+$500K
Telluride Travel Rentals
Revenue $1.2M to $1.7M in 1 year, through new distribution channels and smarter revenue management.
Read the case study →Four systems. Four plans. One engine.
Independent vacation rental (STR) consultant for property managers with 30+ units
I'm Giacomo (Jack) Esposito. 13 years in short-term rentals: five at Booking.com, a 3,000-villa portfolio at Oliver's Travels and 500+ Guesty implementations. I fix the systems behind your revenue, distribution, operations and owner growth, so you can scale to 300 listings without the wheels coming off.
500+
Projects Delivered (at Guesty)
3,000
Luxury Villas Managed
13
Years in STR
How It Works
The STR Engine
Four interlocked systems that turn a 30+ unit STR operation into a high-performance business.
Every plan builds on these four systems.
01
Demand
Make the right guests find you.
02
Revenue
Charge what you're worth. Every night.
03
Operations
Run the machine without running yourself.
04
Growth
Scale the model, not just the count.
What it is
Demand is everything that drives a qualified guest to your listing before they book. OTA algorithm positioning, listing content, photography, reviews, direct booking channels, and the organic presence that makes your brand discoverable without paying OTA commission every time.
What good looks like
Across 30+ units, every listing ranks in the top 10% of its comp set, a direct booking channel generates 20%+ of reservations, and guests search for your brand by name.
What broken looks like
You rely entirely on Airbnb's algorithm, have no direct booking strategy, and your listing photos were taken on a smartphone in 2022.
Metrics to watch:OTA traffic rank · Direct booking % · Cost per acquisition
What it is
Revenue management is the discipline of pricing intelligently, not just setting a base rate and hoping. Dynamic pricing calibrated to local demand, comp set movement, lead time curves, seasonal patterns, and length-of-stay rules that protect your ADR.
What good looks like
Your RevPAR is in the top quartile of your comp set. You review pricing weekly. You have minimum-stay rules that eliminate orphan nights. You know your breakeven occupancy by unit.
What broken looks like
You set a price in October and check it again in March. You're fully booked in peak season at a rate 30% below market.
Metrics to watch:RevPAR · ADR · Occupancy rate · Revenue per available unit
What it is
The systems, tools, and people that deliver the guest experience without requiring your constant attention. PMS configuration, automation workflows, cleaning and maintenance coordination, guest communication, review management, and the SOPs that let you delegate with confidence.
What good looks like
Your guest comms run on autopilot, reaching up to 80% automation with an AI guest messaging tool. You have a cleaning team that self-manages via software. A new property can be onboarded in under a week. You could take a two-week holiday without the business breaking.
What broken looks like
You're manually sending check-in instructions at 11pm. Your cleaner finds out about checkouts via text. Every new property adds 8 hours per week to your workload.
Metrics to watch:Response time · Review score · Cost per clean · Owner hours per unit
What it is
Growth is not just adding units. It's building the ownership model, capital structure, and acquisition strategy that lets you expand without breaking the systems underneath. Portfolio construction, owner acquisition, market selection, and knowing when to say no.
What good looks like
You have a documented model for evaluating new properties. You have a pipeline of property owners approaching you. Your margins improve as you add units, not deteriorate.
What broken looks like
Every new listing is a heroic effort. You're growing revenue but not profit. You're saying yes to every property because you're scared to say no.
Metrics to watch:Portfolio margin · Owner acquisition cost · New unit ramp time · NPS
Plans
Four plans. One engine.
Built for property managers and operators with 30+ units. Every plan runs on the four systems; you choose how deep we go.
Sprint
1 month
£1,600
total
Pays back with a 0.2% RevPAR lift on a 30-unit portfolio
Fix your single biggest leak, fast.
- —One system from the 4-system framework (Demand, Revenue, Operations, or Growth)
- —4 dedicated working days across the month
- —Aimed at your biggest leak, agreed on the fit call
Examples of what's included
- Listing & pricing sprint: rewrite and re-price your listings against the comp set
- Visual appeal: shot list, staging spec and vetted photographers across the portfolio
Momentum
3 months
£1,440/mo
£4,320 total
Pays back with a 0.5% RevPAR lift on a 30-unit portfolio
Two systems, implemented and tuned.
- —~12 dedicated working days over 3 months
- —Two systems built out (e.g. Revenue + Operations)
- —Monthly check-in call
Examples of what's included
- Dynamic pricing and stay rules tuned portfolio-wide
- Direct booking foundations: booking site, payments and guest CRM
Most Popular
Scale
6 months
£1,280/mo
£7,680 total
Pays back with a 0.8% RevPAR lift on a 30-unit portfolio
Full 4-system build-out.
- —~24 dedicated working days over 6 months
- —All four systems implemented: Demand, Revenue, Operations, Growth
- —Ongoing optimization and monthly strategy reviews
Examples of what's included
- Direct booking engine with repeat-guest campaigns, targeting 15 to 25% direct share
- Owner growth system: owner landing page, income projections, outreach and referrals
Partner
12 months
£1,120/mo
£13,440 total
Pays back with a 1.3% RevPAR lift on a 30-unit portfolio
Embedded fractional partner for the year.
- —~48 dedicated working days across the year
- —Everything in Scale, plus quarterly reviews and owner-acquisition support
- —Priority access and direct line to Giacomo
Examples of what's included
- Design revamps with vetted partners for underperforming units
- Owner acquisition support and new-unit onboarding all year
Payback assumes a 30-unit portfolio at about £150 ADR and 65% occupancy (about £1.07M a year in room revenue), over one year.
