Defining Hospitality

[00:00:00]
Dan Ryan: Today's guest is an innovative industry leader. She has more than 14 years experience in the lodging industry. She has a passion for people and pineapples. She owns three hotels, the Hampton Inn and suites in Scottsburg Indiana. The Staybridge suites in fishers, Indiana, and the home to an El Reno, Oklahoma.
She also wrote a book recently called how to buy a hotel roadmap to hotel ownership. We'll put all that in the liner notes and she is the founder and hospitality strategist at the Von group. Ladies and gentlemen, Devon Reeves. [00:01:00] Welcome Devon. Whew.
Davonne Reaves: The crap BA
Dan Ryan: at the crowd goes wild. Right? We just blew the air horn.
So Devon, I know that you've been in the industry for 14 years. Um, I feel like in the past six months after all of that hard work, over 14 years, You've become an overnight success. So that's kind of like a joke, right? You've put in all this work and now you're an overnight success. I'm seeing you blow up everywhere.
How amazed are you with the kind of rocket ship that you're flying right now?
Davonne Reaves: So crazy. I still can't believe it. I just spoke in Chicago this past weekend. People were coming to give me, oh my gosh, we got the tickets, Brett, your book. I brought it for you to say, oh my God, do you remember me from last year?
So it's a little weird. I, and I went to, um, I spoke at the boutique lodging conference, lodging leaders [00:02:00] association conference in New York the week, matter of fact, last week, I think. And, um, that kind of the same thing. And I saw my old boss. So it's just, it's kind of weird. It's, it's, it's weird. It's weird when people know you before you can, like, I don't have to introduce myself anymore.
So it's kind of weird.
Dan Ryan: Well, you don't have to introduce your yourself, but how is my interest?
Davonne Reaves: Oh, you get two thumbs up. Yeah, the A-plus yes.
Dan Ryan: Okay. So one of the things, well, there's so many things I'm curious about, but, um, on your path to hotel ownership, um, I'm very curious about in your 14 years, like, how did you finally make the jump?
That's like, you know what, I want to own hotels and this is how I'm going to do it.
Davonne Reaves: Um, it just came. Um, I was a part of under 30 gateways separates men. I don't think it's around anymore, but it's under, under then they're going to start lodging association and, uh, [00:03:00] was for hotel professionals was a hundred or lodging professionals to eight 30.
And I was in operations at the time and I just assumed everybody else was going to be an operations. I didn't know that there were any jobs outside of working, you know, I thought at the hotel or both properties. And at that time, no, a lot of folks who became my they're still my friends to this day, they were developing hotels, you know, owning hotel.
Oh wait, wait, you can, oh, no. Now like some of them they inherited, don't tell, but either way, the fact that they own a hotel and out of here, like on her, like third or fourth, I was like, wait, you're not, not even 30 yet. You know? And, and of course it's making me feel like this long and we got these people all the way up here.
Right. And, um, so that was just the light bulb, like, oh my gosh, I can own the hotel. And, um, there wasn't a pathway. There wasn't a roadmap. It wasn't like a, you know, was it Google? Like it is today or YouTube university or social media, or even podcasts where you kind of listen to kind of help you navigate to get you started.[00:04:00]
And, um, and I even went to, to see your height. I was like, oh my gosh, I want to buy a hotel. And he's like, wait, It wasn't a, it wasn't a pathway like, you know, and, um, so I just had to like figure it out. So I took a non-paid internship on that whole rough ACS or shout out Redland. And, um, you should have them on your packets.
I shout out the power wrestling. Um, you know, I worked for him for about, I worked non-paid for him for three months. So I worked there in the morning and I worked at the Hyatt at night and, um, to pay my bills, this was post-graduation and, um, I really loved it. Um, I was intrigued and I was there for about two years and I went to see each morning and Boston based out of Boston, um, ovary area nursery area.
And again, more asset management consulting, more of the transactional side in 2017. And I got bit by the entrepreneurship book and formed my own group or from the bond group and a [00:05:00] 2008 19. Slash 2020 partnered with, um, um, a good friend from school, Jessica Myers, who started epic collective. And we partnered with a national investments based out of Ohio.
And that's where we got our first hotel deal together, um, on my own meaning that, you know, I wasn't incorporated. And, um, and that was the, the, the, the iconic, the one where people heard and heard about. And from the iconic 8.3 homes who suites DEO in a famous arena, Oklahoma.
Dan Ryan: Awesome. So one of the things that I've found it, my dad would always tell this to me.
He's like, damn, you know, you can do whatever you can accomplish anything. You just have to put your mind to it. And for me, so often, I just didn't even, there were, there are so many times in all of our lives that for me, in particular, um, you know, starting a company at 26 or. I just didn't know any [00:06:00] better.
And I was like, okay, I'm just going to, I'm just going to do it. And I think it was just because I, I just didn't know. Um, and I just tried it, so, and that's just my, that's my story. It just like, okay, I'm going to put my mind to, I'm going to do it. Like, what was, what created the shift in your head? Um, I guess it might've been working with Paul that said, Hey, you just, you can accomplish anything.
And this is kind of how you do it. Like what flip that switch for you? Because oftentimes w from all these conversations that I've had, I find that that switch or that hurdle to get over is actually quite surmountable. It's just, oftentimes we just don't know how to take that first bike. So you will.
Davonne Reaves: Yeah.
I've always been a go getter. I'm always been competitive. I played clarinet in high school and all we had to be first share or like first year for those who are not in band, that means like, Uh, you know, you get the solo projects, you know, [00:07:00] you you're, number one, you get seen, you get hurt, you know,
Dan Ryan: not the
Davonne Reaves: harmony.
Right. You know, so that was me. That was, I always had to be number one, same thing with being the president of an organization, getting good grades. Like I just always been that. So it's kind of always been in, been in me, um, I did get a little distracted probably when I got to college, I probably wasn't as ambitious as I used to be that wasn't in school.
I got distracted a lot, all those parties, but, um, um, yeah, but working at the Hyatt, that's where I got my start working at the front desk agent. And like, again, I want it to be, you know, employee the mob. I was striving to be, you know what I mean? That was just me. I always wanted to be the best. And I thought, you know, my goal was to be a general manager.
I didn't, because I thought that was the top position. And it was, I realized it was the hotel owner. I was like, oh, okay, I'm going to be holds the owner. I didn't know what it means. You know, I'm like, I'm about twenties. I don't know what that means that you're owning the building and the business and the real estate and the [00:08:00] complexities and Raven capital.
I didn't know any of that. I was just like, I just want to buy a hotel. That was it.
