Pillow Talk Sessions

Like many entrepreneurs entering the short-term rental space, Maxime Leufroy-Murat started out believing growth was a function of acquiring more properties and scaling operations. After more than a decade in the industry, he has reached very different conclusions. Maxime Leufroy-Murat has spent over a decade inside the short-term rental industry — building City Relay, one of London's most est...

When Njål Elliasson co-founded his Norwegian-based short-term rental property management company, Heimby, in 2022, he was over the moon as it quickly grew in size and profit. But before he knew it, his company started crumbling, going from a $100k profit in year one to a $200k loss by the end of year two.  By the end of 2023, Njål was forced to start over, prioritizing quality of product over prof...

What does it take to build a hospitality brand that delivers genuine quality at a budget price point? Matt Bell is the Managing Director of Mollie's, a design-led motel and diner concept with properties in Oxford, Bristol, and Manchester. With nearly two decades in independent hospitality, Matt brings a rare mix of operational rigour and brand instinct to everything Mollie's does. In thi...

Mike Rawson spent seven years as CIO of CitizenM, one of the most tech-forward hotel brands in the world. His biggest lesson? Technology comes last. In the latest episode of Pillow Talk Sessions, Mike joins me to break down what most hotels are getting wrong about automation and how CitizenM built an NPS score good enough to catch Marriott's attention. His belief: you shouldn't reach for...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , Tim Major, CEO of Operto, joins host Jessica Gillingham to explain how agentic AI is shifting hospitality from automation to autonomous execution. Through Operto One, Operto is building an AI workforce capable of performing operational and marketing tasks, optimizing performance, and driving outcomes across hotel systems. The conversation explores what thi...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , Nils Mattisson, CEO & Co-Founder of Minut, explains how privacy-first technology is solving one of hospitality’s most complex challenges. Balancing guest privacy with host security. Minut developed a system that detects events such as noise, overcrowding, and smoking without recording or storing audio. This approach builds trust while enabling operator...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , Marc Laros, CTO of The Usual Hotels, explains how sustainability, technology, and guest experience can be designed as one integrated operating system. The Usual Hotels is building toward becoming Europe’s most sustainable hotel brand, targeting 20 hotels in five years. Rather than treating sustainability as a layer, the company embeds it into how hotels ar...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions with Jessica Gillingham , Cathrine Reimann, Co-Founder of Landfolk, explains why disciplined curation, not scale alone, is the foundation of a successful short-stay marketplace. Landfolk has grown from just 33 homes to more than 1,500 handpicked properties across seven markets. But unlike many platforms focused on inventory growth, Landfolk rejects roughly 5...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions with Jessica Gillingham , Adam Tuttle, Co-Founder and CEO of Yipy, explains why hospitality’s approach to standards management has remained fundamentally outdated and how digitising standards can transform operational performance, team culture, and guest experience. While hotels have embraced digital guest journeys and automation, internal standards often st...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , Merilee Karr, CEO of UnderTheDoormat Group, explains how short-term rentals have evolved from fragmented, alternative accommodation into a professional, institutional-grade asset class operating at scale across Europe and beyond. With short-term rentals now accounting for over 20% of accommodation nights in Europe, the sector is no longer a niche. Merilee...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions, Laurenz Schwarzhappel, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Global Living Apartments, explains how the company consistently achieves around 92% occupancy across nine German cities by doing what most hospitality operators avoid. Narrowing the guest segment, rethinking asset use, and automating everything possible. Global Living Apartments focuses on families and group t...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham sits down with Ulrich Pillau, Co-founder & CEO of Apaleo, to explore how AI and API-first technology are redefining what modern hospitality looks like behind the scenes and in front of guests. Uli explains why the industry is splitting between digital-first operators and legacy brands struggling to adapt, and why simply “moving to th...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski speak with Alexander Limpert, the founder behind RentalReady and GuestReady, to unpack how automation, data, and AI are transforming operational efficiency in short-term rentals. 💡 Highlights include:  🤖 How RentalReady became the first PMS to integrate OpenAI, now powering a third-gen AI assistant  💬 Why AI replies...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Jason Hardman, Head of UK Living at CBRE, to explore how policy, planning, and private capital are reshaping the UK’s housing future. 💡 Highlights include:  🏡 Why housing models must evolve to reflect modern lifestyles and longer life spans  🏘️ How institutional investment is fueling growth in single-fam...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and co-host Kristian Lupinski sit down with Asli Kutlucan, CEO Europe at TFE Hotels, to explore how the company is bridging the gap between hotels and homes with its fast-growing Adina and  MM:MT (Moment) brands. In this episode, Asli shares:  🏨 Why casual living is the next evolution of modern hospitality  🏗️ How adaptive reuse is unlockin...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Stephanie Smith, Head of Residential at Muse, to unpack how thoughtful design, data, and collaboration are shaping the next era of residential living in the UK. 💡 Highlights include:  🏡 Why responsive service and maintenance matter more than flashy amenities  🌍 How early engagement with residents and lo...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Joe Persechino, COO of Yugo, to unpack the global growth trajectory of student accommodation and the strategies needed to meet demand. 💡 Highlights from the conversation:  🌍 Why student numbers are rising from 240M to 400M by 2050  📊 Why markets like the UK are 30% penetrated while Italy lags at only 5%...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Jonathan Burridge, Founder & CEO of Utopi, to explore how his company is helping operators cut costs, reduce carbon, and improve resident engagement through data-driven technology. 💡 Highlights include:  ⚡ How Utopi uncovered 1,400% energy consumption variance in one building  📊 Why ESG is shifting...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Josef Vollmayr, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Limehome, to explore how the company is reshaping hospitality across Europe with efficiency, design, and digital-first operations. 💡 Highlights include:  🌍 Why most travelers now value clean, functional stays over luxury touches  🤖 How Limehome achie...