1:1 Coaching
By application, for founders who want a sounding board rather than hands-on delivery.
2 of 5 spots open
Giacomo works with a maximum of 5 clients at any time, one dedicated day per week per client. Limited availability.
What clients say
In their words
“Jack (Giacomo) disrupted our business and we couldn't be happier.”
Telluride Travel Rentals
Read the case study →The Expert Behind the Engine
Giacomo
Five years inside Booking.com. Three years at Guesty delivering 500+ global projects. A portfolio of 3,000 luxury villas at Oliver's Travels. Now independent, helping operators build businesses that scale.
13
Years in STR
500+
Projects Delivered (at Guesty)
3,000
Luxury Villas Managed
6K+ operators and industry peers follow along on LinkedIn.
The Arc13 years. Three seats.
13 years. Three seats.
One industry.
2013–2018
Booking.com
Spent five years inside the world's largest OTA learning how distribution, algorithm and commercial strategy actually works, from the platform side.
2018–2021
Oliver's Travels
Managed a portfolio of 3,000 luxury villas across Europe and beyond. Operations, revenue, owner relationships and guest experience at serious scale.
2021–2024
Guesty
Implemented over 500 Guesty projects across 40+ countries. Built operational playbooks now used by some of the largest STR operators in the world.
2025: Now
The STR Engine
Independent STR consultant. Deploying everything learned inside those three organisations for growth-minded operators.
Proof of Work
Results
STR Engine client results
Track record at Guesty (before The STR Engine)
500+
Projects delivered at Guesty
Guesty implementations across 40+ countries, 2021 to 2024.
40→500
Listings scaled at Guesty
Operations set-ups that took client projects from 40 to 500+ listings without operational breakdown.
Convictions
What I Believe
"OTAs are a channel, not a strategy."
Airbnb and Booking.com are distribution tools. Treating them as your entire business limits your growth and margin.
"Tech stack pays for itself in 90 days."
Most operators underinvest in operations software. A well-configured PMS pays back in staff hours within the first quarter.
"Most operators are systems-poor, not effort-poor."
I've never met a failing STR operator who wasn't working hard. The issue is almost always a systems gap, not a motivation gap.
"Revenue management is not dynamic pricing."
A pricing tool is one input. Real revenue management touches pricing, LOS, distribution mix, and demand forecasting together.
"Scale without systems is organised chaos."
Adding units without fixing your operational foundation doesn't multiply revenue. It multiplies problems.
"The best STR businesses are boring to run."
If your business requires your daily presence to function, you own a job, not a business. The goal is a machine that runs without you.
From the playbook
5 Guesty setup mistakes that quietly cost you bookings
The Guesty setup mistakes I find most often when I compare a PMS to what guests see on Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, and how to fix each one.
ReadGuesty Consultant: What They Do & When to Hire One
What a Guesty consultant does, when to hire one, and how expert consulting helps property managers optimise PMS setup and scale operations.
ReadDistribution Strategy for Portfolios of 30+ STR Properties
Practical playbook for STR operators with 30+ properties, multi-channel distribution, reducing Airbnb dependency and activating direct bookings.
ReadWhy Your STR Revenue Is Plateauing (And Fixes)
Five quiet mistakes that compound into a revenue ceiling for short-term rental operators, from Smart Pricing dependency to misconfigured dynamic pricing tools, over-automation, stale seasonal pricing, and OTA over-reliance.
ReadOwner Acquisition for STR Operators: Complete Guide
How short-term rental operators and property managers acquire owners: channel economics, acquisition cost benchmarks, churn rates, conversion and retention.
ReadFAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The STR Engine?▼
The STR Engine is the consulting practice of Giacomo. A four-system framework (Demand, Revenue, Operations, Growth) for short-term rental operators serious about scaling beyond effort-driven growth.
Who do you typically work with?▼
Property managers and STR operators scaling beyond owner-operator stage and needing to professionalise systems, revenue management, and operations.
Do you only work on Guesty?▼
Guesty is a core part of my expertise. I delivered 500+ implementations during my time there. But the STR Engine framework is platform-agnostic. I work across PMS platforms and frequently lead migrations.
How are engagements structured?▼
Every engagement starts with a 30-minute fit call to find your biggest constraint. From there, you choose one of four plans, Sprint, Momentum, Scale, or Partner, based on the depth of the fix you need. Each plan is built around one dedicated day per week of my time on your business.
Why only one day a week?▼
I work with a maximum of 5 clients at a time, one dedicated day per week per client. This keeps the work hands-on rather than spread thin across dozens of accounts. If you need more intensive, embedded support, the Partner plan is built for that.
What happens after my plan ends?▼
Most clients move from Sprint to Momentum, or Momentum to Scale, as the next leak becomes clear. Partner clients typically renew annually, with a quarterly review to catch the next constraint before it becomes a problem.
Where are you based?▼
Cambridge, UK. I work with clients across the UK and worldwide.
Do you offer a free consultation?▼
Yes, a 30-minute fit call to understand your business and decide whether working together makes sense before you commit to a plan.
Book Directly
Book a 30-Minute Fit Call
Pick a slot that works for you. No forms, no back-and-forth. We'll use the 30 minutes to find your biggest revenue constraint.
See available 30-minute slots and pick the one that suits you.
Calendar not loading? Open the booking page or email jack@thestrengine.com.
Ready to Scale?
Start the Engine.
Book a 30-minute fit call to find out which system is your biggest constraint.
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