Scaling Boutique Hotels Without Losing Soul: How Origin Hotels Creates Authentic Local Experiences Across 7 Cities
In this episode of The Inn Crowd, host Jamie Mattingly sits down with Baylee, Director of Sales at Origin Hotel Austin, to explore how a fast-growing boutique hotel brand maintains authentic local character while scaling rapidly. From Willie Nelson-signed cowboy hats in Austin lobbies to tiger stripes in Baton Rouge, Baylee reveals how Origin Hotels creates Instagram-worthy moments that truly reflect each city's culture.
Tune in for insider strategies on influencer partnerships, user-generated content, the challenges of two-week booking windows, and what it really takes to build a scalable boutique brand without losing your soul.
🎧 What Listeners Will Learn:
How to scale a boutique hotel brand from 1 to 7 properties without losing authentic local character
The three-pillar strategy (venture, balance, connect) that keeps Origin's brand consistent across diverse markets
Why booking windows have shrunk to just two weeks and how this impacts revenue forecasting for hotels
How to empower staff with authentic local knowledge instead of corporate scripts and "open palm" techniques
Cost-effective influencer marketing strategies, including partnerships with local athletes like SEC Player of the Year Madison Booker
The art of creating "Instagrammable moments" through funky local art and design that encourages user-generated content
Smart partnership strategies with local businesses (like Austin Film Studios) that establish hotels as community pillars
Why saying "no" to certain markets protects brand authenticity and long-term success
How to leverage social media engagement and community events like business mixers for organic marketing growth
The difference between cookie-cutter corporate hotels and boutique brands that create a genuine "sense of place"
🔗 Links Mentioned in This Episode:
👤 Guest – Baylee | Origin Hotel Austin
Origin Hotels Website: originhotel.com
Origin Austin Instagram: @origin_austin
Locations: Austin, Baton Rouge, Lexington, Red Rocks, Kansas City (expanding)
🎙️ Host – Jamie Mattingly | Duval Street Media
Podcast Website: https://www.duvalstreetmedia.com
Instagram: @duvalstreetmedia
Guest Submissions: https://www.duvalstreetmedia.com
📍 Featured Partners & Locations:
Austin Film Studios - Origin's preferred hotel partner
Mueller Business District - Austin location and community hub
Madison Booker - UT Women's Basketball, SEC Player of the Year
South by Southwest (SXSW) - Austin's famous festival
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Jamie Mattingly (00:07)
Welcome to The Inn-crowd.
where we explore the people and properties reshaping hospitality. Today we're headed to Austin, Texas, a city bursting with culture, creativity and energy to talk to Baylee, Director of Sales at Origin Hotel Austin, part of a growing brand that's redefining what it means to be boutique. Baylee, welcome to the show.
Baylee Colson (00:26)
Thank you so much for having me on, I'm so excited.
Jamie Mattingly (00:30)
My pleasure. I'm very excited to dig in. think the Origin brand is very, very cool. think our listeners are going to learn a lot today if you're interested in creating a boutique brand and scaling it. You guys are doing a very great job at scaling. So I'm really excited to dig in today with you guys. But for those who are unfamiliar with Origin, how would you describe the brand and what makes it so special and distinct in today's hospitality landscape?
Baylee Colson (00:44)
Yeah.
So we describe ourselves as a lifestyle brand. We provide a very locally immersive and unique experience for our travelers. Instead of being standardized cookie cutter corporate hotel, we are designed to reflect the specific culture of each city. Whether it's the history or the character of the surrounding city or region, you're going to go to our seven.
I believe seven different locations in growing and you're going to know you're in origin, but it's going to feel like you're at an origin in that specific city. So no two locations are alike, whether it's their design, the amenities or the restaurant concept. It's tailored to that local environment.
Jamie Mattingly (01:40)
That's what it looks like. It really feels like you build the hotels to match the city that they're in, right? And you are from Austin, so when you go there, you feel very Austin-y, right? Is that how we describe that?
Baylee Colson (01:46)
Right.
