Meet the Team...
Sarah Stanley
Director
With a background in farming, Sarah spent a good few years travelling the world before settling in Australia for 12 years. She returned to her beloved Cornwall in 2000 with the seed of an idea for a luxury holiday company. Sarah launched Unique Home Stays identifying a niche in the market for exclusive holidays and began the task of nurturing the business from her living room – also juggling a day-job and the demands of three then young children – Morgane, Josh and Bryce. Possessing a wealth of knowledge and understanding on anything to do with luxury holiday markets, Sarah is not one to rest on her laurels and constantly explores new ideas to drive the company forward. Renowned for hatching a new idea a day, Sarah’s enthusiasm, unbounded zeal and passion for the company is contagious!
Kahdine Roseveare-Shazell
Chief Operations Officer
With a head for figures and a keen eye for detail, strategy and business development, Kahdine’s directional approach is key in formulating the long-term plans for the business. Though Cornish born and bred, Kahdine’s global explorations have included trips to Indonesia, Bora Bora and Brazil. With a passion for property, Kahdine is currently project managing the planning and design of her own family pad. When not enjoying family days out with toddler Rupert, Kahdine enjoys nothing more than experiencing new eateries and luxury weekends away – all in the name of research of course!
Jess Clark
Interior Design Consultant
With an eye for design and our longest serving staff member (besides Sarah), Jess is an experienced veteran of the company. Having worked across all areas of the business – from bookings team to marketing, Jess’s passion for interior design can be seen in latest projects that include Firefly and The Stack. Although Jess can normally be found collating her next mood board, alongside working on interior design projects, Jess is involved with business development and brand awareness. When away from the office Jess can be found enjoying outdoor adventures with her children Lola and Bodi.
Francesca Reed
Marketing Manager
Francesca joined the team in Spring 2014 following several years working as an Interactive Media Consultant in radio. After completing her English and Communications degree at Cardiff University, Francesca continued her studies with the Chartered Institute of Marketing. When not at work (or talking about work!) you´ll find Francesca working up a sweat in the gym, down at the beach or painting watercolours for her stationary brand. This jetsetter also loves to explore unique accommodation in more exotic locations, with past excursions including stays in a converted nunnery in rural France, a cattle ranch in the Australian outback and a tree house with yoga pavilion in Costa Rica.
Lauren Williams
Digital Marketing Executive
After a whirlwind few years travelling the world on the back of her award-winning adventure travel blog, Lauren has returned to her Cornish roots to settle into the rhythm of life here at Unique Home Stays. A freelance travel journalist for a five years, Lauren comes with a library of publications under her belt including the Independent, Lonely Planet and Sunday Times Travel. Although long treks in Patagonia, road trips across India and luxury Bedouin escapes in Morocco are just the tip of the iceberg of her travels, she is glad to have two feet firmly on solid ground again. This Penzance-raised girl prefers the wilder side of life, and whether on weekends or far-flung adventures in the mountains, she’s happiest cooking over a fire, hiking in the hills and sleeping under canvas.
Charlotte Jenkins
Marketing Coordinator
Hailing from The Isles of Scilly, Charlotte grew up on her family´s farm complete with three holiday lets, which is where she learnt all about what makes the perfect home stay experience. Charlotte achieved a degree in Social Policy at the University of Birmingham, before setting off on an adventure visiting New York, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam. Charlotte now resides in Truro with her puppy Ted, but the archipelago just off the Southernwest tip of Cornwall will always hold a fond place in this proud Scillonian´s heart. In her free time Charlotte loves stomping the rugged cliffpaths (with puppy in tow of course), shopping in the quirky boutiques in Truro, and is currently in training for the World Pilot Gig Championships, due to take place on her home turf!
Samantha Cronin
Property Consultant
Sam has returned to Unique Home Stays following time out to work on a property project of her own and we couldn´t be more thrilled! After her previous time with Unique Home Stays she has resumed to her role as Property Consultant, which means she has the fun job of discovering gorgeous properties and considering them for inclusion within the Unique Home Stays portfolio. Cosmopolitan Sam was born in Italy and grew up in London until the charm of Cornwall persuaded her family to move here almost twenty years ago. A passion for horses and all things equine means that she is often to found out on a hack, admiring the beauty of Cornwall from the saddle or devoting her time to her son, James.
Clare Towl
Regional Partner Consultant
Growing up in a family within the building and decorating industry, Clare has always had a passion for property. Clare worked in the financial services sector for 14 years where she accumulated extensive experience with homeowners and gained her CeMAP qualification in mortgage advice and practice as well as her NFOPP qualification of the sale of residential property, lettings and property management - meaning she’s perfectly placed for liaising with potential new Unique Home Stays owners! Epicure Clare likes the finer things in life and as a worldwide globetrotter has eaten at some of the world’s top dining destinations. When she’s not updating her wine collection, Clare enjoys a spot of golf or boating along the creek.
