SCALE UK 2025

Damian Sheridan and Louise Brace opens up proceedings with a short welcome message for all attendees and an outline of what to expect for the day ahead.

Acquiring new properties is essential for any successful short-term rental business, but this growth must be balanced with the critical task of maintaining positive relationships with property owners.

Our panellists will discuss their proven strategies for identifying and onboarding new properties, whilst ensuring a smooth transition for a long-term, successful partnership.

With the widespread adoption of AI and automation, the roles of property management teams and the skills needed to scale and optimise their businesses are changing. Revenue managers know this well: their job has changed rapidly ever since the introduction of pricing algorithms. This role is the canary in the coalmine for short-term rentals. The first big change to make owners ask, “Do I really need a revenue manager?” and make revenue managers learn new skills and technology to adapt and thrive.

PriceLabs believes that all property management roles can learn from this. From guest experience to owner relations, every part of a property management business is affected by the onset of AI. But that’s not a bad thing. With a strong strategy and the soft skills AI can’t replace — like focused communication, data storytelling, and stakeholder alignment — this session will provide you with ways to reinvent and reshape roles in the advent of AI.

Attendees will leave with:

• A strategic framework to unlock revenue gains across your entire business — from owner contracts to listing photos.

• Proven tactics to upskill your team in the high-impact abilities that drive smarter pricing and stronger performance.

• Actionable use cases showing exactly where automation adds value — and where your team’s expertise remains critical.

Whether you’re scaling from 20 to 200 properties or just refining your revenue processes, this session will help you lead with strategy, not just software.

Scaling doesn’t have to mean losing the human touch. Join this conversation on how STR professionals can embed empathy, care and technology into guest experiences while managing the complexities of multi-property growth.

From Insights to Action: What top operators are doing differently. This isn’t just another market data update. In this joint session, a leading data provider and top UK operator reveal, will reveal how operator behaviour is shifting and the strategic decisions driving growth in 2025.

Together, they’ll explore real data trends (think: channel diversification, stay lengths, portfolio mix) and dig into the actions successful operators are taking in response. Less about what’s happening in the market and more about what to do about it.

Hospitality has a body count: unspoken exclusions, masked rejection, doors that never open. Yet behind every booking is a human – carrying history, trauma, joy, contradiction. Forget this and you kill the very idea of welcome.

In this anarchic session, Neely Khan and Damian Sheridan will rip open the language of “hospitality” and set fire to its clichés. Expect raw story, theatre, and truths that crawl under your skin. This is not diversity training or some sh*t. This is a reckoning – and reckonings, if you’re brave enough to face them, turn discomfort into revenue.

All welcome. But brace yourself.

*This session was originally planned VRMA International 2025 where it was rejected. Their loss. Here it is. One time only*

Reshaping guest engagement and the SEO strategy.
How operators need to transform their marketing strategies and reposition themselves online.

It’s not just about five stars. It’s about five senses, five emotions and five seconds to impress.

The luxury guest of 2025 is more discerning, more digitally connected and more emotionally driven than ever before. 

In this session, we dive deep into the psychology behind high-end travel decisions: What builds trust? What signals status? And what kills a booking? 

Our panel of top-tier operators share real guest stories and the subtle strategies that keep their ultra-demanding clientele coming back for more.

This interactive and provocative session reframes guest experience as a revenue driver, tech enabler and brand differentiator.

Andy Easton of Beach Retreats in Cornwall and John Keggin of Island Escapes on the Isle of Man share the stories and experiences that lead to the successful acquisitions of their short-term rental businesses in 2025.

This session is an exploration of new and alternative distribution channels (including mid-term rentals and serviced accommodation) for STR operators to consider as regulation and other factors take hold and affect the UK short-term rental market.

Running a business while navigating solo parenting, family responsibilities and shifting personal priorities isn’t just a personal challenge, it’s a leadership one. In this session, female STR leaders share how they’re managing the pressure of being pulled in multiple directions, while still building resilient businesses.

Expect honest conversation and practical strategies to protect your mental bandwidth, lead with clarity and scale sustainably, without burning out. It’s not work-life balance. It’s business-life alignment!

This session isn’t just for the women in the room, it’s for anyone working in STR who wants better insight into the ‘juggle’ their female colleagues and collaborators navigate every day.

‘Become More Bookable, Lovable & Profitable’ explores how sustainability has evolved from a moral choice into a competitive advantage for short-term let professionals. This dynamic panel will reveal how positive brand identity, smart marketing, and ethical operations can drive bookings, loyalty, and profitability, proving that doing good is good business.

Learn from three successful property managers about how they are using AI tools on a day-to-day basis to streamline operations and become more profitable.

Join Jessica Gillingham for an inspiring fireside chat with Steve Schwab, founder and CEO of Casago. From his beginnings as a U.S. Army Ranger to leading one of North America’s largest property management companies, Steve shares his extraordinary journey of growth, resilience, and purpose. Together, they’ll explore how he built Casago’s trusted brand, his leadership philosophies — including the famous “no jerks policy” and his people-first approach to scaling with culture and integrity. Expect powerful insights on entrepreneurship, property management innovation, and what the future holds for professional operators in the short-term rental industry.

Drinks vouchers kindly provided by Zeal Tax

Join Guesty, Extenteam, PriceLabs, Extenteam, Suite Op and a whole host of professional property management companies for an exciting happy hour in Manchester with free drinks, bites, and good times.

For registered property managers only.