Yeah,
absolutely. And we have so many fun, unique touches. Like you walk into our lobby, you're gonna see immediately a wall of cowboy hats, which is just so Austin in your face. And we have one of the hats signed by Willie Nelson. So immediately you are greeted by Austin.
Jamie Mattingly (02:08)
I love that. That makes, I actually was just talking about Willie Nelson like five minutes ago. So it's just so perfect.
Baylee Colson (02:14)
He's
the coolest. Austinites worship Willie Nelson.
Jamie Mattingly (02:19)
We got so, so I'm from Key
West, Florida. We got very lucky. He came down a couple of years ago and performed. Yeah. And you know, we don't have a lot. We don't have a big amphitheater. So it felt truly like an honor. We rolled out the red carpet.
Baylee Colson (02:23)
really?
No.
No, actually, and he doesn't, yeah,
he does not perform very often. So that is lucky.
Jamie Mattingly (02:36)
Yes,
we felt very honored. So let's start with the big picture, right? Origin isn't your average hotel collection. It's boutique, but it's also growing very fast. So how do you scale a brand without losing the charm that made it so special in the first place?
Baylee Colson (02:40)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
So it's, I'm glad you're asking this because it is growing so fast and we're always like, how are they gonna do this? How can we keep it true to our authentic culture and what we were founded upon?
Okay, so our owners, big businessmen, they traveled a lot, they stayed in a lot of corporate style hotels. So it was their mission to create very unique and authentically centered hotels.
Jamie Mattingly (03:22)
sounds like, you know, it has to do with authenticity. When you know who you are, it's easier to create, right? So all we're talking about here is just how you create that one-of-a-kind feeling across a cohesive brand.
Baylee Colson (03:28)
Yeah. Right.
So it's important to remember why our owners got into this business in the first place. It's the criticality of non-negotiable brand pillars. We want to protect the values that our guests have come to know and love at each of our properties.
Jamie Mattingly (03:49)
Yeah, no, that makes so much sense. you know, I think we were talking a little bit about this before we got on here, but like when you know who you are as a brand, makes all of the decisions a lot easier, right? So if immersing yourself in the city is one of the pillars and one of the goals, you guys have clearly done a very great job of that. I am curious when you mentioned the owners, did they come from a hospitality background or they simply were just traveling so much and they're like, we want to stay somewhere we want to stay.
Baylee Colson (04:15)
Exactly, yes. no, they did not come from a hospitality background. They are businessmen who have come to know and love our lovely industry of hospitality. And they, yes, exactly, exactly. And they were tired of staying in those hotels that look the same exact from one city to another. know, Austin is not the same city as Charlotte, North Carolina. And we want to,
Jamie Mattingly (04:26)
with the help of people like you.
Baylee Colson (04:42)
show off our city. You spend so much money on traveling and where you stay and so you want your dollars to go far and something like this is really special to people. So it's really important to keep those brand values in mind and understanding the importance of sometimes saying no, know, it's so easy to expand and
take advantage of any real estate that comes across the board, but it might not be right for that market. And maybe that market isn't really in need of something that needs to be so immersed in the culture. So this brand specifically is really focused on markets that have unique cultures and are like really vying for a hotel like this.
Jamie Mattingly (05:26)
Yeah,
no, makes sense because experimental travel, experiential travel, not experimental, experiential travel is on the rise. And just like you said, you know, people are paying money for a hotel. They're traveling. Why would you want to stay in a typical, you know, box that everyone has? It's like if I'm in Austin, I want to feel like I'm in Austin, right? I don't want to feel like
Baylee Colson (05:42)
Right?
Exactly.
Jamie Mattingly (05:46)
It was the same hotel I stayed in everywhere else that I've ever been. So I think you guys are doing a great job of that. It can't be easy across that many hotels. Do you guys have lot of like internal team meetings to maintain these values across the properties?
Baylee Colson (06:01)
Yeah, absolutely. We are a smaller brand, of course. And we have a great small corporate team. They're small, but they are mighty. And like, boy, do they care. They really care. And I've never had the pleasure of actually connecting with a corporate team at my previous properties. Not to say it's horrible. It's hard. That's hard for brands. But it is really important that.
