Photo: Johnny Davis Digital
The Short Term Rental (STR) business had humble beginnings back in 2008 when a new online disruptor named Airbnb launched in San Francisco. What began as the ability for a “guest” to rent a single room in a “host’s home” has grown to a 2025 revenue estimated at more than $12 billion dollars. What caused this rise of a new vacation model? Covid and a new employment option called “work from home”, among other things. People living in metropolitan areas wanted to “get out of town” and find locations with more open space in a home-away-from-home setting. Hotels could not offer the amenities of freedom that a whole-home short-term stay could offer. As the market grew, so did private investment. Travelers were now prioritizing an escape and immersive experience, which has continued to grow and expand.
Short-term rentals have become a category all their own. They aren’t hotels, and they aren’t primary homes. They’re high-use environments where comfort, durability and ease have to coexist—and where technology can either elevate the experience or ruin it with one confusing instruction.
I believe the best collaborations between interior design and technology design happen when we start with the same question: How should this space feel to the people living in it, especially when those people are guests?
That’s why I wanted to speak with Jessica Duce, Owner and Principal of JDuce Design, Vacation Rental Designers, and Co-Founder of the Vacation Rental Design Summit, who has helped define what “elevated” means in the short-term rental market. Not as a buzzword, but as a performance standard. Better design can command higher rates. A better design can reduce friction. And when technology is integrated well, guests don’t notice it. They just feel taken care of.
Sharon: How did you get your start in design?
Jessica Duce: I was working for a bank and somehow volunteered to redesign the offices and eventually the lobbies, and they liked what I did. My mom was a single mom working a lot of hours as an interior designer. I didn’t set out to follow in her footsteps, but then the bank started turning into a design studio.
It took one very simple phone call to point out what was already happening. My mother called me and said, “Do you realize you have a design business inside of a bank?” So, I quit the bank and started my own firm.
Sharon: What pulled you into vacation rental design?
Jessica: In 2015, I fell hard for vacation rentals back when it didn’t even feel like a niche yet. It was instant love for me. I found the faster timeline, fewer boundaries on creativity and flexibility very exciting and challenging.
A lot of my instincts came from growing up across different places like Nebraska, Connecticut and California, and also living in two households after my parents’ divorce. I saw two different worlds. I saw more creativity on my mom’s side because we had much less to work with than I did on my dad’s side. Either my stepmother or my mom always had this passion for home design; basically, I always dealt with a space reimagined.
Even the details tell you who you are. One year, we used the fabric from a prom dress for seat covers because we loved the fabric, and I most likely would not wear that dress again. We were being creative and sustainable designers even then.
Sharon: Tell me about the project that changed everything.
Jessica: A client I never worked with had seen my work in a home in Denver. She was living in Omaha and had bought a fully furnished, 10,000-square-foot vacation home in Oregon. And they wanted me to fly out and choose new flooring.
I had one job; choose flooring.
They picked me up at the airport, and we spent the three hour car ride to the property getting to know one another. I walked into the house. It’s this beautiful beach house, literally on a private beach, “11 steps to the sand”. The entire home, floor to ceiling, was totally painted in tan with a brown leather sofa, a horse pillow, and a horrible Tuscan oil painting. It was really bad.
And the floor, the whole reason I was there, was slate. Literally the worst decision you could choose to put into a beach house. It makes zero sense.
I had known these people for three hours. The contractor was there. The property manager was there. Everyone was waiting for me to look at the flooring samples. I told them I needed to see the whole house to get an idea of what would work best, which, truthfully, was nothing. Just changing the floor was not the solution, and I was almost sweating trying to professionally explain that.
So, I told the truth. I said, “Alright, I just got to tell you the flooring is not your biggest problem. It’s your furnishings.”
The contractor cracked: “Oh, I knew she’d be difficult! Designers are difficult!” The property management immediately hated me. And the owner just crossed his arms. I’m thinking, “Great, how am I going to get back to the airport now?”
Then the owner asked, “What would you do?”
I didn’t hesitate. I said, “I would paint and change your furniture. Think beach? Elevated beach!” They hired me on the spot.
Go with your gut. Tell the truth. Sometimes it hurts to be honest but honesty in design is the best policy.
Sharon: What happened after you redesigned it?
Jessica: The property manager had warned them not to hire me. “Waste of money,” the manager said. “This place rents.”
The owners let me do my thing anyway. They doubled the rent, then they tripled the rent. It is still, to this day, his highest producer.
And here’s the funny part: I went on to complete 10 projects with that property manager. The contractor circled back around and realized I knew what I was talking about, and that owner is now my partner in my business. She bought in.
