Meet the 2021 Speakers

Ruben is the Co-Founder of GlampingHub and the American Glamping Association. GlampingHub is the largest transactional glamping booking platform with properties listed worldwide. GlampingHub now offers over 35,000 listings with offices in Denver and Seville, Spain.

Ruben completed both his Undergraduate degree and his MBA with a focus in International Business at Regis University. He is an affiliate faculty member at Regis University teaching Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the MBA program. Ruben resides in Colorado with his wife and two daughters

Kathleen Walsh, CEO and Founder of Advanced Outdoor Solutions, has been at the forefront of outdoor hospitality since 2003 when she developed her first multi-million dollar beachfront property. She has since developed and managed over $180 million in RV Park and Campground investments across the country. Kathleen served as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operations Officer for a large RV development company before branching out on her own. Advanced Outdoor Solutions is a full service management company specifically focused on the outdoor hospitality industry. She is a highly sought-after speaker and thought leader in the industry.

Steve is a Principal at Whitman Peterson and responsible for the oversight of the multifamily and lodging investment platforms. He led the underwriting and due diligence of the firm's investment in AutoCamp and oversees new acquisitions and developments, operations, and business plan execution of investments in that platform. While at Whitman Peterson, Steve has led the underwriting and closing of nearly $2.5 billion in new investments. Prior to Whitman Peterson, Steve spent five years at Barings Real Estate Advisers where he was responsible for the acquisition of new investments in the Western U.S. During his time at Barings, he was involved in the acquisition, underwriting, due diligence, and closing of over $2.0 billion in new investments. Prior to Barings, Steven was an analyst at Center Square Investment Management where he worked in acquisitions and was involved in the oversight of a $430 million portfolio. Steve is a licensed CA real estate broker and earned his MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He has a B.S. in Public Policy, Management, and Planning from the University of Southern California where he graduated magna cum laude. In his free time, Steve enjoys spending time with his wife, son, and daughter. He's an avid sports car enthusiast, tuna fisherman, and overnight backpacker.

Vinny Cuneo heads up Group Sales, Revenue Management and Reservation Sales for AutoCamp. AutoCamp is a growing brand of outdoor hospitality properties focused on simplifying adventure by connecting its guests and visitors with the great outdoors. Prior to joining AutoCamp Vinny spent time in Senior Revenue Strategy related roles with Noble House Hotels and Resorts, Pacific Hospitality Group and the Oxford Hotel Group. Vinny started his career in Hospitality with what at the time was known as, Destination Hotels and Resorts, spending a few years in Operations and Group Sales before shifting over to the Revenue Strategy side of the Hospitality Business.

Bobby is the co-founder and CEO of Firelight Camps, an experiential hospitality company that develops and manages luxury camping resorts. Prior to Firelight Camps, Bobby and his wife Emma opened, managed, and sold a boutique hostel and restaurant in Nicaragua called "La Buena Onda." He holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA '13 from the Johnson School at Cornell University, where he was a Roy Park Leadership Fellow and ran Cornell's startup incubator as an ELAB fellow. Robert was a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua, and has provided hospitality consulting services for the National Parks Service, Itza Lodge in Belize, and the luxury tent rental company, Contentment Camping. He lives in Ithaca, NY with his wife Emma and daughters Ayla and Cora.

Traveling for 9 years across 62 countries, Mike and Anne Howard are global travel experts with a specialty in glamping. They launched HoneyTrek.com to chronicle their odyssey and have since written National Geographic's bestselling book Ultimate Journeys for Two and the award-winning glamping guidebook, Comfortably Wild. As columnists for Glamping Business Americas magazine and advisors for the American Glamping Association, they are excited to share their expertise with the industry. Partnering with everyone from budding glampgrounds to established tent manufacturers, the Howards use their multifaceted skill set as photographers, writers, influencers, and consultants to improve their guest experience and share it with the world.

Bryan Auchterlonie is founder of Destination Capital and has more than 15 years experience in the traditional and non-traditional lodging sectors, with a particular emphasis on hospitality in resort destinations. Prior to founding Destination Capital, Bryan served as an executive with vacation rental company, Inspirato, where he led corporate growth initiatives. Bryan has extensive experience in high-profile resort destinations throughout North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as product experience in short-term rentals, master planned resorts, vacation clubs, fractional ownership clubs and mixed-use developments. Prior to Inspirato, Bryan worked with investment banks, East-West Financial Services and Houlihan Lokey, where he advised clients on a variety of assignments including mergers and acquisitions, valuation assessments, recapitalizations, divestitures and evaluation of strategic alternatives for both healthy and distressed companies.

