This past week I visited Matt
Durrette who is often accidentally referred to as "Matt Cozi."
This is simultaneously not weird (COZI is the name of Matt’s property management company in Texas Hill Country) but also very weird seeing as though his last name is clearly stated Durrette and yet people continue call him Matt Cozi. (People like me continue to call him Matt COZI.)
Matt runs COZiVR with his wife Jenna (who used to design gear at Under Armor and now designs vacation rentals),
EmilyRead (who is the “integrator” of Matt and Jenna’s vision), and finally Matt runs COZI with an incredible team that more resembles a family (photo with some members attached). The market has blown up over the last decade and accelerated post-covid so COZI has grown to 300 properties and takes on ~10 new properties per week.
COZI is what I’d call the quintessential wave rider.
Note: In it’s early days when raising money, a specialist referred to Amazon as the “quintessential wave rider” and I now use this phrase to describe certain Homerunners or STR professionals who are positioned, thanks to a combination of hard work and vision and sheer timing, to be the biggest winners as our industry continues to grow. You don’t have to be big to be a quintessential wave rider. I have documented the various ways extensively in my concept Hydrofoil.
From a high-level, here are the 5 things that make COZI special in this market:
1. Superb Limited Edition positioning (it’s a family owned and operated, locally based, specialized in a region (that happens to be exploding) and property type that’s highly-desirable, and finally delivers delightful surprises (check out these fancy charcuterie board upon arrival). COZI reiterates all these elements throughout their business and for that reason no bigger, richer competition can compete.
2. Entrepreneur Operating System: EOS is the big game changer…it’s a way of systematizing everything about your small business into steps so everyone on the entire team is climbing in sync. COZI uses EOS in a way that everyone member of this community should consider (1 property to 100).
3. Tech Fluency: COZI uses any technology that will better the experience for guests, team members, and homeowners. They currently have 27 pieces in their technology stack (OMG)
4. No Jerks Policy: Quintessential wave riders are better than most at finding talent and keeping talent and in a market like Texas Hill Country where the talent pool is small, being a good person is especially impactful. I trace a lot of COZI’s success with their team to EOS — giving team members the best possible chances to succeed with clarity and guideposts — but it’s way more about just being really kind, smart, generous people.
Steve Schwab calls this the “no jerks policy” (it’s literally written in his guest and homeowner contracts) which repels the jerks and attracts more good people who then set in stone the social norms (aka. culture) of the company.
5. Hospitality as the new marketing: this is central to my new Concept "Parlay" which represents an epiphany about Listing Site Independence: that direct bookings don't happen in a vacuum. They happen when you start to see the bigger picture...how hospitality gestures are the new marketing (justifying and warranting budgets for special surprises) and the most impactful ROI marketing investment to drive direct bookings over time.
I think these 5 things make Matt and his team at COZI the quintessential wave rider. They are growing like a slow and steady machine...also doing a fantastic job of combatting the reputation of STRs in their destination...the amount of community work that COZI participates in (including city hall, economic impact studies, and well paying jobs provided in a tourism destination that otherwise is beginning to suffer from well paying jobs).
So community members QUESTION...
Do you know any quintessential wave riders (maybe you are one yourself?)
Maybe you too embody some of these observations?
Please jump into the discussion below and share any differentiating elements (included or not) that describe you!
Durrette who is often accidentally referred to as "Matt Cozi."This is simultaneously not weird (COZI is the name of Matt’s property management company in Texas Hill Country) but also very weird seeing as though his last name is clearly stated Durrette and yet people continue call him Matt Cozi. (People like me continue to call him Matt COZI.)
Matt runs COZiVR with his wife Jenna (who used to design gear at Under Armor and now designs vacation rentals),
EmilyRead (who is the “integrator” of Matt and Jenna’s vision), and finally Matt runs COZI with an incredible team that more resembles a family (photo with some members attached). The market has blown up over the last decade and accelerated post-covid so COZI has grown to 300 properties and takes on ~10 new properties per week.COZI is what I’d call the quintessential wave rider.
Note: In it’s early days when raising money, a specialist referred to Amazon as the “quintessential wave rider” and I now use this phrase to describe certain Homerunners or STR professionals who are positioned, thanks to a combination of hard work and vision and sheer timing, to be the biggest winners as our industry continues to grow. You don’t have to be big to be a quintessential wave rider. I have documented the various ways extensively in my concept Hydrofoil.
From a high-level, here are the 5 things that make COZI special in this market:
1. Superb Limited Edition positioning (it’s a family owned and operated, locally based, specialized in a region (that happens to be exploding) and property type that’s highly-desirable, and finally delivers delightful surprises (check out these fancy charcuterie board upon arrival). COZI reiterates all these elements throughout their business and for that reason no bigger, richer competition can compete.
2. Entrepreneur Operating System: EOS is the big game changer…it’s a way of systematizing everything about your small business into steps so everyone on the entire team is climbing in sync. COZI uses EOS in a way that everyone member of this community should consider (1 property to 100).
3. Tech Fluency: COZI uses any technology that will better the experience for guests, team members, and homeowners. They currently have 27 pieces in their technology stack (OMG)
4. No Jerks Policy: Quintessential wave riders are better than most at finding talent and keeping talent and in a market like Texas Hill Country where the talent pool is small, being a good person is especially impactful. I trace a lot of COZI’s success with their team to EOS — giving team members the best possible chances to succeed with clarity and guideposts — but it’s way more about just being really kind, smart, generous people.
Steve Schwab calls this the “no jerks policy” (it’s literally written in his guest and homeowner contracts) which repels the jerks and attracts more good people who then set in stone the social norms (aka. culture) of the company.5. Hospitality as the new marketing: this is central to my new Concept "Parlay" which represents an epiphany about Listing Site Independence: that direct bookings don't happen in a vacuum. They happen when you start to see the bigger picture...how hospitality gestures are the new marketing (justifying and warranting budgets for special surprises) and the most impactful ROI marketing investment to drive direct bookings over time.
I think these 5 things make Matt and his team at COZI the quintessential wave rider. They are growing like a slow and steady machine...also doing a fantastic job of combatting the reputation of STRs in their destination...the amount of community work that COZI participates in (including city hall, economic impact studies, and well paying jobs provided in a tourism destination that otherwise is beginning to suffer from well paying jobs).
So community members QUESTION...
Do you know any quintessential wave riders (maybe you are one yourself?)
Maybe you too embody some of these observations?
Please jump into the discussion below and share any differentiating elements (included or not) that describe you!
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