Sharon: I loved your rock and roll pool project. Is there anything you can share about that project?
This was such an amazing project. We designed a pool in the shape of a guitar, but this project was unique beyond just a guitar pool. The lighting design for the pool and the exterior spaces was magical. The owner, who is in a rock band, worked closely with his own system integrator to ensure a true experience. The property has a top-of-the-line stage with acoustics, sound and lights. The music and lights can be adjusted throughout the entire property, including the buildings and the pool, to work with any musical situation. It’s pretty awesome.
Sharon: When people say “luxury vacation rental,” what does that mean to you?
Jessica: I don’t like using the word luxury because I think it’s become too commonplace. Nobody really knows how to understand what that word is anymore, so I’m very careful using it.
In 2015, my coastal instincts were literal. Whales and seashells, themed out in some of the rooms. That was fine then. Now, vacation rental design isn’t “hotel,” and it isn’t “home.” This category is different. Guests’ needs are always a priority, but they are now savvier and their expectations have increased.
COVID was a turning point. That was when our business exploded. People went from a weekend stay to three months.
We actually have data showing that an elevated rental yields at least 30 ppercent higher rates than a non-elevated rental. It’s not my data, it’s AirDNA. Here is an interesting fact: Millennials are driving that market growth.
And sometimes “elevated” is painfully basic. If you sleep eight people, you should have eight chairs at the dining table. Travelers are looking for spaces where the whole extended family can stay in the same place but can retreat to their own areas. Private chefs, wellness rooms, work-from-home spaces, outdoor areas, and even analogue rooms are popular features for an elevated vacation experience. It is a lot more than just “a room with a view and a private bath.”
Sharon: How do you balance aesthetics and durability?
Jessica: We design in high-traffic areas with comfort through our selection of fabrics and surfaces. Fewer accessories and more impact through art and lighting.
And I’m blunt about why good furniture matters. Cheeto fingers touch a chair. That’s just life. But our rentals don’t have the constant destruction people assume.
If you are sending the message to a lower-value audience, then that is exactly the kind of guest you are going to attract. That is also where the use of integrated sound, light and security can elevate the experience and add the aesthetics as well as the durability of a STR.
We have sofas in Revolution Performance fabric installed in 2017 in Oregon beach homes and we haven’t replaced them. Because they were made right, and they were designed right.
Sharon: Let’s talk must-have technology and outdoor entertainment spaces.
Jessica: The rule of vacation rental technology is brutal: it can’t be impressive if it’s frustrating.
An owner can literally get a bad review because a guest was frustrated by automatic blinds. Guests want the experience of luxury and convenience with very simple instructions.
Remote door locks are a must. Security, monitoring and simple controls matter more than showy panels. Proper lighting for guest safety as well as security for the guests and the property owners is important.
Even when a client wants all the fancy technology, I’ll advise them that if it threatens the guest experience, it is not technology that will help the rental. In Carmel, we offered a compromise. Guests can choose a package when they check in. It’s a yes or a no. Like an on or off. Very simple. There is nothing worse than spending your vacation time trying to figure out how to open and close the window treatments or turn on the sound system. It must be stress-free, or it is no longer an amenity.
When we design outdoor spaces, we create areas that are both appointed for gathering and individual moments. Guests need to have options. Sound is where design and technology really meet. Guests want to be free to enjoy the space, but you still may have neighbors to consider.
Stealth and distributed sound systems let guests live their best life without the neighborhood paying for it. Outdoors, I describe the “Disneyland effect”, multiple small speakers angled inward. Guests feel immersed in sound, but the neighbors aren’t bothered, and owners don’t have to post mean rules reminding guests to respect the neighbors.
Our guests love outdoor kitchens, so we always design a nice outdoor dining area. Lighting is one of the most important things we do because not only does it enhance the environment, but it is also crucial for safety. Of course, we design for layered light, task lighting for the grill area, and a softer ambient light for the patio areas. Landscape lighting is always part of the design conversation. Once again, the lighting controls must be just as easy to operate as the shading and the sound.
Sharon: What makes your relationship with a system integrator successful?
Jessica: I rely on integrators to share options and opportunities I’m not aware of. We work together to make sure it all stays cohesive with the design. I appreciate it when a technology design integrator shares the same enthusiasm for our design direction and motivations. We tend to work better together when we have a mutual understanding and respect for our crafts.
You’re going to listen to my ideas, and I’m going to listen to your ideas. Because I guarantee you there’s a lot of stuff you don’t know that I do and vice versa. The best magic happens when we utilize both those resources.