Dan Ryan: I love that. So, as you're talking about that, I'm reminded of a friend of mine who came up through operations, right. He went on this path. He was a general manager. And then, well, it was his, he was a food and beverage manager.
Then he just he's like, my goal is I just want to be a GM. That was like his, his, his life goal. Then somehow he went, he became a GM and then move beyond it to when you, you know, you're talking about, um, lenders, equity, partners, all this like kind of raising the capital stack to me, owning a hotel or developing a hotel.
It's like, I have a really hard time getting my head around that capital stack and understanding like, where do all the sources of funds come? How do I get all this lined up? Like he, he managed to figure it out on his way. Like, what was the big like aha moment for you trying to understand that, [00:09:00] okay, there's this big moat of required capital to own a hotel, but you know what?
I'm going to figure it out. And this person helped me and boom, here we are. What was that up for
Davonne Reaves: you? So I learned a lot in that non-paid internship because we had to help the clients or clients that our clients had, um, um, develop that capital stack and help, you know, help raise capital. But when you, the type of deals that I was working on, they were really, really, really large deals.
And so you have to get into my capital markets, meaning, bring in a broker to help you kind of facilitate and get that capital stack together. Um, so I wasn't as hands-on because the broker would help do it. Um, with the home two suites deal was less than 2 million, so it was smaller deal. Um, so we didn't necessarily need to bring in the capital stack wasn't as complicated.
Um, so I was actually over complicating it.
Dan Ryan: Um, oh, tell me about that. Like how, how are [00:10:00] you? Over-complicating
Davonne Reaves: it? Well, because before, like I probably could have owned a hotel a long time ago. It's just that I was, over-complicating the process. I wasn't thinking of starting small, bringing friends and family together and buying a hotel, looking for the deal.
Like I just, I wasn't cause I was so in the trenches, I didn't like wake up and be like, duh, they've gone, you know, the light bulb they can click. And um, so I was over-complicating it because I was so used to looking at larger deals. As I mentioned before, he had, you have to bring in brokers or get into the capital markets to help you find both the, the, the, both sides of the capital stack, meaning equity.
Right. And so when you get into the smaller transactions that are smaller deals, probably like 10 million, or less than 5 million or less, you don't really need to bring in a broker to help you find capital that's stuff that you should be able to do, you know, on your own friends and family, um, using different platforms like crowdfunding platforms.
So it's a lot easier to raise capital [00:11:00] now. Um, I mean, it's still hard, but it's
Dan Ryan: did you use the crown fi a crowdfunding platform to get your first one going? No,
Davonne Reaves: I didn't. I used the, I used the old school way of crowdfunding, which is Frank fence. Friends and family. Yeah, I got, yeah. Yeah. Actually people hurt, you know, they just lift to me cause at the time, no one was talking to my hotel.
Right. So I'm like this black girl talking about hotel ownership and I'm like on Patek as webinars, who is this girl talking about hotel over shit. And so people. So I kind of started making it cool and make it more attainable. And so he would have started reaching out and they wanted to learn more about it.
And I started developing courses and everything. And, um, and, uh, um, so I was able to build a community and to build that trust. Right. And so, um, I was able to, to NSR, it started talking to my friends and family more about hotel ownership. Um, and of course they [00:12:00] do their due diligence, which I always recommend to everybody in your own due diligence, investing in hotels is very risky just because there's real estate.
Right. Um, so, um, yeah, that's how I was able to raise funds the first, the first time, uh, actually both times on both, all three transactions was just raising capital from friends and family. We, we didn't, we didn't have to use the, we didn't have to use the question.
Dan Ryan: Okay. I'm curious. Cause I'm seeing a lot of people for real estate now, you know, there's always been this crowdsourcing crowdfunding platform.
It seems to be growing a little bit, but I, I don't know. I haven't seen it grow tremendously in the hotel space. What do you think is holding that back?
Davonne Reaves: Um, I don't think there's not really a soul. That was something may come to the future. There's not a so platform.
Dan Ryan: The pineapple platform
Davonne Reaves: is so cute. Um, there's not, there's actually none.
I think about it. There's really not a platform, a crowdfunding platform. Now there are websites, but they're not a platform. [00:13:00] So the differences, the platform. You're just putting your deal on there. And you're raising, you know, you're raising capital for other investors. You're not partnering with someone else.
Now there are crowdfunding websites out there, but you have to partner with someone else on the deal. So that can slow things down, right. Going back and forth with the partnership, finding the deal, meeting, whatever they're dealing with. Acquirements partnering with people that you don't know. Sometimes that just takes a long time and just go back and forth.
And sometimes it just never gets done. Right. Um, they are. And then also some, there are some crowdfunding platforms or broker dealer sites. I too technical. Um, there's a minimum requirement that you have to have in your portfolio. So if you're a new hotel owner or if you're new to the space and you don't have X amount of dollars in your real estate portfolio, or if not, it is, or you're not an accredited investor.
So those types of barriers can limit, um, [00:14:00] some of the deals. So those are some of the reasons why, um, I, in my opinion, that the hotel industry hasn't really been able to capitalize or take advantage of the crowdfunding platforms out there. Cause there's a lot of underserved folks who would love to invest, but they may not be an accredited investor for those that don't know what a credited investor is.
An accredited investor is someone who makes over 200,000 a year or, or, or, or, or they have a net worth of a million dollars excluding their primary residence.
Dan Ryan: So w when we can, we'll talk about more of the, on the funding side is I, I want to get into your book in a little bit, but what's, I just, before we kind of switch gears, I've always found that in credited accredited investors, It's I guess it's important.
Cause like, if people are making more than X a year or they have a net worth over a million dollars, it kind of shows that maybe they're a bit more savvy with money or they know how to do it. But I also find it [00:15:00] really limits the available pool of people who just want to in little chunks, get their money to grow at a different rate of return than let's say just your regular stock and bond index fonder or whatever.
And I think it's it's um, I, I understand the intention behind having this incorrect accredited investor threshold, but I also feel like it keeps a lot of people out of the game. What's your thought on that? All right. I agree with
Davonne Reaves: you. Absolutely. It's you know, it's actually a, some deals. I wasn't able to, people couldn't invest in a deal because they weren't accredited investors.
You know what I mean? And so like, to your point, that limits opportunities, that limit growth, that limits some folks from different ethnic backgrounds, um, it limits folks from different, you know, cultures from different, you know, um, economical backgrounds where there's, they can't grow. They can't go to that next level.
Like you mentioned of [00:16:00] getting at that, maybe a greater rate of return because they're not able to tap into those, those investments because there are some investments that's only for accredited investors.
Dan Ryan: Yeah. And again, I want to tap into that one too, because to me it seems like that is like something structured.