Jamie Mattingly (06:12)
Yeah.
Baylee Colson (06:24)
we get to get together and talk about what works across the board. So we'll do our monthly directors of sales meetings. And we just came back from a company-wide conference, which contained, I think, 50 people. So it's nice. I get to talk to this corporate team on a personal level. here's my struggles in my market, what has worked in other markets. But yeah, it's really great to have that opportunity to.
get to know my other locations.
Jamie Mattingly (06:54)
Yeah, that's so smart. Cause you guys may be struggling in an area that maybe isn't exactly the same, but this hotel might've solved it. And then you can share things that have worked with you guys in Austin and they just got to tweak it for their city, right? That's yeah. So you're growing at a great scale, at a great speed, but it's also helpful because you guys have a bigger unit to rely upon each other. I love 50 sounds large and small at the same time. It's like the perfect amount.
Baylee Colson (07:06)
Exactly. Exactly.
Yeah, right, exactly.
Lots of lessons learned definitely in all this expansion.
Jamie Mattingly (07:22)
Absolutely,
So creating a cohesive brand is one thing, but Origin doesn't just operate in the city. It feels like it's a part of it, right? So how does your team make that happen? How are you guys giving that experience to your guests and also through your design and the total vibes you guys are giving off?
Baylee Colson (07:27)
Right.
Right.
So the first thing is this brand is about the people, whether it's our guests or our team. So we're really empowering our team first to go out there and share your experience with our guests. While we, of course, promote professionalism, we don't want our
our team members to feel like they can't share their personal experience with their guests. That's what the guests want. At least for me, when I'm traveling, like I want to know, where do you go? Where do you go to eat dinner? I don't want to know who's giving you the most credits to suggest them. I want to know like a whole and all that you love. So we empower them to make those authentic connections with our guests.
Jamie Mattingly (08:25)
So you guys partner with a lot of local brands. Is that helpful for you guys to give, to really tie into the local city and give it that local feel?
Baylee Colson (08:33)
Yes, I am.
Yep, yes. So with our location, we had the opportunity to partner with a lot of companies right here in Mueller. So one of those is Austin Film Studios. And as you might know, film is a huge part of Austin's culture. So yeah, a little, right?
Jamie Mattingly (08:54)
I think I've heard of it a little bit.
Baylee Colson (08:57)
So one of our biggest partners is Austin Film Studios, which is just, I'm so proud of that. And like, I think that's very cool. We're their preferred hotel partner and they're just a mile down the road. And it just, it feels special and it's a really big part of getting our name out into the Austin scene. And it's so important that you...
can say that you are part of the Austin culture. we're really, that's something every, I think property works on is just making connections with their neighborhood. And it's, yeah.
Jamie Mattingly (09:36)
Yeah, it's so important right now. And as we just discussed, it's a growing trend, but one that I don't think is going away. So I don't know if trend is the right word, but I think since COVID, people have changed the way that they think about travel. And it's moving away from that cookie cutter box. And that's what I've really come to appreciate about your brand is it feels like you guys are creating the consistency that I could get with a big level chain.
Baylee Colson (09:49)
Right.
Right.
Jamie Mattingly (10:02)
but I get the fun, unique vibe that you guys have created for each of the cities that you're in. So that's something that I find really, really interesting. so now that we've explored sort of how you guys reflect the city inside of the property that you guys are at, let's zoom out and talk about the bigger picture. How do you guys market a collection that prides itself on being unpredictable in the best way? Like what?
Baylee Colson (10:18)
Great.
Jamie Mattingly (10:25)
does it look like to build brand recognition while keeping each property fresh and unexpected?
Baylee Colson (10:32)
To me, I think it's so important to say yes to opportunities that come your way. Building a small brand like ourselves, it's hard. So you want to partner like we just talked about with the local companies. And you want to have fun activities and activations for your guests and your local community. And even people that aren't necessarily giving you business directly.
it's so important just to be a pillar in your community. So whether that's like literally last night we hosted a Mueller business mixer. So just different business owners coming through and having a cocktail and just saying hello and meeting them, people that I haven't met yet, or saying yes to influencers. It's so easy to just get your...
save some marketing dollars and TikTok and Instagram is such a big part of our marketing scene these days. So having someone that has followers and young followers that are traveling for them to tell them that I stayed at this place in Austin and it was amazing is just so huge and it's near free. So that is such a big thing that you have to consider saying yes to.
