Welcome to the latest edition of our “Meet The Experts” interview series on Inhaven’s blog, “ In The Know.” In this exciting installment, we speak with Inhaven’s very own Niki Antonelli. Niki is one of Inhaven’s merchandising experts. Join us as we explore how Niki supports Inhaven’s goal of providing a curated shopping experience for its clients by cultivating strong professional relationships with top manufacturers of hospitality-grade amenities.

MIMI: Hi, Niki. It’s so good to see you.

NIKI: Hi, Mimi!

MIMI: I feel pretty excited that you and I are getting this interview in because I feel like it’s been something we’ve talked about for as long as we’ve been doing the “Meet The Experts” interview series, so…

NIKI: Yes. I’m so glad we can finally connect.

MIMI: Can you tell us about your role at Inhaven?

NIKI: My role at Inhaven is to source the best quality products that meet the demands of our professional property managers, ultimately creating the best guest experience. At Inhaven, we look at a variety of criteria. First and foremost, the experts at Inhaven do our best to understand the suppliers and the products they manufacture. Are their products hospitality-grade? Can they withstand the wear and tear of a vacation rental and the guests? We ascertain where the suppliers are positioned in the market. At Inhaven, we’re very hands-on. Inhaven doesn’t onboard any and every supplier that offers pillows and blankets. Inhaven makes sure that the products meet the standards of our professional property manager clients. Our experts visit the manufacturing plants; we walk the different tradeshows. Collectively, our team has 100 years of merchandising experience. Inhaven experts understand the products because we’re there in the factories, learning what it takes to make quality hospitality-grade products. We also get to know our clients and their needs so we can bring what we know about the products to the conversation. Maybe one of our property management companies is looking to restock something they’ve typically outfitted their properties with, but because of our industry expertise, we might be able to recommend something a little better.

MIMI: Can you tell us a little bit about your day-to-day at Inhaven?

NIKI: Yeah, of course. Inhaven works with professional property managers. We develop a thorough understanding of the products that our clients tend to outfit their properties with. Primarily, my role is to ensure that Inhaven has the right types of hospitality and commercial-grade products to help our clients provide reliably positive experiences at their short-term rentals. I concentrate on creating and maintaining that customer success relationship with our clients. When professional property managers buy from Inhaven, I make sure that the process goes smoothly–their deliveries come on time, and there are no hiccups.

I also let our customers know when Inhaven brings in new products that fit their customer profiles. Inhaven wants to ensure our customers know we’re listening to them. I love going on-site to get a look at the homes that our property managers are managing. But I also want to see what their warehousing situation looks like. Getting that first-hand look is eye-opening.

Hypothetically, I might see that one of our clients is in the market for a coffeemaker. In that situation, I might be able to recommend a coffeemaker that Inhaven stocks that would be a good fit for their properties. Or, I might see that they’re in the market for new linens, kitchen products, or other consumables. Because of Inhaven’s hands-on approach, I might be able to let them know that we’ve recently stocked something that matches what they’re looking for. My goal is to bolster the product-customer success mix.

MIMI: It sounds like a cycle. It’s like Inhaven starts by figuring out what the clients need for their listings, and then Inhaven connects the clients to the product offerings that match their needs–I’m guessing that’s essentially the purpose of the Inhaven Checklists. If Inhaven gets any new products that might interest their clients, you let them know, like: “Hey, we have this great new product that would work for you, and we think you’ll really like it.” Is that more or less how it works?

NIKI: Yes, because Inhaven works so hard to establish relationships with the best vendors, and because we have in-house experts, our customers can rely on us. We’re the experts. We know what would work for them at every price point.

MIMI: We like asking our interviewees if working with Inhaven has changed their expectations about booking stays at short-term rentals. But, if you don’t mind, maybe we could begin by having you talk a little about your professional background.

NIKI: I did my undergraduate studies at Northwestern and finished at a finance-accredited school here in Chicago. Getting my degree in accounting. So, right out of school, I went into becoming an accounting analyst for a manufacturing company. Within that company, I went more into financial analytics. I ended up working with our different buyers of products, making sure that we were buying products that were profitable for the company reducing costs where need be. From there, I moved to Florida and started a new path in consulting, where I ended up at Office Depot headquarters in Boca Raton, FL, so within the product role, just not the finance piece of it.

