Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Goldreyer.
Hi Eric, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My story as an entrepreneur can actually be traced back to Corpus Christi when as a kid I would go door to door selling seashells. However, it wouldn’t be until 1995 when I focused my entrepreneurial efforts on the travel industry. At that time, my wife and I lived in Dallas and loved staying in bed and breakfasts but they were really hard to find as you had to use guide books to do so. It took time and effort to find the right places, so I knew there had to be an easier way for people to find and book their stays. That is when I founded BedandBreakfast.com to be the most comprehensive database of available inventory of bed and breakfasts around the world so people could simply search and reserve their stays online. Eventually, this business was acquired by HomeAway in 2010 (and we all know that HomeAway became Vrbo).
A couple years later, in 2012, I co-founded TurnKey Vacation Rentals. We grew it to become the second largest Property Management Company in North America before selling it to Vacasa in 2021. Around the same time I acquired a boutique hotel just outside of Austin with a business partner that we still own, Sage Hill Inn & Spa. It’s 20 keys located on 88 acres near Driftwood. On the side, I went off and created a non-travel focused company in 2013 called FunAir that manufactures inflatable toys for the mega yacht industry. These are the slides you see that are 30-40 feet off the sides of the big boats. If anyone is out on the lake in Austin you might see some on docks!
All of those experiences helped lead me to my latest venture called Savvy. I’ve always enjoyed building companies that bring people together to create memories with friends and family. In 2019, I had the opportunity to purchase Bnbfinder.com with the goal of fixing the vacation rental booking experience, where too much of a traveler’s money was being lost to fees. Earlier this year, we rebranded and relaunched the site as Savvy.com.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Savvy is disrupting the $100B vacation rental industry by eliminating platform service fees while giving property managers more control. Right now, I’m focused on building the world’s leading direct-booking marketplace that saves travelers money, empowers professional hosts, and creates a better experience for everyone.
Creating a first-class website that pulls rates & availability for over 150,000 properties and compares them to the same property for the same dates on Airbnb & Vrbo is not easy. Especially in an industry with several multi-billion dollar companies. But we’ve accomplished that and now have to start working on making travelers aware that there is a smarter way to book vacation rentals – one that saves them hundreds if not thousands of dollars on every reservation. Also a big task…
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
When people ask me about Savvy, I tell them it’s the direct-booking marketplace where savvy people book vacation rentals. We’re not trying to be yet another online travel agency like Airbnb or Vrbo. Actually, I’ll say it – we’re not like the giants at all. Savvy is designed to be a smarter way to book travel. Travelers save big money by booking directly, and hosts regain control of their business.
We have built Savvy with a clear mission to cut travel costs while empowering professional hosts. That’s why there are no service fees, and why we’ve developed tools like our real-time price comparison feature. Guests can see exactly how much they save on each listing, which makes booking transparent and simple. We’re not just helping people find a place to stay. We are making sure travelers get the best value every time.
Today, Savvy features more than 150,000 quality properties across North America – everything from beachfront condos to mountain cabins – and they average 15-20% less than comparable listings on Airbnb – saving travelers hundreds if not thousands of dollars per stay.
However, it’s not only about price. Every property on Savvy is managed by professional hosts, not amateur hosts or gig-economy hosts. That means guests can count on consistent quality, reliable communication, and exceptional service from booking through checkout. Travelers benefit from professional management while hosts maintain complete control over their guest relationships, policies, and pricing. It’s a win-win for both sides.
What I’m most proud of is the principle Savvy is built on: that vacation rentals should enhance travel experiences rather than complicate them. At its heart, Savvy represents a return to hospitality’s core values: transparency, professionalism, and putting guests first. We’re not just changing how people book vacation rentals—we’re providing a smarter way to travel.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
The travel industry is not immune to the AI movement, and I think more online businesses will implement newer technologies quicker than they did the original adoption of web platforms back in the 90s. The way in which people search to make travel plans will primarily be aided by AI agents to find the best deals. You might not go to Google – or even Savvy – to see what the best prices are for your trip, but you’ll go there to view the properties and book.
I also think we will see property managers get more sophisticated in their distribution approach and better understand the pros & cons of distributing on the big corporate vacation rental sites and they will try to move more share of their reservations to direct with intentionality.
Pricing:
- On average, Savvy users save between $320-580 per trip. You’ll see this immediately when booking a property because of our real-time pricing compared to Airbnb and Vrbo. That is money that can go towards an extra night, bringing a chef into the home for a family dining experience, or an activity in town for the whole group.
- For hosts, we invite them to list on Savvy.com. Its absolutely free, and the more professional hosts that join Savvy, the larger their marketplace becomes for travelers to book direct. More inventory = more travelers = more bookings.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.savvy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/savvy_stay/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/savvystays
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/stay-savvy/
- Twitter: https://x.com/savvy_stays
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@savvystays
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@savvystays