Jamie Mattingly (11:43)
Yeah, you know, one of the things that I have noticed, this includes my clients who have come to me and be like, we really want to find some influencers or let's say prospects. I haven't really worked with them yet. And my first question always backs up and goes, okay, tell me who's your target customer? know, who's your target guest? Who is your brand? What is your tone? What's your voice? What's your aesthetic?
Do you know who you are? Because if you don't know who you are, you cannot expect an influencer to come in and be able to attract the right guest, right? That's why I think that probably works so well for you guys is you guys know exactly who you are. You know exactly who you're trying to attract, you know, and then within each city, it makes it easy to find the people that align with your target market. So I can totally see how that would work so well for your brand.
Baylee Colson (12:30)
Right, exactly. And I mean, whether we like it or not, everyone, I mean, the young Gen Z crowd, they're growing up, they're traveling, they're spending their own money. And they, after COVID, like you mentioned, our dollars don't go as far as they used to. It's changed so much. So people want to spend their money on things that they think is worth it. And then another thing we...
Jamie Mattingly (12:44)
you
Baylee Colson (12:53)
you know, partnered with the university and one of the
Star Women's basketball players, Madison Booker. She was SEC Player of the Year. We were so lucky to secure a partnership with her before she was even named Player of the Year. even just having an Instagram shoot with her and some funny little Instagram reels to show off our brand was so huge. Even if it's more localized in Austin, we want people to know that we exist. We want people to talk about us.
And just getting our name out there is so important.
Jamie Mattingly (13:28)
Yeah, absolutely. And have you found that your vibe individual to each property, right? That your vibe, your aesthetic has lent to your user generated content. Are people snapping selfies and enjoying themselves so much? Because you know, if you have a good strong brand, I feel like it does encourage user generated content more than you would expect if you're just that cookie cutter or if you don't really know who you are, right?
Baylee Colson (13:55)
Absolutely. So, yes, we have a lot of kind of Instagramable moments, I guess you would say, at each property.
Jamie Mattingly (14:02)
Yeah, yeah, definitely. And I've seen some online.
Yeah, you guys do have a ton of them, I would say. Across your portfolio, a ton of them.
Baylee Colson (14:07)
Yeah,
exactly. It's so easy to find any corner of the hotel and share a picture and it be like, that looks like a nice spot that I want to visit. So yeah, that's really important. then engaging with people on social media, I help kind of work on our social media.
cause as well. So sharing their content and commenting, thank you so much for staying and this is a great picture, things like that, really encourages people to share more and interact with us more.
Jamie Mattingly (14:39)
Yeah, I mean, who doesn't want to brag about their vacation? And I think, you know, it's such an easy, okay, I'll say easy thing for hotels to do. It's like, give them something to take a photo in front of. Add some plants, put up a mural, do something different that they want to snap that photo, you know? You can't just expect them to tag you and say, we had a great experience, you know? You got to give them a reason.
Baylee Colson (14:42)
Right.
Agreed.
Even, right,
and even if it's like funky, like we have some weird art. Like, it is weird. Like, we have a hook'em hand with bats, with bat wings. I'm like, what is that? But like, it's going to encourage people sharing things like that. Yeah, you would be like, what is that? I like it.
Jamie Mattingly (15:18)
I would jump in front of that and take a photo.
Yeah, as I'm taking the selfie, what is that?
So we know that, know, great marketing only works if we're meeting guest expectations, right? You can market, but then eventually the word's gonna get out that you're not necessarily following up. I can tell from your reviews and everything you guys are. What are today's travelers asking for and how is the Origin brand meeting those expectations?