Could be addressed in a, in a safe way that people could participate in these.
Davonne Reaves: There are some funds, there are some platforms where you can be accredited and non-accredited investors. It was, um, through the jobs act passed by performer, our former president, uh, Barack Obama. Um, and so he allowed some, some funds and some people to establish funds and establish different crowdfunding platforms, uh, where both accredited and non-accredited investors can invest.
There's just not a lot for real estate.
Dan Ryan: Hmm. Okay. Well, I'd like, I want to learn more about that, but before we go too far down the road of your road to owning hotels, like, okay, so you started off with your [00:17:00] wanting to be in the first line or the first soloist on clarinets. Then you started working at, you know, you're in college, you're working at the Hyatt, you're doing an unpaid internship.
You want your name on that employee of the month wall?
Davonne Reaves: I have checked the box and I researched here.
Dan Ryan: I know you, I know you did it all, but, um, what, what draws you to hospitality? Why do you love it so much?
Davonne Reaves: You know what it is, the people, the amount of people you come into contact with both internally and externally.
Sometimes I really do miss working at a hotel. Um, I always thought, what is bath time? I didn't get a chance to talk to the front. This age group was really busy, but normally I take the time to talk to the front. Ask them, how they doing, you know, nice to them. I try to be as nice as possible the front desk agents, because you know, there are a lot of mean people to front desk agents.
So my people listening, I need to think twice, but I [00:18:00] mean the front desk agents. Okay. So I work a lot of hard work that we have to do, not even just front desk agents, hotel employees, period. Okay. Especially right now with them, every, a lot of people being an old word, underappreciated, underpaid. So y'all listening be as nice as possible to pass what's out on the employees.
Okay. But you know what? I
Dan Ryan: love how you said that you said be nice as possible to us. Right. Even as an owner, you could still consider yourself part of the whole team. Like you're, you're remembering what got you. On that wall. Right. And all the different assholes that may have come across your front desk to you.
Davonne Reaves: Good. After remember some of them actually remember some of them I remember to meet with and I re I remember the really nice into yup.
Dan Ryan: And I'm hoping that there's a lot more nice one. There has to be a lot more nice ones than mean ones. Right. But if you think [00:19:00] about, okay, so, so you're drawn to it. You, you, you love the work environment.
You love interacting with people, both internal and external, but like w if you were to look at the thread that ties it all together, how do you define hospitality?
Davonne Reaves: People? You could automate the hospitality industry as much as you possibly can. It's the people it's even some people who would prefer to stay in a hotel over an Airbnb, just because of that Human connection and that human interaction. Right. Um, there are some people now, there are some people who don't want to deal with people at all. They want to go to their room and you would never know they're an bill. They'll never come to the front desk. They'll never ask. They'll never do anything.
Right. But then you have some people who, they still love a bartender making their drink. they still love going to the front desk agent and see how they can get an upgrade. they still, you know what I mean? So. [00:20:00] They still want to talk to that person. who is helping them plan their event.
They still want to see that person there. So some things you, just can't replace technology. Just can't replace it. You know what I mean? So it's, the house was happening. Industry is a people business. Um, it's a service business. It's been around forever. It's going to be around forever. I don't think anything's going to be able to replace it.
No matter how much technology comes into place. Even if you have a hospitable robot, guess what? It's still going to be hospitable. Right. They still want nice, you know, people still want nice. They want clean. They want to feel warm. They want to feel welcome.
Dan Ryan: And we're like, and going back in your life, like, where are you?
Like, where did you learn that? And where did you learn to appreciate
Davonne Reaves: that? You know, my mom is really nice. She's always smart. Yeah, my grandma now, my grandma, she wasn't a smile and my grandma didn't smile a lot, but she was really nice. [00:21:00] So I guess a combination of a mom's smiling all the time. And then my grandma beat.
Nice because my dad and then my dad, he wasn't the, he wasn't the people. Firstly, he was certain, he was, he was a first responder, but he was, he w he w he w he wouldn't be met for hospitality. He was made for putting out fires. And that was it. Yeah.
Dan Ryan: Oh, so he was a fireman or his, or her?
Davonne Reaves: Yeah, it was, was he's retired.
He's passed away. He's transitioned. But yeah, he was, uh, he was a fireman for 25 years. And guess what? I did not know. He put out fires. And so his retirement party, because people were telling stories. That's what he said. He said, they want you to think I did for 25 years. He never talked about.
Dan Ryan: You didn't know, your dad was a fireman or you thought he was behind a desk?
Davonne Reaves: I know it was a fireman, but I just didn't think of him like putting out. I mean, he just, I just didn't think he just never, he never talked about it.
Dan Ryan: Oh, so it's probably [00:22:00] like, you know, you hear about all those, you know, veterans from world war two that never wanted to talk about what they did. You hit a wall.
It was just like, boom. This was, and when
Davonne Reaves: he retired, he started telling me stories and you know, you know, he used to say this, you know, back in the day long, I remember pagers were growing up. He had a pager. He's like, they find our call me anytime. Even if you have to page me, even if I'm in a fire, I call you back again.
It didn't Dawn on me to, because I had a retirement party. People kept telling stories how he like saved her life. Wait, you put out fire. Like he really was like, maybe like, what did you literally say? What did you think I did for 25? I was like, I always thought the fires, I guess, was on your day off. I just didn't ever talk
Dan Ryan: about it.
Wow. Okay. So then respecting, but also, but that's fun, but so then respecting and understanding your dad was not the hospitality person, but then you have your [00:23:00] mom and grandma over here. Like what, how did they, what did they teach you? What did they impart to you on your journey into hospitality? And what, like on your day to day from transitioning from operations to ownership, like where do you hear them whispering into your ears on the day to day?
So
Davonne Reaves: my grandmother, she always treated, she always says to treat people better than you want to be true. So that's always been ingrained to me, you know, even people who did her wrong. And I would say, grandma, they did wrong to me. Kill them with kindness. Right. It don't matter how evil a person can be. If you still kill him with kindness and still be nice.
It just, sometimes it just, you just bring it out of them. And then, like I said, my mom always smiled, so I just always smile. Um, even when I had messed up teeth, I was still smiling, but I got my teeth fixed down. So [00:24:00] braces
Dan Ryan: great. Now you're giving me a mouth envy.
Davonne Reaves: Yeah. And then my mom, my mom, she says, uh, uh, she has a bubbly personality, I guess I got it from her.
Um, she's really, you think I'm selling my mom's something else. So, um, yeah, I guess that's where those, those combinations and then, um, And then how I worked in it. So actually how I got started working at the hotel, it was, um, I was working, I was at, I was at Georgia state university. I was a student there and they were asking so many students, the ACBB Atlantic convention and visitors bureau.