Bryan received his B.A. from Kenyon College and his M.A. in International Finance from the Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). Bryan serves as Chairman for ULI's Recreation Development Council (Red Flight), and serves on a number of advisory boards including Homes & Villas by Marriott, Outsite, and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts Private Retreats. He lives in Denver with his wife and two boys. Bryan is an avid cyclist, skier, and loves to travel.

Bailey Aro Hutchence is a multi-passionate entrepreneur from Duluth, MN. She is the co-founder of Cedar Bound, an up-and-coming company making waves with their unique luxury glamping cabins. In addition, she owns two other successful companies: Bailey Aro Photography and White Spruce Market. Drawing from her 12+ years of experience as an entrepreneur, Bailey also coaches small business owners on social media, marketing strategy, client experience, productivity, and more. She offers a breath of fresh air by providing actionable wisdom and sustainable strategies that help business owners feel empowered and free.

Bailey lives in Duluth, MN with her husband and business partner, Hutch, and their two giant lap dogs.

Brandy co-founded Life inTentsTM with his wife Alice-Kate in 2016. Life inTents was started to help make comfortable camping more accessible: initially focused renting out a VW van and vintage camping trailers to eager Oregon travelers. In 2017 LiT began furnishing bell tents to create temporary pop-up glampgrounds for wedding and festival guests. In 2018 Brandy redesigned the traditional bell tent to create versions that are more suitable for long-term use; both the Fernweh and the Stella tents. Brandy is committed to helping others experience Joy, Comfort, and Connection at outdoor hospitality events and semi-permanent campsites. Prior to LiT, Brandy helped to lead the marketing efforts for such brands as Mountain House camping meals, WD-40, and Chicken of the Sea. Today he lives in Portland, Oregon with his talented wife and their two kiddo campers.

David Smith is a Senior Director at Whitman Peterson, where he focuses on capital markets and growth initiatives for the firm's portfolio of hospitality real estate assets. David was previously a Senior Director at RobertDouglas, where he advised on over $1 billion of hospitality financing and M&A assignments, representing leading ownership groups in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, including leading entrepreneurs and start-ups in the outdoor hospitality sector. He also previously worked in corporate finance at Macquarie Group in New York City. David is a graduate of the Master of Management in Hospitality (Real Estate) degree at Cornell University and earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia. He has also studied at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He is a member of the Cornell Hotel Society, the Urban Land Institute, and the advisory board of Saira Hospitality. He is currently based in Southern California, where he enjoys spending as much time as possible outdoors and in the ocean.

Since 2013 Mackenzie has been managing this 600-acre campground space in Mendocino County, Northern California. The former logging space and commercial fishery's is home to one of the largest private reservoirs in the North Coast region, where thousands of happy campers visit every year. The campground's historical presence in the community is working with locals to continue strengthening the Mendocino county economy. In addition to camping and family recreation, the campground additionally hosts private events and weddings, and now features a farmstand, recreational paintball, and competitive fishing.

Nathan and Rebeka are a husband and wife team who started Timberline Glamping Co. in early 2018 with one location and two tents. They had a simple vision in mind, to bring families and friends back together, enjoying the outdoors without everyday distractions and without sacrificing luxury, comfort and style. They have grown and expanded rapidly over the past few years, and currently have two locations in the 2021 season with several new locations coming in the 2022 season.

Nathan worked for more than a decade in the Oil and Gas Industry as well as the Department of Defense, specializing in technology. He spent years globetrotting around the world and has a unique perspective on how imperative it is for us to unplug and focus on what is truly important.

Rebeka gained her degree in International Business from Oregon State University and has a background in international law and education. She grew up in Oregon, camping with her family which began a lifelong love for the great outdoors.  Rebeka and Nathan enjoy being a part of the growing Glamping community here in the U.S. and around the world and have a passion for helping other entrepreneurs get started in the space. 

Ms. Heilala is passionate about the rapidly growing glamping industry. Her firm specializes in appraisal, feasibility studies and consulting services to the outdoor resort industry. Over the past 15 years, Shari has analyzed dozens of existing and proposed outdoor resorts throughout the North America. Ms. Heilala has provided feasibility studies a wide range of glamping projects ranging from $1 million to $80 million in cost. Shari has her undergraduate degree in Business from the University of Wisconsin - Madison with a double major in Real Estate and Finance. She attended Northwestern's Kellogg School for Management and is a member of the Appraisal Institute. In her early career days, she was a hotel valuation specialist at Cushman & Wakefield. She has recent personal experience real estate development. Her favorite outdoor adventures include camping, kayaking, roller skating, cycling, wakeboarding and snowboarding.