Baylee Colson (15:38)
Yes.
think people are asking for genuine connection and authentic experience. So you go check in and you're cracking a joke with a front desk agent and you go get a beer at the bar and you can have a genuine...
connection with the bartender and like I mentioned before, are you, where do you like to go grab late night drinks and where should I go try dinner next? And the other thing is I've noticed a lot of people recently have been the trending kind of thing is booking really last minute stays. So
short term, the booking window is just so short right now. So people are deciding last minute, I'm going to go to Austin or I'm going to go to Lexington or whatever it is. And then they get there and they haven't planned anything. So they're depending on us to provide that experience. again, empowering our staff to give those experiences to our guests.
Jamie Mattingly (16:47)
So you're not limiting them to, know, go through that hyper corporate training session where, you know, it's like, no, people, when people come to the Florida Keys where I'm from, absolutely, they're, they want to ask you any bartender, any waitress, any store, you know, front desk, anybody, you tell me what your favorite restaurant is, you know, what beach would I go to? And
Baylee Colson (16:52)
Right.
Right.
Right.
Jamie Mattingly (17:09)
It feels more authentic than anything you can read online. And I think that that is something our guest, our modern traveler is really looking for,
Baylee Colson (17:17)
I and I've worked in properties, again, it's fine, but I've worked in properties that where you had to a certain Mr. And Mrs. a certain amount of times during your check-in and you had to say this and this when you checked them in and did you use your open palm? So it's nice, I'm sure it's refreshing, yes, you know, the open palm. It's refreshing to travelers to have a genuine.
human connection to someone that is going to be hosting your stay for how many ever days.
Jamie Mattingly (17:52)
Yeah, absolutely. Again, it just feels more authentic. We can tell when someone has been trained by a corporate robot. It's not really what I want to see when I'm traveling. So it does seem like you guys are speaking to a certain segment of travelers, but that is a huge and growing segment of travelers right now. So you guys are really hitting the mark on that. Are there any surprising behaviors or preferences that you've seen from recent guests?
Baylee Colson (17:55)
Right.
Right, exactly. No.
Thank you.
Jamie Mattingly (18:18)
across any of the hotels.
Baylee Colson (18:20)
Yeah,
absolutely. So like I mentioned, I mean, I really think right now we're seeing a really big uptick in short booking windows. So people are deciding last minute. They want to go travel, whether it's business. know, things are kind of uncertain right now in our economy. So businesses don't know what they can afford next month. And we're seeing two week booking windows right now. Yes, even corporate. Right. So.
Jamie Mattingly (18:42)
That's even like corporate, huh? Wow. Yeah, that's
a major change. We are not like that. Yeah. ⁓ no. Things are tough.
Baylee Colson (18:49)
I know, I'm like, how am I supposed to, how can I forecast for this? I don't know.
But yeah, I think that's one of the main things I'm seeing in the sales world. But yeah, sorry. ⁓ I have some notes. Okay.
Jamie Mattingly (19:05)
No, no, I mean, think that you've really hit the mark there. ⁓
Yeah, we'll just go ahead. I'm gonna clip my mark right here. Yeah, yeah, no problem.
Baylee Colson (19:12)
Okay, perfect, yeah, mark it there.
Jamie Mattingly (19:17)
So again, from reading through your reviews, going through your website, your socials, I can tell that you guys are clearly listening to what today's modern traveler, to what your guest specifically is looking for. But what about tomorrow, right? So Origin has had this beautiful growth story and as it continues to expand, I'd love to talk about.
How you guys plan on doing that without losing this soul that we've talked about this, this really great vibe interstate like of the city that you guys have created. So expanding a brand while staying grounded is tough. What lessons have you learned and how will you guys use those in the future?
Baylee Colson (19:49)
Right. Right.
Yeah, it's really important to keep those brand values in mind. And for us, that is venture balance and connect. So keeping those in mind as we expand.
And then just to bring it back to our owners, why did we get into this business? And we want to protect those values because that is at the end of the day, why our customers come to know and love us. If they've been to the Origin in Austin and all of a sudden next week they're traveling to Baton Baton Rouge, Louisiana, they are going to recognize that Origin brand and
want to stay there just because they know, they know what they can expect from Origin. So like I mentioned earlier as well, like it's not going to be right in every market. It's the willingness to say no. I'm sure it's so tempting to expand at the quickest pace possible. like you said, how can you keep authentic to your brand?
while also expanding so quickly. having a little self-control and investing in the right people. the people are the ultimate ambassadors of our brand's identity. And so it's finding that staff who can speak to their own city and training the staff to who genuinely embrace their local culture and our philosophy.