They were asking students to volunteer because they wanted to get, um, Atlanta visitors, their perspective of Atlanta and what came out of the survey. So we were surveying people who left Atlanta. And so they thought, well, less than college students, because who turns down college students. So I had my little name tag and said to her state university, Dave honorees.
And, um, I knew [00:25:00] nothing about it. And so the rooms like that came up to me and was like, you smile a lot. Scott Snyder, shout out to Scott. Um, he got me in, it says fall. Uh, he came up to me and he said, Deyvon, he said, You smiled a lot. Do you want a job? It pays $10 an hour. I was like $10. Yes, absolutely. And so that's, that's, that's how I got into point.
That's how I got to the hotel business.
Dan Ryan: Okay. So someone saw a good, a quality in you. It happened to be the smile and they, then they roped you in and then you're like, this is amazing. Okay. So now you've worked in operations of hotels. You're you own three hotels right now. What's so, and then in the real estate segment, you know, there's from multi-family to office, to [00:26:00] residential, to whatever, to hospitality, what's keeping you in the hospitality silo.
So to speak,
Davonne Reaves: you know, at first half, the title was my passion. Right? I love the service industry. Like I mentioned before, I love the people. Um, then I saw the amount of money you can make. Right. My own wine. I say it's a lot of money here. And then which opened my eyes to look at other commercial real estate, asset classes, such as multi family, like you mentioned, office.
Um, so, but I'm still beaten by the half of comedy books. And, and now my passion is okay. My purpose, because there's so many people will reach out to me who work in hotels and so many different minorities and just people in general, they're like, I didn't know, I could own a hotel and here you come. Deyvon, you know, so if been now, it's like, okay, I'm clearly, I'm here for a reason.
Um, to I've been inspiring [00:27:00] people. I didn't do it intentionally. I just wanted to own a hotel one day. Cause that was my goal. And it was like checkbox and then boom, you know, um, and uh, now it's like, okay, I got to have more work to do. Um, and plus I like to discount. You know the discounts. Yeah. Cause you, you know, when you work at a hotel, you get discounts, but I stopped working at a hotel, so I needed to get my discount back.
Dan Ryan: Ah, so then by now owning hotels, you can put in that, the code and then you always get a better rate.
Davonne Reaves: Yeah. Give them a discount code. Yeah. That's really what it is.
Dan Ryan: Oh, that's the real first now I don't, I don't believe you one second for that, the best. Why you do it for the discount, because just before that you said you were inspiring and impacting others and like, Hey, how do you do this?
How do you get to know this? And I know from speaking with you before you, uh, the feeling I get from [00:28:00] you is that with all of that good energy and the big smile. Okay. I, I don't know. I'm curious what your purpose is, but it's really to inspire others, right? Is that like, what is your purpose?
Davonne Reaves: So my purpose is to increase the percentage of African-American hotel owners increase, you know, women hotel owners increase the folks who work in hotels and other lead to more front desk agents who become the hotel owner.
So it's just been my purpose that this is bigger than. Um, I can't, uh, I'm a shy person. People don't believe me. Um, so a lot of this attention is a little different for me. So it's a lot, but I've realized that, excuse me, that this is bigger than me. And every time I share my story, if I just inspire one person, it could be a student.
It can be, you know, a child, it can be anybody. If I inspire one [00:29:00] person, I feel like that my job is being complete on that.
Dan Ryan: I mean, that resonates with me so much because, um, part of the reason why I've started doing this podcast is it's basically like I have these conversations with really great, smart, awesome influential people.
And then I feel like, you know, there are a lot of people listening, so in some way I'm impacting them or changing the way that they're thinking. And it kind of draws me into it. Um, And I don't know. I guess it's like a, it's a bigger feeling then than money or other accomplishments. It's that idea of impact.
Um,
Davonne Reaves: so yeah,
Dan Ryan: so with all, so when you're doing this before you wrote the book, you have people coming up and saying, Hey, how do you do this? How do you do this? And you're, you're inspiring and impacting others. Then you decide to write this book. So instead of doing this, like one-to-one communication now you've written a book and now, you know, thousands of people can read this roadmap of how to do it.
How did you. [00:30:00] Like, how did you take that step to write a book? And I'm asking you, because from all these conversations I'm having, I'm in the process of I've started writing chapters and collecting everything, but like, what was the big motivation for you? Cause I want to learn from you in taking that first step to write the book,
Davonne Reaves: actually my community.
So I've built community probably close to 20,000 folks. I mean, community or social media email list. Um, they basically were like, when they honest their book on how to buy a hotel and I was like, not written, I started looking for one and I really couldn't find one. So I was like, well, let me just write it.
And um,
Dan Ryan: I mean, it's like, I'm just going to, I'm just gonna write it. Let me just write it.
Davonne Reaves: I mean, cause people have asked him for it and then I Googled and I was like, it's really not a book on how to battle deal. And so, um, There's not a, there are some, is some information out there, but it's, it's not easy enough for like the [00:31:00] average person.
Right. Cause we have to think some of the people who come across to me, they've never owner, it's like a foreign concept on the hotel. Like if they can't wrap their brain around it. Right. So we have to go through that if it would get to the different steps. And so basically, um, I've been teaching on this since 2019.
So this has just been a combination of, of, of my community talking to me trial and error because of course I know how to do it, but when he has somebody that's w that's brand new and they don't know, we have to break it step by step. And also with my book, um, I created a speaker series sort of for the folks who.
Um, I have a speaker series, so I had my business partner, Mike Eley on air. He walks you through how to analyze a hotel deal in 20 minutes or less. I have a good friend of mine. Her name is Shannon steel. Um, she's an African-American female hotel owner. She [00:32:00] talks about how she got into the hotel space. So she's not from the hotel industry.
She's from the finance side from banking. And then, um, I have Amina, uh, Dr. Mina, James. She's actually one of my hotel investors and she talks about how she got into investing in the hotels because she, again, she's not from the hospitality space. So I brought in people, I brought in different, also brought in, um, Andre, our breed, and he talks about how to invest in REITs because not everybody wants to buy a hotel.
Some people may just simply just want to admit. Right. So the book, but I'm being on education, right? You want to be, you know, informed you want to make the best decision as possible. Um, you know, there are a lot of people who would, you know, try to steer people in the wrong direction. And so I try to put as much information as possible and lead them to as many resources that they can really do their due diligence.
And so the speaker said series of about, um, five, I think you've got about five classes, [00:33:00] um, where they can just listen, um, listening, um, um, after they read the book or during the book or whenever, and it kind of just helps them. It was a part of their priority experience. So to people who pre-ordered the book, they were actually got a chance to listen in on it, live and ask questions live.