In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Kevin Murphy, Co-founder & COO of Renew, to explore how multifamily operators can turn one of their biggest weaknesses—renewals—into a relationship-driven advantage. 💡 Highlights include:  🏘️ Why renewals should start on day one, not 60 days before expiry  🏨 How “hotelification” is reshaping expe...

In this week’s Pillow Talk Sessions , we go behind the brand with Philip Grace, CDO at Bob W, to unpack the company’s vision of hospitality-first, asset-light, and tech-forward living across Europe. 💡 Inside the episode:  🏘️ Bob W’s vertical villages that combine apartments, workspaces, restaurants, and rooftop pools  🤝 How strategic partnerships beat in-house ownership for long-term profitabili...

This week on Pillow Talk Sessions, hosts Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Nuno Jorge Trigo, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of FEEL GROUP, to discuss how the company is reshaping hospitality through its vertical building model. 💡 Key insights include: 🏙️ How combining co-working, serviced apartments, and events is changing the way we live and travel 🤝 Why proactive collaboration wi...

This week on Pillow Talk Sessions , hosts Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski welcome Ed Ellerington, Founder & CEO of Packaged Living, to explore what it really means to bring a customer-first, tech-smart, and vertically integrated mindset to rental housing. 💡 In this episode:  🏘️ Why the UK needs garden living and better single-family rental options  🏨 How hospitality principles can e...

This week, we’re joined by Suraiya Comunello, CMO at Nido Living, for a deep dive into what truly matters to today’s students—and how operators can meet those expectations through service, design, and wellbeing. From cultural contrasts in booking behavior to the rise of digital-first decision-making, Suraiya offers a rare, international perspective on how the student accommodation sector is evolvi...

The coliving industry is booming—but how you scale matters. In this episode of Pillow Talk Sessions , hosts Jessica Gillingham and Kristian Lupinski sit down with Mayank Pokharna, CEO of Fllat.com and Founder of Everything Coliving, to unpack the operational, cultural, and economic realities of coliving on a global scale. 💡 Key topics:  🛠️ Why getting the basics right is still the biggest growth...