We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Monica Selinsky a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Monica, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you take vacations? Why or why not?

It’s important to clearly define the term “vacation.” To any parent that has ever existed, we all KNOW that there is a huge difference between “vacation” and “trip.” A vacation is adults-only, kid-free travel! Any level of travel with kids in-tow is most certainly a TRIP! ;) My husband, Eric, and I prioritize our family TRIPS around our full-house bookings. We enjoy sharing our love for travel and adventure with our 2 boys, Jake (8) & Campbell (4). But it is equally important that we pen in kid-free VACATIONS each year. Sometimes that may look like a quick weekend getaway to the NC mountains or a bigger 10-day splurge exploring a bucket list spot on the map! Time away is crucial! Not only does it allow us to hit the “Reset” button, it fuels us with inspiration and added perspective to best serve our guests at home! Wearing our “Host Hats,” we can better understand and anticipate our guests’ needs! Vacations (and sometimes Trips) are when we dream the most about our future!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

We wouldn’t stay with us! But our private rooms and entire home continue to be a spot guests love staying and coming back to! What started as a “side hustle” 6 years ago has evolved into a hospitality business! Welcoming guests from ALL walks of life into our family home has been one of our biggest joys. This is our boys’ “normal,” interacting with people from different countries, languages, backgrounds and I wouldn’t choose to raise them any differently. We pride ourselves on exceeding our guests’ expectations and providing the highest level of hospitality. Our 1890’s home is full of charm & character, but there is nothing “stuffy” about our guests’ experience and stay here. Fresh breakfast is included with private room stays and we cater to our guests’ purpose of stay. All 4 bedrooms of our home has its own private bathroom and fully stocked with shampoo, body wash, conditioner, hairdryers, & fresh towels. Just like our private room guests, we personally greet our full house guests with a warm welcome. We leave them with a dozen fresh eggs from our chickens, homemade baked good, quiche for their first morning’s breakfast, and ample amount of locally sourced coffee. Based on the purpose of the stay, we find ways to personalize our guests’ experience. Genuine human connection and 5-star hospitality is the core of our brand here at the Chick Inn on Main in Summerville, SC!

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

We truly believed that no one would want to stay with us! Our spare guest bedroom was sitting empty and thought it would be a fun “shot in the dark” to rent our private room/bathroom! Why, you ask? We thought it would be a fun way to meet new people and make a few extra bucks! We were quickly proven wrong and our guest room was consistently booked! From our first set of guests, fresh breakfast has always been included in our guests’ stay. What started as a side hustle slowly evolved into what is now our small family business. My husband and I kicked ourselves out of our upstairs master suite to accommodate a longer-term travel nurse. That worked so beautifully that we permanently turned our upstairs master into another private room. As avid travelers and adventure-seekers ourselves, we decided to give guests the opportunity to book our entire home. Each bedroom has its own private bathroom and its historic charm, location, and space comfortably accommodates multi-families, girls’ trips, family reunions, etc. When we get “kicked out” of our own home, it gives us the excuse to travel! I no longer work outside of the home–Managing the Chick Inn on Main is my full-time job and Eric continues to work as a home-health physical therapist. In 6 years of hosting, we pride ourselves on the 500 5-star reviews we have earned from our guests! Returning guests are the biggest compliment of all! We homeschool our oldest (Jake, 2nd grade) and Campbell (almost 4 yrs old) goes to a preschool walking distance from our home. Throughout our business growth, we continue to pivot and are open to trying new things! We are weeks away from launching our first ever website for the Chick Inn on Main and look forward to owning additional properties that serve our guests with the same level of comfort & hospitality!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Number of heads in beds is not our focus or priority. We genuinely LOVE our guests HARD! Each guest that steps foot inside our home is treated like family and we ensure they have nothing short of a 5-star stay and experience while they’re here. We enjoy paying careful attention to their purpose of stay and exceeding their expectations. Whether it’s a 1-night private room stay or 8-night full house booking, we welcome everyone with open arms and aim for that guest’s stay to be one they remember for a long time. We build a level of trust and relationships with our guests and we do not take that lightly. Guests often come back and/or recommend us to their friends, family, and villages. We are never something that we are not and remain transparent, honest, and laid back with our guests. Additionally, we live by “Community over Competition” and, most especially in our hospitality industry, we have the backs of the other incredible local hosts! We hosts all have something unique to offer guests and supporting others in the same space helps create credibility. We are grateful for the 3rd party booking platforms we have relied on to get us to where we are now. As we continue to grow, we want our guests to remember our branding and to be able to book directly through our own website!

Contact Info:

• Website: chickinnonmain.com …. COMING SOON!!!
• Instagram: @chick_inn_on_main
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChickInnonMain