We had the good fortune of connecting with Barrett Thrasher & Roger Pippin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Barrett Thrasher &, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Our business started with the realization that we did not want to work for anyone but ourselves, and an off-chance opportunity to manage a single vacation rental in New Orleans. Roger and I met in Atlanta, and after we got married we decided to move to New Orleans and build a different life there. We had a lot of long and serious talks about leaving the service industry and corporate lifestyle once we got to Louisiana. I spent 15 years working in luxury hotels, and was also a bartender. Roger was an emergency operations and disaster response consultant, and a former academic. One day, we made the jump because our good friend wanted us to manage and clean the other side of the shotgun double that we lived in (that’s what we call a duplex in New Orleans, y’all.)

We did not know at first where this venture was going to lead, but we knew that if we simply kept producing a quality experience for people, things would be alright in the end. Frankly, New Orleans is a tough training ground for learning about vacation rentals and hospitality, but we’ve incorporated many of the things we learned into our current business model. Most notably, we always answer the phone and show up in person if we need to. In our internet-driven world, we find that people actually talking to people can solve about 90% of all problems.

People have a lot of emotions concerning their travel and vacations; it can be a very enjoyable and very stressful experience, all at the same time. Therefore, the most basic and fundamental concept behind our business is empathy. We’ve traveled a lot, and it’s often been amazing and occasionally intensely disappointing. However, the experiences we’ve had that started off poorly were made right because an actual human being reached out to us and helped us — and then the rest of the trip was fantastic. It’s these kinds of experiences that we try to keep in mind when we show empathy and hospitality to the people who stay in our homes.

After our initial vacation rental did well, we were introduced to some folks who wanted to buy and rent a triplex secluded behind a garden wall and hidden off a side street in the Marigny neighborhood, near the French Quarter. That property did fantastically well, and that’s when things really took off for us. Within 18 months we were managing and cleaning 25 separate properties, so we had to hire a few extra hands. We began those relationships with our employees by offering them more than a living wage, sometimes up to quadruple what our competitors were paying. That may seem excessive, but it was a strategic–and moral–set of calculations that have unequivocally paid off in the long term, and we continue to use that model with our current staff.

In 2018, we built a home on the beach in the Fort Morgan community, located west of Gulf Shores and way out on that tiny peninsula on the coast of Alabama. We started managing houses as soon as we got here, and now manage 20 houses along Alabama’s Emerald Coast. Currently, our existing homeowners are starting to buy property outside of Alabama for us to care for, including in the Rocky Mountain communities of Angel Fire, New Mexico and Victor, Colorado. We are particularly excited about our new rental in Victor, Colorado, because although Roger grew up in Louisiana, his family is originally from Colorado and he spent his summers there as a youngster. The rental is a fixer-upper project being handled by one of our current Emerald Coast owners and his partner. The owners were drawn to the area for its off-the-beaten path vibe and its rich local culture that’s full of colorful characters. We are very excited about driving up there to spend time in the house, and getting to know the community.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
One of things we love the most about being self-employed is that we get to set our own schedules, which means we work hard, and we have the opportunity to work out even harder. Barrett is an avid runner and cyclist, and also has a daily yoga and Pilates practice –unless there is an Alabama football game on tv! Roll Tide!

Roger is very active in the local jujitsu community, and has trained at Kazushi Club Gulf Shores since the day we moved to Fort Morgan. He is also a musician who makes space music to relax and unwind to, which is a great soundtrack for our beach life. You can find his music on SoundCloud if you look for the artist “Cethyd,” which is a reference to the late Scottish author, Iain M. Banks.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

We are very simple people who love the outdoors. We enjoy hiking with our friends and family, taking in the scenery while getting in a good workout. One of our favorite places to hike is Pike’s Peak.  Our usual route for climbing to the summit is Barr Trail, which is a 13-mile trek with a gain of 8,000 feet in elevation that starts in Manitou Springs. We love to find secluded areas to do a little yoga and Filipino Martial Arts while we are out on the trail. Our evenings are pretty chill. Roger and I like to do a lot of porch-sitting with our small krewe, prepare wild game with ‘dat Louisiana flare, sip on some adult beverages, and listen to the glorious sounds of wilderness with a bit of ambient electronica playing in the background. A few nights a week, we hit up our favorite local watering hole, the 1899 Mining Claim and Saloon, for some good fun and even better company. Victor, Colorado truly is a hidden gem.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We definitely have to give a shoutout to some of our favorite people: Charlie Ochello and Charley Ogletree. Charlie is a native New Orleanian and gave us our first crack at managing a vacation rental. He set in motion everything we’re doing now, and we will always be grateful for that. Plus, he’s quite a character and a true Louisiana thoroughbred! We also want to give a big shoutout to Charley Ogletree, who is Roger’s real estate broker and a great source of advice and guidance. He really helps us make strong moves and we’re super thankful for having him in our lives. We also want to thank our good friend Emily for all the many things she does to support us. You’re the best Emily!

Website: www.beatsworkingvacationrentals.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beatsworkingvacationrentals/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beatsworkingvacationrentals

Image Credits
We have three photographers in these pics @appalaichainweddingphotography – Instagram @tonythagard – Instagram www.noladrone.com

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