And so now that we have the replays where people can, um, write, they get lifetime replays, lifetime access, um, uh, to the information where they can listen in. So that's a bonus feature for.
Dan Ryan: Wow. And then what was, I guess, what was step one and organizing your thoughts and creating the outline to write the book?
Davonne Reaves: Uh, just like I said, my community didn't ask them questions. I've been teaching a lot of courses, so I kind of learned the flow for feedback from other people. So I realized, okay, is mindset. Okay. People want to understand people kept asking me what they bought, how did you do it? Like, what's your background?
So then I [00:34:00] put that in there. Right. So then how do you analyze the deal? You know, what are some of the programs for minorities? Okay. Deyvon what are the different types of hotels? So outlining, I kind of outlined it as a flow. Like if you were to buy a home. Because if I make it all over the place, you're going to get confused.
Right? Cause a lot of times people are step by step. I'm not a step by step person. I'm all over the place. But a lot of people, they need to step by step. They need to check with us, they need to read it and you have to take notes outside. They bring in an editor. Um, so I wrote the information. Um, sometimes when people, uh, I transcribed a lot of stuff, so I like spoke it and then I'm not a writer.
I hate writing. Um,
Yeah, just give me a thing and recording. And so that's what I did. And so I
Dan Ryan: worked with the editors and stand back.
Davonne Reaves: There you go, baby. And, uh, so Ann Lee, [00:35:00] um, she edited for me, um, got the graphics and everything made on myself published. So this is a self-published book. So was on, you can purchase it on Amazon.
Um, you get a heart, uh, paperback copy from Amazon or a digital copy. Um, and it's also on my website as well. So, uh,
Dan Ryan: and we'll be sure we'll put that up in the show notes as well. So the deleted
Davonne Reaves: and the thing is actually just getting done. I think I meet so many people who have books in their hands. And it's really hard for them to get it. It's just getting it out there. Right. Um, the sh as far as structuring it, like I said, just, and also when you bring on an editor or if you have to bring in a copywriter to help you write it, actually at least with my editor slash writer.
Cause like I said, I don't want it. Right. But a lot of times we have another person, I like to get people outside of the industry to take a look at it because it's foreign [00:36:00] to them. So if it doesn't make so a lot of stuff, it didn't make sense to her. So that was good because then I was able to tweak it.
So that way, for someone who's not in our industry who don't know what ADR and in, or reference, they don't know what that stuff means. So it needs to be broken down in a way where it could be like, okay, I get it. Now I know where to go. I know we're we're, we're we're tracking. We're good.
Dan Ryan: Um, now that's awesome because it, again, writing that.
It ties into your purpose, which is increasing the path of ownership within hotels to minorities in those and those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged. Yeah. So when you think about your purpose and then writing the book and getting out there and all the work that you're doing, like what's exciting, like what progress are you seeing?
And what's exciting you about all of the work that you've
Davonne Reaves: done? Oh gosh, my gosh. It brings me here. So I have a Facebook group and people posting and saying how they're looking to invest in a REIT. You know, I have somebody who just went [00:37:00] under contract for their first hotel. Um, I have people who are investing in hotels.
Um, so it's like, it's overwhelming. I get so excited when, when people take the information that, that they learned from me and they've never invested in anything before ever. And now they're investing because investment real estate is once you understand the fundamentals, it's kind of easier to do that when other things.
And so now folks they're like, oh, now I can actually own, and then they're sharing this information with their children and that are having these conversations at the dinner table. And so, I mean, just the simple fact that they heard me on the pie cancer, that they heard me speak at a conference or they read my book or they saw my Facebook ad or so, oh my goodness.
It's just amazing. Um, just the community and the love and support. And, and now it is some people who still don't believe it's possible. That's fine. It's always [00:38:00] naysayers. That's fine. Whatever. I'm not worried about the naysayers. Well,
Dan Ryan: and okay, so then, okay. Let's talk about the naysayers for a second. So, okay.
The path to ownership, equity debt, making it happen, how many times were where you said no. Before the Greenlight happened.
Davonne Reaves: Oh my gosh. I would say no a lot of times. And it wasn't, I don't even think it was because of my color. Um, fortunately I haven't experienced as much racism as some people I've experienced a lot of ageism because I'm young.
Dan Ryan: Oh, you're too young to do this.
Davonne Reaves: I'm too young. So I've always been the youngest. So it wasn't because I was because you're black because I gotta, I've always been a lot of times the only black person in the room, you know, the only female in the room. So I didn't feel like a door was shut because so many other people blasted those doors for me and I'm grateful for them and I stand on their shoulders, [00:39:00] but it was, oh, no, you're too young.
And I have like a youthful face. Um, and so. People, you know, and I'm kind of bubbly, you know? So sometimes people take it as like, okay, she immature, she knows you, you know what I mean? They don't take me seriously. And so, cause my is, my dad would say, I'm not, I'm not bullish enough. You know?
So a lot of times I experienced the ageism. Is it people who, you know, who basically like, no, they didn't think I could raise capital or they didn't want to partner with me or they didn't want to give me a chance. So that's what probably I experienced. And I'm still, I'm not experienced that as much.
Cause I think people are like, okay, yo, this chick is serious. Like, okay, she's, she's, she's not playing like she going to figure it out regardless if I help her or not. You know what I mean? So, um, cause when I get focused, it's another thing coming. You better watch out. Nobody's gonna, nobody's gonna tell [00:40:00] me no.
Dan Ryan: Yeah, I'm totally picking that up in a, in a major way. So. So let's say like, you're, you're getting going, you're going, you're not getting going. You're going, you're gone. So like you have three hotels now, what, where do you see yourself in five years? Like, what's the goal on like portfolio of hotels, but also number of people impacted and maybe which one's more important to you?
Davonne Reaves: You know what I would like to, well, I do want to hide it. I'm gonna have a hide in my portfolio. I think everybody knows. I want to hide. You see over height, mark. How amazing everyone doesn't want to hire you. So that's my next baby. Okay.
Dan Ryan: And you're manifesting it. You're putting it out there now. It's going to
Davonne Reaves: happen. I'm a Hyatt girl forever in the Hyatt world. You know, if that's the only hotel I worked at, um, but in five years I can't wait for somebody to say, I took your class. [00:41:00] I saw you on tour. I heard you speak. And I just closed on my first hotel.
I can't wait for somebody to say they run. I closed on my third hotel. I can't wait until somebody says, they've run. I have five hotels now because I took your course. That's what that's, that's what I'm striving for. I can't, I can't wait for somebody to say that to me or they children or they, children come up to me and say, you know, my mom told me about two years ago and it's possible.
