Freedom

09:52 - Why True Financial Independence Isn't About Money

15:11 - Surviving COVID with Only 3 Months of Runway

18:38 - The Strategic Pivot Beyond Airbnb for Massive Growth

21:22 - Building a Moat: Why Their Strategy Was Kept Secret

28:20 - The "Aha!" Moment: When the New Strategy Proved a Winner

32:03 - How OYO Discovered & Acquired Them (The LinkedIn Message)

39:33 - The Hardest Part of the Acquisition Process

50:04 - What's Next for MadeComfy After the OYO Acquisition

55:30 - A Founder's Advice for Airbnb & STR Entrepreneurs

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

🥊 Hotel - BNB - STR Owners! 🥊

Need more direct bookings or a brand new website?

The trusted tech partner you can count on. We deliver results.

🥊 https://www.ibooked.online ​​​​​​​​​​​🥊 ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Don't forget to hit that subscribe button! This also keeps us going and creating more useful content for free!

ACCOMMODATION OWNERS AND MANAGERS FREE RESOURCES!

📧Join the mailing list for freebies and critical industry updates: https://news.theaccommodationshow.com/

🌍The Accommodation Owners and Managers Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/AMoFacebookCommunity

🗨 Connect with Bart Sobies for more industry insight: https://www.ibooked.online/bart/

🎙 Subscribe to the podcast to listen later: https://www.theaccommodationshow.com

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Disclaimer: The content shared on this YouTube channel, Podcast, or associated posts reflects personal opinions and insights. This content is not intended as legal, financial, or investment advice. Always consult with licensed professionals before making decisions. The hosts and guests disclaim liability for any consequences of using this content. Actions taken should be based on your personal due diligence.

Affiliate Disclaimer:

This blog, podcast & youtube channel; will occasionally contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission on a purchase without additional cost to you, if you buy something through my links.

This show aims to educate viewers and share everything I know about improving your accommodation, STR and AirBNB business. I believe in the products and services we link to and that you may benefit from them.

If you do purchase through my affiliate links; I want to thank you for your support.