Rental Escapes is a full-service luxury villa company keeping travel advisors front of mind — and that is in big part thanks to Willie Fernandez, the company’s chief marketing officer. With more than 30 years of industry experience, Fernandez has nothing but love for the advisor community — he was an advisor himself for years, so he has long appreciated and admired the work advisors do.
Since joining Rental Escapes at the start of 2022, Fernandez has aimed to bolster advisors through more company support and tools, even dedicating a chunk of his week to one-on-one calls with any advisor looking to learn about Rental Escapes. “Wednesdays with Willie” are an opportunity that advisors near and far have taken advantage of, he says.
We spoke to Fernandez about Rental Escapes, must-know details for advisors and the other ways he’s helping agents not only book unforgettable client trips but also, possibly, their own villa vacations.
Willie Fernandez , Rental Escapes’ chief marketing officer
Credit: 2023 Rental EscapesWhat should advisors know about the Rental Escapes portfolio, as well as what you’re seeing lately in terms of bookings?
The portfolio today is about 5,100 villas across 155-plus destinations worldwide. The average villa booking coming through our advisor community is seven nights, 10 to 12 guests, with an average order value north of $25,000. On average, bookings are made six to nine months out, though we see that window collapse in May and June with a lot of last-minute summer trips.
If advisors are hesitant to work with a rental company, how does Rental Escapes ease their mind? Or, how do you ensure their clients will have everything they’ve asked for once they have arrived, perhaps halfway across the world?
Unlike DIY [do it yourself] booking sites and other players in the space, all villas have to be vetted and, oftentimes, inspected first-hand to be in our portfolio. As we speak, I have a team of six in Turks and Caicos looking at properties; they were in Europe in January and the Dominican Republic in December.
As we speak, I have a team of six in Turks and Caicos looking at properties; they were in Europe in January and the Dominican Republic in December.
And, throughout the year, we get surveys back from clients – we know whether or not they had a great time, and if they had an issue, we flag it, contact the owner and make them resolve it immediately. If a complaint is severe, we will pull the villa. We constantly talk to owners and management companies, and update villa descriptions, photos, rates and videos. And our highly trained, highly traveled team of specialists bring that knowledge to advisors.
How does Rental Escapes help advisors facilitate those villa bookings? Walk us through the booking process.
We don’t offer online booking, by design, because what we do is so personal. When an advisor calls us, we’re going to ask vetted questions to make sure you and your client get what you want: “Who’s going? What are their ages? What is the purpose of the trip? Is there a specific landmark they want to be near? What are their preferred dates and are they flexible? Do we need to think about mobility issues?”
We get very granular. From there, a villa specialist will look at the portfolio and availability, then provide three or four very detailed options for the advisor to take back to their client, including all villa details, nightly rate and more. With that, we also launch an unbranded website, and we provide a link to that site for advisors to share with clients. Once a villa is booked, we go to our concierge service, with the mindset of “if the client can dream it, we will create it.” People are looking for big experiences, and our specialists help make it happen. And the advisor has peace of mind that the client is well taken care of, from start to finish.
A Rental Escapes villa in Costa Rica
Credit: 2023 Rental EscapesAnd you have some serious travel advisor perks attached to these bookings.
We pay a guaranteed 10% commission on every villa booking. And, throughout the year, I will put bonus commissions in place — again, I was an advisor myself, I believe in the work advisors do and I want to support this community.
And throughout the year, I will put bonus commissions in place – again, I was an advisor myself, I believe in the work advisors do and I want to support this community.
In Q1, because of the tremendous support the advisor community gave in 2022, I decided that, at the height of the villa booking period, I wanted to put more commission in the pockets of advisors, so we did a full quarter of 11% commission. Then in May, which I consider Travel Advisor Appreciation Month, we put up to $5,000 of bonus commission in place.
And because I’ve been on fam trips myself back in the day — and they are not a vacation — I wanted to help advisors actually experience a villa vacation. So, we worked with our founders and built an awards program into the system. For every dollar travel advisors book with us, they earn points, and those points are transferable to cash they can use toward their own personal villa stays.
Is there anything else you’d like advisors to know about Rental Escapes?
Oftentimes, when I’m talking to advisors, there’s a perception that the villa is only for a certain clientele. They say the budget is so out of reach, or, “I don’t have the right clientele for it.”
The reality is, 99% of advisors do have the clientele for it.
The reality is, 99% of advisors do have the clientele for it. I can show you a villa in Jamaica that’s eight bedrooms; fits 16 guests; staffed with a chef, a housekeeper, a butler, a laundress, a gardener and a night watchman, all on a private beach. The villa goes for $3,200 a night. By bedroom, that’s $400 a bedroom.
Go to an all-inclusive in Jamaica, and what will you pay on a nightly basis for a resort room? Where you’ll also have to fight for a beach chair and share the pool with a thousand other people. Once I say this, they say, “I never looked at it that way.” So, I’m here to help advisors. We will help them sell villas.
Our goal is to have the finest portfolio, and the finest service. And when advisors pick up the phone and call us, we want them to have all the assurances in the world that their clients are going to have an exceptional experience.
