255: Napkin Full of Jello
Nina Kleaveland spent years in marketing, loyalty, and strategy roles at major hospitality and travel companies like Starwood, American Express, and Wyndham before striking out on her own. She's now the founder of Lanyard, a company solving one of the industry's quietest headaches: where seasonal and essential workers actually sleep. She's also the founder of Female Founders in Hospitality, building community for women doing exactly what she's done. Susan and Nina talk about pivots, partnerships, and picking the right problem to solve.
What You'll Learn:
- What turned a hostel concept for budget travelers into a lifeline for HR departments
- How biology and French degrees led to a corporate housing empire
- Why "do one thing well for one paying customer" became Nina's mantra
- What three co-founders with three different skill sets taught Nina about who to bring into a business
- How AI runs the back office at Lanyard without touching the human relationships that matter
- Where corporate housing is headed next, from unfurnished houses to almost a boat
Key takeaway: The hardest part of entrepreneurship is having the discipline to fix the right thing instead of chasing every shiny new idea.