Jamie Mattingly (20:52)
Yeah, we all could use a little self-control.
Yeah, you know, I think that we can probably train most anybody to work at the front desk or, you know, to work in hospitality. It does take a certain personality type, but it's very hard to train someone to speak on a city if you haven't lived it, experienced it. You don't love it. It's your passion. You know what I mean? Like I could never speak on Austin the way that you could. And you could never probably speak on Key West the way that I could. And it's not that transferable. So it seems like that's such an important part of your brand.
Baylee Colson (21:33)
Great.
Jamie Mattingly (21:45)
is finding the people that are true in true city, whatever city it is. I was also curious, because you mentioned Baton Baton Rouge specifically. Do you guys find that you get a lot of people who have stayed at one hotel in one location and then are like, anytime I'm going to this location, if I am in a city with an origin, I'm staying at an origin?
Baylee Colson (21:46)
Great.
Yeah, actually, yeah, so as we expand because we've opened, I think, three new properties in the last year, which is a little crazy. yeah, absolutely, we will for sure. And they're all in kind of these unique, fun cities that people want to travel to and experience. for, actually, I'm from Baton Baton Rouge.
Funnily enough, so I'll have friends that are saying, yeah, they're like, isn't there an Origin in Baton Baton Rouge? Like, I really wanna stay there. Can you connect me with them? And it is really fun to hear that because we really know we've done our job across the brand if people are vying to stay at another hotel or another Origin hotel.
Jamie Mattingly (22:25)
No, really. ⁓
I love that. I'm going to your website now because I want to see, I'm going to read off all of your locations because it's so fun. I mean, they're so perfectly placed so far, which I'm, I'm like, whatever you guys are going next. I'm excited to see. So we've got Baton Baton Rouge, Lexington, Red Rocks. That will probably be my first stop. Austin and Kansas City. So have you been to all of them?
Baylee Colson (22:48)
Yeah, it is. They're all very fun.
And they're...
Yeah.
gosh, no, no, no, no, I've visited I think three or four of them.
Like I said, Baton Rouge is my hometown. Lexington is kind of our headquarters. Red Rocks I've been to. I certainly have not been to all of them, but they really do all have their own identity. Red Rocks, are focusing on music, of course. And Baton Baton Rouge football, like you should see the hotel. It is all Tiger stripes. Go Tigers.
Jamie Mattingly (23:25)
Love it.
So what would be the
thread beyond the experience we're giving? What's the thread? If I'm walking into your lobby in Baton Baton Rouge and then I walk into your lobby in Austin, is there something that I'm gonna go, yeah, this is an origin hotel with no one speaking to me? Is there something I'm gonna recognize? Is it that eclectic art you're talking about? You know, the design. you tell me a little bit about that?
Baylee Colson (23:32)
Right.
Yeah,
yeah, it's it it is kind of the general aesthetic across all of them. But it is again going to be our three pillars venture, balance, connect how our team connects to you and how we connect you to our beloved cities and how we're showcasing it in our hotels and how we're treating our guests ultimately.
Jamie Mattingly (24:18)
That's so great, because I personally love the consistency.
Baylee Colson (24:22)
Great.
Jamie Mattingly (24:22)
I want,
I do get a little nervous when I travel because I don't get to travel that often. Travel is expensive, right? I do see it as an investment. think it's a great investment in myself. you know, just travel, believe, as you'll hear when I end this conversation, I believe it has a power to change the world. So getting out there is very important, but I don't have a ton of money and it scares me sometimes to invest in a hotel you're not 100 % sure in. So I actually really appreciate the smaller boutique brands that give that personal experience, but also the consistency that you would
Baylee Colson (24:26)
Right.
I agree.
Jamie Mattingly (24:52)
get in a box brand. it seems like Origin Hotel has found the perfect mix between that.
