Focusing on the negative will take you off the path to success and you should always have a solution- oriented mindset. Take time to myself to sit and focus on the bigger picture and understand that when there is a will there is always a way.
Aspart of my series about prominent entrepreneurs and executives that overcame adversity to achieve great success, I had the pleasure of interviewing Anthony Marotta who built one of the most well known names in luxury rentals. Carefree Lifestyle is a well recognized dynasty in the luxury rental space, spanning an 18 year history and a nationwide reach in the industry, paving the way and creating the blueprint for how every luxury rental house operates today. He owns the app LUXnow.
Jason Crowley: Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to this specific career path?
Anthony Marotta: I recognized the need for luxury to catch up to the rest of the world. As the world advances into the future of shared economy with Uber and Airbnb spearheading the way, it’s time for the luxury industry to catch up. But unlike Airbnb and Uber, luxury consumers will always live inside luxury markets. You don’t go to Walmart to shop for your jewelry, would you? The time for a disruptor in the luxury market is here and making LUXnow’s services more relevant and urgently needed than ever.
Crowley: Can you share your story of when you were on the brink of failure? First, take us back to what it was like during the darkest days.
Marotta: I was in some real estate deals that did not produce as expected which led me to exit the deal at a loss, understanding this is a life lesson that was needed. I stayed positive and was able to achieve bigger and greater and stronger deals in the future with this new knowledge I have.
Crowley: What was your mindset during such a challenging time? Where did you get the drive to keep going when things were so hard?
Marotta: Staying positive and working out. Focusing on the negative will take you off the path to success and you should always have a solution- oriented mindset. Take time to myself to sit and focus on the bigger picture and understand that when there is a will there is always a way.
Crowley: Tell us how you were able to overcome such adversity and achieve massive success? What did the next chapter look like?
Marotta: The best strategy was trial and error and accepting the fact that not everything is going to work, especially because we are working in uncharted territory, transitioning from the old to new way. I used this to my advantage to stay focused during busy times.
I bring ideas to life by focusing on the ultimate goals of the project on a larger scale and then working backwards. For the app, I have been able to keep up with the times and integrate technology to access new inventory and streamline the process of helping users find luxury home and car rentals.
How everything is going digital these days. The old way of booking, speaking and interacting is the old way. The new ways allows for easier, faster, access and rentals that are happening in a more synchronized way.
Crowley: Based on your experience, can you share a 3 actionable pieces of advice about how to develop the mindset needed to persevere through adversity?
Marotta: Never refuse an invitation, never resist the unfamiliar, never fail to be polite and never outstay the welcome. Just keep your mind open and suck in the experience. And if it hurts, you know what? It’s probably worth it.
-Always smile and be positive- be present in the moment and understand that it may not all go your way
-Have no expectations, yet have very large goals and visions
-Stay grounded and always have balance in your life
My day starts very early in the morning. I start with a work out and focus my goals on the day. I start my day with a delicious green juice. I get to the office at 9:30 and go through the different inquiries from my company and set up to be able to execute with laser vision. I oversee the different positions in the company and look at it with a bird’s eye view to make it efficient for the customers and also for my employees who are leading the charge who bring customer service to market. I focus on the positive and make my day productive by not letting challenges boggle me down.
Crowley: None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
Marotta: My friend Lee Kerzner always taught me to persevere when things get tough. I am so lucky to have my family, wife and kids and good friends like Lee who always have my back and who I have seen overcome adversity and challenge personally. He and I have always shared good times and bad in our lives and have traveled the world together.
Crowley: Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
Marotta: We are working on launching in LA soon and this will help people because Luxury is inherently social and LUXnow will be no different. Beyond the extraordinary rental services, LUXnow members will enjoy lifestyle benefits and invitations to exclusive sought-after private events. The incredible history this company has had with clients for the past 18 years, from celebrities, athletes, business executives to entrepreneurs is now available to you. Now it is time for a new chapter in that legacy, one that will include the new faces of LUXnow members globally.
LUXnow is currently open in the South Florida market. Rapid growth projections have the company set to expand into 15 major cities and international locations by 2020.
Services for the platform include:
· On-demand booking luxury cars, homes and yachts
· Secure payment method
· Geo-location services to pull up availability in the area
· Verified members and user profiles
· Messaging system for owners and renters
· Peer reviews and rating system
· Push notifications for great deals in the area
· Partners can track earnings via the platform
Crowley: You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Marotta: Driven by the belief that the combination of community and technology is the intelligent way to experience luxury, LUXnow is introducing a secure, convenient, peer-to-peer platform allowing members and partners to share high-end assets with other members. A new global network has launched for luxury users that will change the landscape of luxury forever. LUXnow’s current curated inventory boasts an impressive selection of exotic cars, luxury homes, and yachts for users to indulge their luxury appetite.
Crowley: Any parting words of wisdom that you would like to share?
Marotta: My vision for LUXnow is to create a way for people all over the world to enjoy the fruits of their labor now, and on their time and their terms. The system is broken, and no one wants to spend their entire life working hard only to hopefully enjoy it all later in life.
Crowley: How can our readers follow you on social media?
Marotta: Instagram: instagram.com/luxnowapp
Facebook: facebook.com/luxnowgroup
Twitter: twitter.com/luxnowgroup
Website is luxnow.com
Crowley: Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational.