Vacation Rental Design Summit Release Full Speaker Roster

March 21, 2023  by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Designer Weekly, Industry   

When VRD Summit put out a call for speakers back in January, there were more than 80 people who raised their hands. “Building out the content for the Summit has led us to so many extremely inspiring people doing incredible work,” said Jane Dagmi, managing director of High Point x Design.

“Within our own design world, there are many designers deeply involved in vacation rental design and ownership, and we’ve also enticed experts from the STR industry to join us. There are a few people coming who have never experienced High Point Market before.”

Tapping into the expertise of interior designers, hosts, property managers, business strategists and real estate professionals, education sessions will hone-in on design as a differentiator in short-term rental success, the business of vacation rental design, the value designers bring to the table, and opportunities for designers in this market. 

There will also be a panel called “Designing Responsibly,” which will be moderated by Alexa Nota, cofounder of the short-term rental education and community-building platform Rent Responsibly.

Raising awareness on important related issues such as sustainability, safety, inclusivity, and accessibility, one of the panelists is Lorraine Woodward who started Becoming rentABLE, an accessible short-term rental listing platform dedicated to finding solutions for people with disabilities and the aging community. 

The VRD Summit’s full list of speakers includes:

• Tyann Marcink (Branson Family Retreats and Touch Stay)
• Tiffany Cassidy (Lagnappe Interiors)
• Taylor-Tait (Tatianna Taylor-Tait Ltd.)
• Summer Loftin (Summer Loftin Antiques & Interior Design),
• Rina Norwood (House of Norwood and Rina Norwood Designs),
• Paula Oblen (Vacation Interiors and Hotelements by Paula Oblen)
• Ola Swarn (J’Adore Le Decor)
• Kellie Smith (Kellie Smith Design Studio and SmithHonig)
• Melanie Honig (SmithHonig)
• Margie Kaercher (Hearth & Honey Homes)
• Linda Holt (Linda Holt Creative)
• Julia Harmon (RealtorⓇ with Compass and Vacation Rental Designers)
• Jessica Duce (JDuce Design and Vacation Rental Designers)
• Ginger Curtis (Urbanology Designs and Urbanology Properties)
• Elizabeth Scruggs (Superior Construction & Design)
• Pamela McNally (SVP of Marketing and Digital for National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA)
• Joseph Szymczak (Slate Interior Design)
• Ellen Williams (Ellen Renee Photography)
• Tammy Nagem (High Point Market Authority)
• Jenna Gaidusek (Mydoma Studio)
• Lorraine Woodward (Becoming rentABLE)
• Ericka Saurit (Saurit Creative)
• Diane Falvey (Furniture Lighting & Decor)
• Alexa Nota (Rent Responsibly)
• Marie Cloud (Indigo Pruitt Design)
• Carisha Swanson (House Beautiful)

Panel topics include niching in vacation rental design, creating a sense of place, vacation rental pain points and solutions, photography for rentals, and kitchen and bath design for rentals.

In addition to the panel discussions, there will also be individual presentations by  Jaye Anna Mize of Fashion Snoops, Joy Williams of Joyful Designs Studio, Leslie Carothers of Savour Partnership, Tobi Fairley of Tobi Fairley Design and Barclay Butera of Barclay Butera Interiors. Butera, who owns two luxury rental properties, will deliver the Summit keynote.

VRD Summit is April 20-21, 2023, preceding the Spring High Point Market (April 22-26), and will be held at The Loft at Congdon Yards. 

 VRD Summit registration is open to architecture & design professionals as well as hospitality groups, developers, property managers, real estate agents, developers, investors, industry,  and the media. 

Photo: Vacation Rental designed by Summer Loftin, Photo by Nick Burchell