I worked with Office Depot to help them grow their online business, starting in B2C, specifically tech. So I became a buyer for computers and printers, things like that. I spent the bulk of my career with Office Depot. I held different merchandising and buyer roles in different categories and developed a well-rounded expertise in different product categories.

My focus shifted from technology to janitorial products and then to breakroom products. Eventually, I became the merchandising lead for all ecommerce categories, focusing on growing our presence in the online space. Ten years ago, Office Depot was very much a retail-centric operation. The online competition was starting to heat up. We needed to strategize internally about how we might grow our footprint in the tech space.

MIMI: it’s got to be really difficult for retail-oriented entities to compete with ecommerce natives, right?

NIKI: Correct–correct. Before working with Inhaven, I worked for a software development company that focused on helping businesses grow their ecommerce capabilities. As their director of merchandising, I partnered with the merchandising teams of various companies, bringing the skills that I had honed while working with Office Depot. Essentially, as an extension of their team, I helped broker robust relationships between retailers and their merchants, strategizing with them to extend the reach of their ecommerce efforts while also expanding on their already existing retail strategy.

You’re right; it’s hard to compete with the Amazons of the world. It’s a nuanced struggle–trying to figure out how to grow the ecommerce side of their business without cannibalizing retail sales. How do retailers position themselves to take advantage of their niche to advance their ecommerce goals? Where are the gaps? What’s the white space where they might be falling short? What are the trends in the market? There are a lot of variables at play that require a lot of balance and attention.

MIMI: Is there a silver bullet for those brick-and-mortar retailers trying to have more of a place in the ecommerce landscape? What are they generally looking to do, and what is the typical solution?

NIKI: That’s a great question, Mimi, because you know, just two or three years ago, it was all product-focused. Today, that silver bullet is creating a unique customer experience that builds customer loyalty and differentiates you from big-box retail competitors like Amazon.

MIMI: So it’s all about customer experience?

NIKI: The silver bullet is the customer experience, but you also have to ensure you have the right products to get customers to your online store.

MIMI: It’s ensuring you have the right product for your ideal customer profile.

NIKI: Yes, very well said.

MIMI: And you also want to ensure the experience is memorable and pleasant using the platform. I imagine that’s also part of what makes working with Inhaven so attractive.

NIKI: Yes. Exactly. Absolutely.

MIMI: For a lot of people, short-term vacation rentals are a little like the Wild West in terms of reliability. It’s hit or miss. Some stays are awesome and some can be real nightmares. And I feel like a lot of us just come to terms with it because it’s an inexpensive alternative to the hotel industry. Has working for Inhaven changed how you approach booking a stay at short-term vacation rentals?

NIKI: Well, before Inhaven, when I was looking at a short-term rental or vacation rental property to stay in, my expectations weren’t as high as they are now. I definitely have higher expectations with regard to my bathing experience, my sleeping experience, and my eating experience. Before Inhaven, was I so concerned about matching all my forks? Not as much. I would say that now I’m much more diligent about reading reviews and looking at the hosts' pictures of their listings. Because, as we all know, reviews can ultimately be misleading, right? That’s part of the reason Inhaven is here–to help standardize the products in these homes. So, I pay closer attention to that, and I would say the first thing I do when I go into a vacation rental is open up all the cabinets to see if all of the host’s drinking glasses match. Does their dinnerware all match? Then I definitely do a plop on the bed to see if I’m getting that five-star sleeping experience that I read about in the listing.

That listing is important. If they say there’s a fully stocked bathroom, are all those promised amenities there? So, yeah, working at Inhaven has definitely changed the way I view short-term rentals or vacation rentals that I stay at.

MIMI: Totally. I totally understand that. Before working with Inhaven, I was like, “Ok, if it’s got a bed, that’s cool.” Now, I’m like, “Is this a Westin Heavenly Bed? Because if not, I don’t know…I might need to go somewhere else.” I didn’t know I could expect more from a short-term rental, but now I do.