It's an out on my own home.
Dan Ryan: And increasing the past of ownership, which is really impacting, not just the owners, but all the people that work there. Um, it has a, a real halo effect for just where the hotel is when you I've heard this, um, saying, I don't know if it's a saying, but I've heard it said that, you know, . Talent is [00:42:00] uniformly distributed. Doesn't matter race. It doesn't matter socioeconomic standard or whatever, but opportunity is not uniformly distributed. Right. So I guess in a way you're giving opportunities.
To those who will read the book, listen to the course, reach out. Um, but like, how do we create more opportunity for, for more people doing
Davonne Reaves: what you're doing? Bye. You bringing diverse people on your show from diverse backgrounds. Now you're crate creating opportunity. When you are speaking at a conference or you're hosting anything and you have speakers and you notice that every person on that panel or every person at that conference, or every person that they've been, y'all all look alike.
That's where you come into [00:43:00] place. And you say, you know what, I'm going to bring home. A random black person. I bring someone from the Asian community. I'm a bring, you know, someone from the Muslim community. I'm a brain, you know, someone from a different, from a millennial, I'm bring all of these different to reflect what the word really looks like.
And that's how more opportunity can be created. You know, I'm a, I'm a believer in, you know, creating opportunity for everyone. Right. I was raised, I don't see color. I really don't. And um, cause I went this, I was fortunate enough to go to different schools where it was diverse. Um, and so. To me. I have, I have friends from China.
I have friends from Russia, have friends from the Latin, you know, they're they Latinos and Latinas, [00:44:00] you know, the LGBTQ plus community, you know? So my, my son, he's three. He's gonna, he's already been playing with so many different cultures, you know, because of, because those, these people are my friends. I don't see color.
So if I have an opportunity, I'm gonna think, Hey, you know what? It shouldn't just be just black people. It should be somebody from the Hispanic community, right. Or Latino community. It should be somebody, you know, from the Asian community. Right. Um, because every, when we think differently and everyone thinks different.
And when you bring in those different cultures and when you bring those different mindsets and, and I like to be around people who were smarter than me, all my friends are smarter than me. So when you bring those people around, you bring in these, all these different opportunities and ideas and things starts coming together and all these, these ideas and just [00:45:00] make amazing things start to happen.
So that's how opportunity can be created when we start, when we look at it wrong, or we, when we, when we do something that we need to be intentional in making sure that we're more diverse.
Dan Ryan: Yeah. And I think it's so not to begrudge any panels or. I don't know, get togethers or conferences where it's like, everyone looks the same.
Um, it is
Davonne Reaves: boring. It's a dry pizza toast, no jelly, no butters, Evo. It is the same
Dan Ryan: people, but it's also, it doesn't take that much effort to just like, get out of your comfort zone a little bit and get like, Hey, let's get some different opinions and people who look different and all this, because again, I think like, especially the United States, you look at what we are for all of our good and all of our bad.
We're [00:46:00] still a place that everyone, most, everyone still wants to come to. Right. We're doing something right with our branding. And I think we just need to all open up to that. And just really, and I also don't understand why some people are saying like, you know, oh, diversity of opinion and thought is not the best place to be.
And like, why do we have to do that for the sake of doing it? But I'm, I would say that they're just wrong. I feel like we really need to lean into giving everyone a voice. And I think that's really
Davonne Reaves: where our strength is. I agree. I agree. And now I think, you know, more people now more people can create their own opportunity.
So for example, let's say you shop your life around. You always want to be an author and you know, different publishers or whoever would take here. Certainly won't work with you. Now. You can self publish your book. Let's say you wanted to get featured on a podcast and nobody would ever accept it. [00:47:00] Right? So now we're in a, we're in a space where you can literally be on boss.
You don't get, let's say you never get promoted at a hotel or you never get promoted. You never get the dream job that you always want. You can start your own company, you know, so we're in a space where you can, but it's all up to you. It's all up to you. And that's what I've learned from talking to so many people is that it starts with them and believing in them.
And you have to believe in yourself, you have to confidence. And I wasn't always as confident, but once I started believing in my step self, and once I realized that the only person who could tell me no is me. And once I started selling myself, yes. And once I started believing in myself and really becoming extremely focused.
I mean, that's just, I [00:48:00] guess people thought I had an overnight success
Dan Ryan: after 14 years of really hard.
Davonne Reaves: I don't have the tears and, and, uh, the upsets, the let downs and just act, I'm still kinda like in awe. Like every time I get on stage, I'm here talking to you. I'm selling all that. I'm sitting here talking to you, um, that you, that you, you know, invited me to be, to share this space with you still an awesome, very grateful, um, because you know, because of where I came from.
So I'm just, every time I get an opportunity, I'm, I'm just, I'm grateful.
Dan Ryan: Well, now you're making me blush. And you said something a second ago where it was that you, you, weren't always confident and you know, I've in just hearing your story I've seen, or just in the limited amount of time and the stories that I've heard, there's been this there's like.
Hum or background noise of confidence that I get within you. Now I know we can't be there all the time. [00:49:00] Oftentimes our biggest roadblocks are between our two ears. It's in these six inches right here. Um, if you to build on the thing on the idea that you weren't always confident, cause we're not all confident all the time.
What in your life, who or what events flip that switch to like turn up the volume on your confidence.
Davonne Reaves: So anybody who knows me, I'm a huge Beyonce fan. Okay. Oh yes, honey. I live with some BSA. So I feel like once you wait in line to see her for like four hours a year automatically for, to be having which I've done several times.
Um, but she, her music is so inspiring. Her music is so motivation. Um, I've been around, uh, more and more women who were strong and powerful, weak, competent. And so just being around them and, um, like, so shout out to my Shiro, Valerie Ferguson and Kathleen Bertrand and Erica cross Beatty, who some, just some, I mean, I don't know if I use the customer, but it's [00:50:00] just some bomb ass women.
Okay. I mean, these are just some phenomenal women, so just being around them and just watching how they move and watching how they handle the room. And then they talked a little video of me. I'm like, I gotta be something, they taught a little video of me. And then what the combination of being announced.
And it finally, even after all of that, the light bulb just clicked. Yes. They want to do you know who you are? I had to talk to myself like. You know, what you have accomplished, do you know what's inside of you? So it's sometimes where I have to remind myself and bring out the greatness in me. So that's where that confidence comes from.
Uh, and it's been growing just really just working on myself and realizing the greatness that I have inside of me. And, um, and just being happy and being at peace and being grateful and realizing how blessed [00:51:00] I am. Um, so that's that, that's what did it with the companies it's just really realizing how, how, how blessed and fortunate I am.