Catherine Weldhen
Property Consultant
Catherine (or ´Cat´ as she prefers) was one of the original members of the Unique Home Stays team many moons ago when she headed up the Home Stay Specialists team. After flying the nest to gain invaluable experience as a sales negotiator for a high end estate agency, Catherine is delighted to have returned to the Unique Home Stays fold in her role as Property Consultant and brings with her a wealth of knowledge. Although farming is in her blood, these days glamorous Cat loves nothing more than a weekend away exploring market towns and bustling cities, drinking cocktails with her girlfriends. Holidaying in such far flung places as Thailand, America and South East Asia is a particular joy for Cat and her fiance, although now that they have Yorkipoo puppy Coco she thinks that the diverse corners of the UK might have to satiate her wanderlust so that Coco can come too. When not socialising or exploring, Cat is a very proud auntie and cherishes time spent with her niece and nephew down on the family farm.
Tracy Ware
Owner Liaison Consultant
Nature-lover Tracy has travelled extensively and her favourite trips have allowed her to indulge in diving the Red Sea, night time gallops across the palm groves of Morocco and exploring the Orangutan forests of Indonesia. Tracy loves nothing more than to roll her up sleeves and get stuck into a new challenge, especially when it comes to DIY or cooking. These interests, combined with many years delivering first-class customer service, are what drew Tracy to Unique Home Stays’ where she has worked as Client Care and Hamper Manager before moving into her current role. Tracy has a busy home life and with her mischievous parrot Edward, rescue dogs Phoebe and Jeffrey and small herd of free-range guinea pigs we can see why she loves the relative peace and quiet of the office so much!
Sarah Turney
Sales & Portfolio Manager
Northern lass Sarah moved from Cumbria to join the Unique Home Stays team here in North Cornwall. Having lived in Oxford, Norwich, York, Newcastle and Leeds throughout her career, she is certainly not new to relocation! Sarah has a degree in Visual Culture from Northumbria University in Newcastle where she took on a broad range of subjects including film, marketing and art & design, all of which she attributes to her keen eye for detail and love of the arts. She loves to travel and is passionate about music. Having travelled around Europe, Australia and America, Sarah says that it was the lure of the sunshine, beaches and laid back ‘Aussie-esque’ lifestyle that brought her to Cornwall. Sarah brings with her a great deal of professionalism and experience from her previous role in luxury holiday lettings in Cumbria.
Harriet Frisby
Property Owner Consultant
After completing her degree in Creative Events Management at Falmouth University, Harriet worked as chief conference organiser for a media and events company, where she organised global corporate events in locations such as Bangkok, Dubai and the US. In her free time you are likely to find Harriet getting competitive on the netball court, or roaming the Cornish landscape with her family. Having been brought up in a family business selling high-quality country clothing brands, Harriet’s knowledge and ethics provide a perfect fit for Unique Home Stays clients and partners.
Lucy Thompson
Property Owner Consultant
Lucy grew up in the fresh air and green dales of North Yorkshire and enjoyed the stylish offerings of Harrogate before she and husband Neil, tempted by the sun, sand and surf of the Cornish coastline, moved here some years ago where they now enjoy a more relaxed way of life by the sea. Lucy has had a varied career, although predominately specialising in sales and accounts management. After a number of years with Unique Home Stays and with a keen eye for accuracy, Lucy now looks after the Property Owners, reviewing their properties general performance and feedback.
Amy Ormerod
Client Care Advisor
Amy gained her stellar organisational and customer service skills working as a Sales Manager for a Language School in London. This role involved her travelling to Germany, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau to create liaisons with other language schools and Amy prides herself on her ability to deal unflappingly with people from all walks of life. Bali, Thailand and Malaysia are all favourite places on Amy´s ´already visited´ list, with Australia, Fiji and New Zealand taking the top spots for dream holidays for the future. Now that she has returned to her home of Cornwall, Amy is a lady with a penchant for all that is good and great about the Duchy! Outside of work, Amy loves walking the clifftops, enjoying dinner and drinks with family and curling up by the fire with a good book.
Kelly Trebilcock
Home Stay Specialist
With a surname like that there´s no denying that Cornish maid Kelly is as ´kernow´ as they come. Born and raised on her family´s farm just outside of Newquay, equestrian-lover Kelly is happiest when competing with her loyal horse Lily, or tending to her adorable collection of animals which includes five horses, six dogs, three cats, Timmy the sheep and a new litter of kittens. One of Kelly´s rescue horses was even crowned the ´naughtiest pony in Cornwall´, but Kelly claims his escape antics were nothing to do with her first-class training skills. As well as her agricultural antics, Kelly has several strings to her bow, including hairdressing and customer services, but brings her keen attention to detail and excellent interpersonal skills with her in her role as Home Stay Specialist.
Simone Scott
Home Stay Specialist
Surrey-born Simone moved to Cornwall with her family at 11 years old and has embraced the Cornish way of life ever since. In the summertime Simone loves nothing more than stomping weekends away in her wellingtons enjoying the South West’s live music scene – Port Elliot and Glastonbury being particular festival favourites. In winter on the other hand, Simone prefers to spend her downtime curled up with a good book or movie. When it comes to holidays, this architecture fan always opts for a city break, with Paris, Rome and Amsterdam taking the top spots on her list of past destinations. With over twenty years’ experience working front of house at a private dentistry, Simone brings with her a wealth of customer experience and is well placed liaising with Unique Home Stays’ discerning clientele.