NIKI: Exactly. You know, when you stay at a perfect vacation rental, you’re going to remember if you had the best sleep of your life. Alternatively, you’ll remember if you had the worst sleep of your life. People like telling stories about their vacations; it’s a primary benefit of going on vacation–you get to talk about it. Those stories get mileage. We tell those stories over and over again. The question for hosts is, what kind of stories do you want your guests to tell over and over again?

Not too long ago, I stayed at a short-term rental, and my neck and back hurt for two weeks afterward because the bedding and the pillows weren’t hospitality-grade. Believe it or not, it makes a huge difference. And that’s the difference between working with Inhaven and…not.

MIMI: It sounds like your role at Inhaven is a big part of what makes Inhaven so unique. Inhaven is a customer service-based shopping experience, and you help establish strong relationships with vendors to ensure that Inhaven has the best products for our clients. But it's more than that because it sounds like you’re saying that you also develop parallel relationships with our clients, ensuring they get everything they need. Both of these relationships–with the vendors and Inhaven clients–rely on your product expertise.

NIKI: I’d say that your description is pretty accurate. My role is a balancing act, and it changes from day to day. I manage Inhaven’s relationship with our current suppliers and keep accurate inventory counts while bringing in new vendors and trending products. I also maintain strong ties with our property manager clients, taking a look at the amenities that they want to offer at their properties and communicating with them how Inhaven can help them standardize their assortment so that they can offer their guests reliably amazing stays.

We hear it all the time: “I go to Costco for my towels. I go to Target for my cups.” And with Inhaven, you don’t have to do that anymore. Part of my day-to-day is creating Inhaven assortments for our customers, standardizing where they shop and the products they purchase to put into their homes.

MIMI: That’s amazing. Are there any industry trends that you’re noticing while you’re doing all of this research?

NIKI: Absolutely. I would say a big trend we’re starting to see is a preference for eco-friendly or sustainable products for the home. Whether it’s facial tissue or cleaning supplies, green alternatives have been an up-and-coming trend. Likewise, property managers are responding to that market demand for eco-friendly products.

MIMI: Are there any newer products that Inhaven is stocking that you’re excited about?

NIKI: I’m excited about Nellie’s Laundry products. They’re a luxury laundry manufacturer. The make laundry soda and dishwasher pods. They have a wide array of products, from towels to dry your pets to fruit and veggie wash. What makes them great is their commitment to using eco-friendly ingredients. Their products are non-toxic and phosphate-free.

Another new vendor that we’re bringing on board is  Genicook. They have fantastic food storage containers that are microwavable, BPA-free, and dishwasher-friendly. I think they’re perfect for the vacation rental industry.

Those are some of the newer products, but there are definitely some long-standing favorites that Inhaven is perpetually excited to stock, like  Libbey glassware. They’re known for being in a lot of restaurants and hotels today. They’re a customer favorite–great for the home. They have durable class products and they’re an A+ supplier to work with.

Inhaven also loves  BergHOFF kitchenware. They just launched their Leo line, which is entirely biodegradable–right down to the packaging. The Leo line would fit within that emerging sustainability and eco-friendly trend.

MIMI: I actually love Nellie’s product line. I use them personally. Niki, I want to thank you for your time. I have so much respect for what you do at Inhaven–especially after learning how much time and effort it takes to ensure that Inhaven sources the highest quality hospitality-grade products. There just so much relationship-building and really drilling down to what our clients really need.

NIKI: Of course; any time. It was a pleasure getting to talk about the work we’re doing at Inhaven.

Thank you for joining us for this insightful conversation with Niki in our "Meet The Experts" series. Keep an eye on our " In The Know" blog for more interviews like this, where we'll continue to uncover the stories and expertise of the people who make Inhaven a leader in vacation rental innovations. Don't miss out on the opportunity to gain behind-the-scenes knowledge and tips from our team of experts. Stay tuned, and discover how Inhaven is shaping the future of travel and hospitality—one expert at a time.