Baylee Colson (24:54)
Right.
Right, and even so you could go to a different city and you go, oh, I've stayed at this insert big box name brand here. But you don't know, you don't know if this is gonna be the same hotel I stayed at in whatever other city, because ultimately it's so large, the brand is getting kind of eroded over each city.
Jamie Mattingly (25:26)
Yeah, 100%. the people, think it's, you the people really make a difference and you guys are big enough, but close enough that you guys all are on the same page and big corporate may not be, when it comes to the front desk person, right? They may not have the same personality that you're visiting, maybe Austin had at a different hotel. So I can definitely see that that being a very important factor, but also something very hard to attain for a corporate hotel, but you guys have found a perfect little,
Baylee Colson (25:30)
Right.
Yeah.
Great.
Right.
Jamie Mattingly (25:55)
level of that within your brand. as we are wrapping up here, I would love to end on a personal note. If someone is checking out, checking out of Austin or Origin Austin, and you know, it's a Sunday morning, what do you hope that they carry with them beyond just a great stay?
Baylee Colson (26:12)
I would want them to feel a sense of place, like they know this city, they belong in this city. I want them to feel a genuine connection to this amazing place and our amazing team. I want them to want to come back and then want to travel to other origin locations.
Jamie Mattingly (26:34)
Yeah, love that. And I love how you said you want them to feel a sense of place. I feel like I've traveled to cities and I've left and I'm like, I don't really know if I know the city. You know?
Baylee Colson (26:43)
Right, exactly.
And that's kind of our mission here.
Jamie Mattingly (26:46)
Yeah, so you're not only you encourage people to get out into the city, but it's like even when they're hanging out at the hotel, they are still immersed in the culture of this city. And that's so that's so special. I love it. Okay, well, this has been such a lovely conversation, Baylee. Thank you so much. And before we wrap up here, I would love to know or love to let our listeners know, as we mentioned, the seven cities that you guys are in.
If they are interested in booking a stay, where would be the first place they should go to get in touch with Origin Hotel?
Baylee Colson (27:17)
Yep, so we have one kind of main brand site that you can find all of our locations. It's originhotel.com, super easy. And then if you want to follow Austin on Instagram, it's origin underscore Austin.
Jamie Mattingly (27:30)
Yes, go in there, go to the website,
follow all of the properties, because trust me, once you stay at one, if you're in a city with another one, you're gonna stay there as well. So definitely be sure to follow them. Is there anything else as far as like social media? Do you guys do events or announcements? Do you guys have a newsletter that they should sign up for? Any way that they can track what you guys are doing or social media the best way for that?
Baylee Colson (27:40)
Yes. ⁓
Social media is the best way. We really value our social media. Austin, I'm very proud of our social media. We keep it funky fresh. Yeah, and we're always, thank you.
Jamie Mattingly (27:58)
All right, you guys heard that. You have to go check out the Austin page. And I have to, you know, you're right. You guys do a great job. And
I, I'm very excited to get to Austin one of these days to stay at the Origin Hotel and to do some, what you said, film industry. I want to go to, what is it, South by Southwest and just have a good old time. Yeah. Well, Baylee, thank you so much for sharing the heart behind Origin Austin and then the even bigger vision of the brand.
Baylee Colson (28:12)
⁓ yeah. yeah. Mm-hmm.
Jamie Mattingly (28:25)
If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a comment, share it. It really helps us attract other hoteliers and leaders in the industry like Baylee to have these conversations. If you know anyone who would make a great guest on the show, please go to duvalstreetmedia.com and send us a suggestion. I would love to hear who you guys wanna, I'd love to bring on anyone you guys wanna listen to. We've had some really great guests lately. So.
Thank you again, Baylee. want you to keep in contact when you guys start to grow, when you open up your next property, I want to bring you back on for the next conversation. Yeah, my pleasure. And to our listeners, remember the best travel doesn't just take us somewhere new, it changes how we see the world. So until next time, keep exploring, keep innovating and keep making an impact. Safe travels. All right. Thank
Baylee Colson (28:59)
absolutely. Thanks. Thanks, Jamie. I appreciate it.