Rewan Taylor
Home Stay Specialist
Rewan graduated from Aberystwyth University with a degree in English and French before jetting off to the glamorous south of France to work as a language teacher. When he’d exhausted his passions for red wine and salad nicoise, Rewan embarked on a more unusual holiday romance: semi-professional paintballing! Rewan’s love affair with the sport came to end when he was called back to England to help rebuild his family home following flood damage and it was here that he found his passion for property. Since joining the team earlier this year, Rewan has taken to the role like a duck to water and uses his natural charm to assist guests and owners every day of the week. When not providing our clients with a top-class service, Rewan likes to spend his time mountain biking, surfing and playing the guitar.
Morgane Stanley
Home Stay Specialist
After completing a degree in Business Management, specalising in human resources and leadership, Morgane puts her flair for organisation, can-do attitude and friendly disposition to good use as a Home Stay Specialist. After helping guests to find their perfect property, Morgane can often be found with her small dog ´Precious´ by her side, exploring the Cornish landscape. Born in Australia, Morgane is well-travelled having most recently ticked a bucketful of European destinations off her extensive holiday list. After returning to Cornwall, this Cornish girl at heart relishes spending her spare time with her family.
Clare Gray
Home Stay Specialist
Having been with the team since 2011, Clare is the longest reigning member of the Home Stay Specialist team. Originally from Maidenhead, home counties girl Clare migrated to Cornwall in 2007, drawn by the west winds, beautiful scenery, outdoor lifestyle and the cool Cornish vibe. A foodie at heart, if she’s not checking-out the numerous local eateries, Clare is probably whipping up a storm in the kitchen. Of a weekend Clare loves nothing more than throwing body-board, walking boots and dogs in the van and sleeping under the stars with her fiancée and son Olly. With an extensive background in administration, Clare’s a real organisational whizz too!
Joe Barthorpe
Home Stay Specialist
Originally hailing from the midlands, Joe moved to Cornwall in 2013 in search of a life beside the sea. With a career in customer service spanning over 10 years, Joe is perfectly suited to his role as a Home Stay Specialist. With a love of travel and adventure, destinations already ticked off Joe’s bucket list include Hong Kong, Cambodia and Las Vegas. When not trotting the globe, Joe can be found competing in muddy obstacle races or enjoying coastal walks with his miniature Dachshund Milo by his side.
Bryony Nott
Property Management Administrator
Organisational whizz Bryony has won no less than two awards for her business accomplishments and enhances the Unique Home Stays team with her flair for administration and stellar customer service skills. Cornish-born and Cornish-bred, this local lass has a penchant for stomping through the countryside come rain or shine with her beloved rescue dog Raven. Talented Bryony has a diploma in Interior Design and can be found getting creative alongside Interior Design Consultant Jess. With a magpie-like love of all that sparkles, Bryony sells some of her own jewellery creations in a local harbour gift shop; when not designing and creating jewellery, or up cycling her latest furniture finds, Bryony is a self-confessed foodie who loves to whip up a culinary storm in the kitchen and sample new eateries in her local area.
Reanne Burnett
Finance and Human Resources Officer
After graduating from Gloucestershire University with a degree in Events Management, Reanne returned to her beloved Newquay where she began her career as an Events Assistant for St Austell Brewery before she entered the world of property. Her experience as a Sales and Letting Negotiator for a large Estate Agency means Reanne brings a wealth of knowledge to the team, and she’s well-practiced in finding customers their dream homes! Reanne is currently pursuing her career in accounts by studying for her AAT accountancy qualification. Wanderlusting Reanne loves exploring new places, having visited Kenya, Canada, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, as well as having worked in summer holiday resorts both in the UK and beyond.
Dave Marks
IT Department
Self-confessed perfectionist and proclaimed king of tech-talk by all at Unique Home Stays, Dave is our IT systems consultant and guru. Raising the male compliment by 100% when he’s working in the office, Dave thanks his lucky stars that he’s not always in the same locale as all the girls. Dave has been developing the IT side of the company almost from the start having designed and implemented our bespoke systems and is responsible for the on-going development of the website. During those rare moments that he manages to escape from in front of the computer, Dave can be found throwing caution to the wind snow-boarding, mountain biking, caving and hill walking or pursuing an altogether more leisurely in-depth, academic (really) study of the merits of various locally brewed delicacies!
Jane Weldhen
Property Operations Administrator
Bookworm Jane loves nothing more than an evening at home in front of the fire with her dogs Basil and Scout, a new thriller novel and a glass of wine or two! With a background in accounts and eCommerce, Jane runs a tight ship ensuring that everything runs smoothly within the department. As a dedicated sun worshipper, Jane regularly visits Spain, Bermuda and Australia to top up her mahogany Cornish tan. Known to hitch up her skirt for a boogie to Status Quo, Team Unique would be lost without Jane´s quick thinking and logistical wizardry.
Careers with Unique Home Stays
Join the team...
Interested in joining the Unique Home Stays team? Then take a look at our Careers with Unique Home Stays page.