Okay.
Dan Ryan: So let's pretend it's like a, it's a winter cold rainy day in Atlanta. And you're, you know what, you're just not feeling it. What's your number one? Go-to Beyonce song. Well,
Davonne Reaves: number one to go to check. Ooh. Um, Ooh. So every time I buy a new hotel, I played move forever. I walked through the lobby. Oh, I haven't done it with the last two, but I did it with arena.
So I walked through the, I always walked through the lobby. Want to be honest onstage,
Dan Ryan: like in your earphones or like you turn up the music and the whole love
Davonne Reaves: it's come on,
move forever. Um, I love, uh, it just depends on how I'm feeling like I like seven 11 or right now. Um,[00:52:00]
oh yeah. When I walk on stage is diva,
Dan Ryan: Beyonce inspiring and so many ways I love it. Um, okay. So. Now that you're you have your confidence? You've when you're not feeling well, you're pumping up the music, you're feeling great. Um, you're unstoppable. What's exciting. You most about the future?
Davonne Reaves: Ooh. That I'm working on is a really big project and I can't wait to launch it. Um, I'm excited about that. Are
Dan Ryan: you allowed to say where it is or what it is without divulging too much? Like very generally speaking.
Davonne Reaves: It's not a hotel. Everybody thinks it's not, it's not a hotel,
so I can't wait to launch it. I've been working on this for years. So this is my new baby. Okay.
Dan Ryan: So that's exciting you. Yeah.
Davonne Reaves: When do you think. My little [00:53:00] one. I got a three-year-old that's my baby. His name is Jamir. He is so famous. Do you know when I go to places? People they don't ask them. You never even met him before.
Dan Ryan: Oh, great. Well, I didn't know. I don't know him, so I can't wait to meet him also,
so. Okay. I want to go back. How old were you when you started playing clarinet?
Davonne Reaves: Oh, Ooh, maybe 13, 13. I'm still playing it. So I bought one last year for Christmas. I just been bringing it out. I don't know. It's just something in college. No, that was my mistake. I should've played in college, so, but I bought one and I just think kind of playing, I still kind of got a little tune.
I'm still working on getting my fingers, you know? Cause clarinet for my clarinet for clarinet is some as listening. You know, you got to move your [00:54:00] fingers fast. So for sure. So I'm still, I'm a little, I've been, I've been taking a little hiatus. I could get back on it. So if I get back focused,
Dan Ryan: so if you, the Devon of today went back to your 13 year old self sitting in that first clarinet seat, and then you could talk to yourself.
What advice would you give your 13 year old self?
Davonne Reaves: You do not know anything. You don't know anything you need to listen.
Dan Ryan: Oh, now that's awesome. And what would your 13 year old self say back to you?
Davonne Reaves: No, she talked about it, but back then, I probably wouldn't listen I'm first year, but, um, I would've told my 13 year old self to enjoy the moment.
Enjoy the present. Um, listen, listen to your grandma, listen to your daddy. My daddy was like really wild. I didn't bless it. So listen, you know, uh, read more. I wish I would've read it more. Um, I wish I would've talked to, um, my [00:55:00] godmother, she transitioned, but she was a sharp business woman. Um, and talked to my aunt more.
She passed away too. So at 13, that's what I would've told myself. Listen to them more and just be a sponge.
Dan Ryan: Yeah. Then that's one of the things I love about doing these conversations too. It's like, okay, I have two of these and one of these. So if I can just ask a couple of questions and really use these more, I can learn something.
From everyone, just
Davonne Reaves: you.
Dan Ryan: Well, now, now, as soon as this conversation's over, I want to go like blast some Beyonce in my bed. Okay. I'm a diva. It's got some of those old lasting projects off my plate that have just been sitting there and maybe Beyonce will, will help me get the momentum to do it.
Davonne Reaves: I get up and dance and everything.
I walked through the lobby, they buy employees, eight employees and they laugh at me. We never seen a hotel [00:56:00] before.
Dan Ryan: Uh, as I want you to also now look into your crystal ball as it relates to your properties, but also hospitality and travel as a whole. Right here we are. It's the middle of June. Summer travel is like happening. There's talks of recession. There's all this like how. The hotel industry and travel right now.
Davonne Reaves: Uh, I hate that word recession. I'm like, come on now. We just get through COVID. Come on now. How much more can I industry date? Um, what I do see, even if there is a recession, I'd still think that the leisure market. Um, I mean that they're still going to travel. Um, and I think they're still gonna, you know, they're going to stay as some, you know, they're going to go to those drive to destinations.
I'll maybe not [00:57:00] drive to cause the SSI, but they may, you know, have staycations or, um, um, I don't see a lot of the corporate, they say a corporate is coming back to corporate travel and business travel, but I'm like, if it's a recession, it's not coming back. Um, but I do see like leisure. Like I still see people, you know, Wanting to go to Miami or want to go to Florida or, you know, they got kids when you got kids, you got to get out of the house.
We have figured out. So maybe your budget. So folks could be saying that maybe less economical or mean, or hotel that are more economical and affordable. So they may not be seeing that full service and maybe like economy or, you know, maybe saying that those limited service hotels, um, um, places where they get free breakfast, those types of hotels.
So I still see people traveling, even in a recession just may not be as much. Um, but it's just because so many people just been picked up in the house.
Dan Ryan: I, so I heard something interesting a couple of weeks ago, two or three weeks ago, I went to this, um, Skift. I forget [00:58:00] what a Skift global conference. And I saw, um, um, some higher ups from Highgate and also JLL talking about, okay, there's talk of a recession that is coming, but they were quite confident.
It wasn't going to affect travel, um, on a couple of different levels. One is there's so much of the pent up demand, like you were saying, um, the fortune 500 or the real corporate travel hasn't taken off in recession or not, they felt like it has to take like, those guys have to get back. To do whatever they gotta do to keep their businesses growing.
Um, and then they also said something quite interesting, which was like last summer, when everyone was pent up, they would go stay in these hotels. They might've been a bit rundown because there's no housekeeping. There was no cap ex for a couple of years this year, you know, guests are going to be paying hundreds of dollars.
Would their family vacation on their leisure trips. And I think the guests are going to become more discerning. Like they're going to want a more refreshed room. What are your thoughts on that? [00:59:00] They
Davonne Reaves: are it ain't gonna they're they're going on. Like I just stayed at a hotel, um, uh, this past weekend for a conference.
It was this, this, the Swiss hotel was our first something here in Chicago. Um, the rooms are nice. The service, you know, they were, they were busy. Um, they were, um, I think eliminate staff, just like the industry, um, the cap ex I didn't see too much, you know, of an issue. Um, my hotel. Uh, you know, we have some, you know, wear and tear, um, not too much, um, for the newer hotel, but to order hotels, we just completed a renovation.
We completed a, a guestroom renovation. Um, but I do think that folks are going to be upset with like smart TVs. I think it's going to be the cap ex like, cause if they've been picked up in the house so much, and a lot of folks, if they have smart TVs and they go to another hotel or they travel, they're going to want that same experience.
[01:00:00] Um, I think the biggest thing is they're going to want a clean room. The biggest thing is they're going to want. Service right. Cause you know, I had to wait, you know, for tiles and stuff. I understand because again, I'm in the business. So it wasn't, I was like, I just can come downstairs and pick it up.
Right. It really wasn't a big deal to me. But then you had some people who like, I paid this, if I'm asking for, they may not understand, Hey, we have limited staff, I can't bring your tiles. There's only like one person working in a hotel. Like you're going to have to come downstairs to get it. Some people won't understand that.
Um, and that's not even just with the hospitality or the hotel industry. That's just like everywhere. Like there are still places where you're still limited. There's still limited workers. Right. Um, they, these folks have become entrepreneurs or just gone to different industries and they didn't want to come back.
So I think we're going to face a lot. I think labor, I think labor is probably going to Trump CapEx. Right. That's what I think. Yeah. I mean, because think about it. Like when you, you're [01:01:00] not in your room that long. But when you're in your room, you're going to want certain things and you're going to want it right now, you know, regardless of how an end, especially for the luxury hotels that are limited staff and those types of clientele, they expect the level of service.
They don't care if it's COVID-19, they don't care. They want what they want. You know? Um, I mean, if, you know, they may not see the wear and tear and the dresser, but they want the tiles, you know, they want their spa, you know, they want their breakfast, like they want their room service. So that's what I, I think labor is going to Trump cap ex.
Dan Ryan: Awesome. And then how do you, uh, when I look at the labor market, I'm just like, I don't know how that gets fixed. What do you see?
Davonne Reaves: I mean, our industry, we just got to pay more. I mean, I mean, it was some hotels I saw there started the front desk agents at $10 an hour. I think that's how much. [01:02:00] I just told you, I just got, and then I wasn't even getting that many raises when I was there. I think one time I got an 11 cent raise and I was working.
I couldn't, I'm not worth the quarter, but you get 11 cents. And then some people it's some people that are still facing that. They're like, I mean, the people who were still, you know, working, they worked through COVID and they got, you know, BS raise and, and, um, where they don't feel appreciated and they didn't want to work in those conditions.
Like if it's a, it's a, it's a, it's an employee, not an employer. It's an employee market right now. So now some folks don't want to work. Um, some folks are not meant for the hospitality industry. I agree, and that they don't need to be here. Um, um, so, and I, I think it's a labor issue, not just for the industry, just in general.
Um, I just, you know, some people, they just don't want to work in the [01:03:00] service industry. Um, when you work in a service industry, people are very mean when you're in between them and their food or when you're in between them and their guests, they can become really nasty people. And so when you don't get compensated or when you don't feel appreciated, um, that takes a wear and tear on your mental I, and especially if a lot of people were laid off during COVID and they were right, they didn't treat, they had a lot of time to reflect.
They got to see their families more.
Dan Ryan: Um, I'm curious as to, you know, it was so such a deep and steep recession in hospitality. And then every time there is a recession, travel's the first thing to cut from families and businesses. Right. I'm just, I'm curious, like after this one, no matter how much you pay, I'm, I'm wondering if people actually want to come back into hospitality because they got stung so many times, but on the other side, [01:04:00] I feel like it's the best time ever to come in because everything, the labor pool is so thin that the, the path towards like a really cool career in a great industry, if, if you're wired for it, um, it's never been a greater time to get
Davonne Reaves: in.
Oh, no, I agreed. But I'm like my, um, my nanny, she applied to work for a hotel. She got it, I guess, being around me
and she loved it. Right. And, um, she worked at a front desk and she quit. They wasn't accommodating with their schedule. Like she wanted to work. It's just that they weren't flexible with the schedule. And I'm like, here we go again. Now I understand it's a business. I give you, it's a business. One thing about her she'll work.
It was just that they weren't paying her enough to have one job. So she had to work another job. [01:05:00] Um, and I think sometimes companies need to be just a tad bit flexible because it takes much more to hire and train and keep that person. And it's like, okay, what can you do to kind of be creative and kind of make it work.
So that way you won't lose talent and constantly keep looking for people. Um, you know, cause that, that takes a wear and tear on the, the, the employees that take away ran into your, on the guests, that guests experience, um, possibly bringing people on and you gotta to train them. You know, it's, it's, it's exhausting.
Nobody wants to be bothered with that. Like I have patients with people who were in training that's because I remember when I was in training, I know how hard it is, but not everybody had patience. They don't want to keep dealing with people. That's in training. They want to check out the room, check in or whatever they need and be gone.
And if the time for people constantly being in training all the time,
Dan Ryan: um, well, I [01:06:00] also think it's one of those things where as people, our expectations are always changing. So in a way it's like we always have to be open to training and learning because people, we are always changing and evolving. And how do we make sure everyone happy?
Make sure everyone is happy. Um, Avon. So I mean, this conversation, I know you want to just inspire one person will count me inspired and, um, I dunno, like I feel very pumped up after speaking to you. So I'm sure as this all gets out there, um, you're gonna impact so many, uh, you're already impacting a ton of people.
You're going to continue to, um, if people wanted to get in touch with you, what's the word? How can they find
Davonne Reaves: you? I want to Instagram at Daylon reads you go to my website, www.thevongroup.com pretty much on all the social media platforms. You can find me a [01:07:00] link any from your Facebook, you bring the Instagram I'm even on Tik TOK.
So you can find me
I'm
Dan Ryan: that. And the book we'll put, we'll put the book up as well.
Davonne Reaves: The book is also on Amazon, how to buy books or romance and hotel ownership. Uh, so.
Dan Ryan: Awesome. Um, well, I want to give you a heartfelt thank you for your time and your energy more importantly than your time, because your energy, like it just was like a laser beam filling, filling me up.
So thank you. Um, and also most importantly, I want to thank our listeners and I really hope that Devon's purpose has evolved your way of viewing hospitality as a means of impact. And again, this is all spread by word of mouth. So please, if this changed the way you think about hospitality, please send it along and thank you everyone.
We will see you next time.
Davonne Reaves: The next time. Thank you all so much for listening.
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