Simon Lehmann advises the operators, investors and technology vendors deciding the future of short-term rentals. Through his advisory practice he works with professional STR businesses, private equity and platform leaders on the strategic decisions that separate scaling businesses from plateauing ones: distribution, M&A, regulation and AI-driven transformation across the vacation rental value chain.
He sits on the boards of Landfolk, Pikl and the UK Short Term Accommodation Association (STAA), and on the advisory boards of Arqdia and Host.ai. He is the former chairman of MadeComfy in Australia, which he led through to exit, and a former board member of HomeAway.
Simon’s frameworks come from 20 years of operating decisions rather than theory. As CEO of Interhome he grew revenue to CHF 400 million, and he served as Deputy CEO of Hotelplan Group, with earlier executive roles including Swissport. Today he runs his practice AI-native, using tools such as Claude to deliver faster and deeper analysis than traditional advisory, and he is known for saying what others in the room will not.
He hosts STR Global Unlocked, the podcast and newsletter where founders, CEOs and investors discuss what is actually working in travel, technology and the STR ecosystem, and he teaches operators through Simon Lehmann STR Academy..