Todd is founder and CEO of Montare Hospitality Advisors, an M&A advisory group dedicated to the glamping and boutique lodging sectors. Todd has more than 30 years of hotel development and acquisitions experience at several major hotel brands and most recently as Chief Growth Officer at AutoCamp. A dual citizen of Australia and the U.S., Wynne-Parry worked in the U.S., Asia, Australia and the United Kingdom. He was instrumental in the development efforts for IHG, Starwood and Marriott in the Asia Pacific region and for Commune and Two Roads Hospitality globally. Todd earned an MBA from Thunderbird Graduate School of International Management and his BA from Alma College. He is the treasurer of the Board of Directors of the U.S. Development Trust for Scotland's University of Aberdeen and is an advisor to the American Glamping Association. As a devout outdoorsman and fly fisherman, he resides on the Deschutes River in Bend, Oregon, but prefers the open road towing his vintage Airstream Flying Cloud.

An avid outdoor enthusiast from birth, Dyana took her first RV trip as a newborn baby. At only a week-old mom and dad, packed her into a banana box and took her on a trip to Crowley Lake, Ca for the opening week of trout fishing season. She grew up in the outdoors of the Eastern Sierra and spent many a summer in a hand-built log cabin on Upsata Lake in Montana. This truly set the stage for a lifetime of passion in the outdoor recreation industry. Dyana has traveled by RV to the 48 contiguous states (Alaska is still on the bucket list), visited 26 national parks, and hiked many of California's most beautiful trails, including portions of the John Muir and Pacific Crest Trail. She holds an associate degree in Recreation Management; Parks and Leisure, is a Certified California Naturalist, and maintains a Wilderness First Aid certification. Professionally, she has worked as an outdoor recreation guide for REI, started and run multiple businesses in the fitness industry, has a seat on the board of CalTravel and serves on the Government Relations Committee.

Natalie has a 20+ year background in real estate, hotel development/ luxury property management and has worked with established hospitality companies such as Caesars Palace, lumiere, Telluride and Exceptional Stays. Her family has deep roots in Southwest Colorado and the mining era, so it was only natural she landed in Naturita, Colorado to create CampV.

CampV (originally named Vancorum) by the Vanadium Corporation of America was built in 1942 to house the engineers who worked in the nearby Uranium industry. The 120-acre parcel on the San Miguel River with 14 historic cabins and other relics was in need of restoration and has been transformed into a unique glamping and camping operation with emphasis on art and community. Newly opened in April of 2021, CampV is still in the start up phase of operation and expansion. In addition to the restoration, CampV has created a home for our newly formed arts non-profit West End (WE) Arts with a mission to bringing arts, opportunity, conversation and inspiration to rural community. 

As a co-founder of Four Points Funding, Shawn has been focused on building the startup ecosystem and community development across rural Colorado. He worked to organize a network of angel investors and, subsequently, an Opportunity Zone Fund investing in housing and outdoor hospitality. Shawn's current focus is Four Points Funding's growing Colorado hospitality portfolio which includes RV parks, glamping sites, and hot springs.
Prior to Four Points Funding, Shawn launched a career in technology by founding Quickstream Software, one of the first online document management and workflow systems, leading teams across the globe in Vietnam, India, and the UK. 

Kelsey is the Co-founder and CEO of the Shelter Co. Family of Brands, including Shelter Co., a luxury camping and event production company, The Get Out, a retail line of tents and outdoor gear, and River Electric, a glamping hotel and pool club in development in Guerneville, California. She was pivotal in putting "glamping" on the map for events a decade ago after seeing a need for nontraditional accommodations in beautiful places that were lacking in existing infrastructure. Having a unique experience in design, architecture and event planning, Kelsey took the trend to the next level. For the past 10 years, she has personally forged strong relationships with manufacturing partners around the globe to design and source canvas tents, furnishings and accessories, and has brought these products to life conceptualizing and executing notable events, parties, festivals, and weddings across the country. Kelsey leads the strategy and vision for all three businesses while raising two girls with her husband in Sonoma County, CA. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara and is a design school dropout.

Ben is the editor of Woodall's Campground Magazine (WCM) and its affiliated website WOODALLSCM.com, which provides news and information on the outdoor hospitality industry. With a background in both TV and newspapers, he has experience working in a variety of mediums, including video and social media. He lives in Michigan with his wife, Ferron, and their four children, two cats, four rabbits, 6 chickens, a beehive, and a dog.

For more than 35 years RDBA has been providing nationwide full spectrum outdoor hospitality consulting services including feasibility, business planning, site & building design, schematic site utilities & grading, design team management, value-engineering guidance, revenue enhancement strategies and much more. Ron is an architect, land planner and business consultant based in Austin TX, has owned an RV & cabin resort, has done construction management and provided interim management of resorts. Ron brings a "global perspective" of the Outdoor Hospitality business.