The Modern Hotelier #153: Developing & Building a Boutique Beach Hotel in Westhampton | with Elizabeth Bakhash === Steve Carran: Welcome to another episode of The Modern Hotelier. We're excited to bring the episode with Elizabeth Bash, uh, co-owner of Three Ducks, a new resort being built in the Hamptons. David, what were some of your favorite takeaways from this episode? David M.: Well, it's really, you know, it, it sounds like it's gonna be an incredible property. you know, very unique, uh, location. Uh, as she was discussed with us, there's not a lot of, uh, product out there. Uh. hotel wise in the Hamptons, and I think the most important reason might be be to find out the names of the ducks is the reason to listen in. So that's, that's one of the key takeaways I have. You wanna know what the names of the ducks are? Steve Carran: Absolutely. That was, that was good. That was good. One of my favorite things she. Talked about was, kind of being a a 12 room property. She's not gonna build a spa. She's not gonna maybe build all these amenities with the, with the hotel, but how she's partnered with companies in the Hamptons to honestly create this very much community focused, hyper-local experience for all the guests. I've never been to the Hamptons, so when I do go, this is gonna be my first spot. So, you know, I get the hotel experience, but also get that hyper-local experience. So excited to hear what you all think. Let us know what you think and enjoy the episode. David M.: welcome to The Modern Hotelier Hospitality's Most Engaged podcast. I'm David Millili. Steve Carran: I'm Steve Carran. Jon Bumhoffer: And I'm Jon Bumhoffer. David M.: Steve, who do we have on the program today? Steve Carran: Yeah, David. Today we have on Elizabeth Bakhash. Elizabeth is getting ready to open the doors to her debut hotel, three Ducks. It is set to offer a fresh look on the the luxury of the Hamptons. With Elizabeth's background in real estate, she can give an intriguing and enlightening perspective on launching a brand new hotel concept in one of the hottest markets in the country. Welcome to the show, Elizabeth. Elizabeth Bakhash: Thanks for having me. David M.: So Elizabeth, we're gonna go through a couple different sections. We're gonna go through a quick lightning round. We're gonna get to know you better, your personal background, your career, and then we're gonna jump into some industry topics. Sound good? Elizabeth Bakhash: great. Let's do it David M.: All right. So what's something that you wish you were better at? Elizabeth Bakhash: Timely thinking on the spot. David M.: Okay. What's your most used app on your phone? Elizabeth Bakhash: A hundred percent the phone app itself. I'm a talker, I think, when I talk out loud, so for sure. Definitely not texting, not good at that. David M.: All right. Got it. What's a luxury you can't live without? Elizabeth Bakhash: My electric heating pad. David M.: Okay. Alright. If you could trade places with somebody for a day, who would it be? Elizabeth Bakhash: I'd probably have to say my 5-year-old son, miles. Uh, he has a way of making simple observations that are quite profound to hear, and as an, as an adult, David M.: That's good. And what's, what's the best piece of advice you've received? Elizabeth Bakhash: ooh, you make money when you buy. David M.: Hmm. Okay. All right. Last one. What's your favorite city and why? Elizabeth Bakhash: I'd have to say Lisbon, Portugal, first of all, it's the city I got married in. second of all, it's filled with the most beautiful, colorful tiles that make the city feel like a three-dimensional painting, and it's bathed in the most gorgeous light, so. David M.: Good answer. Steve Carran: A hundred percent agree on Elizabeth Portugal. Love it. Was there a couple years ago. well that was great. So now we're gonna get into your personal details, a little bit about you and your background. So you live in New York now, uh, you went to the Spence School in New York City. Did you grow up around the New York area? Elizabeth Bakhash: I did, yeah. Born and raised in New York. which is the best, the best city in the world other than Lisbon. Steve Carran: How, how did that really shape you into, into who you are today? Elizabeth Bakhash: yeah, so I mean, New York is such a vibrant city with so much art and culture and places of beauty to soak in, and I think just that love of the visual world has really led to, led me to creating this beautiful concept that we've developed. David M.: And you got your degree from Emory University in Marketing and Finance. What led you to. Choosing marketing and finance. Elizabeth Bakhash: I had the opportunity to do some really cool internships. One of them was for, um, vitamin Water in a, in the branding. Uh, department there. And so upon graduation of Emory in Atlanta, I landed my dream job, which was Lipping Cot a, uh, brand strategy and design firm out of New York. Steve Carran: That's great. So, so one question I always like to ask people who are, either in New York City for a long time when they're born or raised in New City, New York City, what is one thing in New York City that you know, might not be the tourist attraction or something maybe off the beaten path that you living there and growing up there is one of your favorite things about New York City. Elizabeth Bakhash: Oh, that's a good question. I grew up on the Upper East Side and Tribeca was not a neighborhood that I ventured into much. but it's a neighborhood that I've lived in now, uh, since graduation, almost 15 years. And it's just, everything that you'd want from a neighborhood perspective, from in a big city. Uh, which I think a lot of people don't really associate a neighborhood feel with New York. So, And it's great. Steve Carran: That's awesome. And so now we're gonna dive into your career a little bit, kind of how you got to where you are today. So like you said, after after college, you got your dream job at Lip and Cot, and you worked your way all the way up to a partner. What did you learn? Kind of, I, I don't wanna say early days, but those earlier days that you still take with you today? Elizabeth Bakhash: That's a great question. Yeah. So. So I landed that job at Lip and Cot. I came back to New York. and as you, as you mentioned, I spent a decade there, which I think is quite unusual for, many of my counterparts. and that's actually where I was fortunate enough to meet my business partner for three Ducks. Uh, Randall Stone and him and I were both in the experience design. Group within Lip and Cot and it was all around how do we take a brand and bring it to life through the customer experience. So I think the importance of, bringing everything back to a core brand is really shines through in this project. In this project. And yeah, we had a chance to work on a ton of incredible clients there. A ton of Fortune 500 companies such as Audi, Holland, America, IHG, Hyatt. it was a really thrilling experience and I'm very fortunate to have that under my belt. David M.: And so for the past four years, you've been a partner at the Kosh group. I'm saying that right? I hope. And what cash, what you, what got you into the real estate side? Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah. it's a different story. Um, so yeah, as I mentioned, I was at Lip and Cot for a decade. I, rose the ranks there from. Bottom of the bottom up to a partner. Um, but my career was cut short there a little bit. my father was diagnosed with a LS in 2020. so upon getting that news, I, you know, quickly made the decision to pivot to the family business, which was managing and developing real estate assets, um, across a portfolio that's stretched. Residential, commercial as well as a, some hospitality assets as well. so that was the impetus for my decision. But I'd say since making that transition, I've been searching for waiting for a perfect project to really sink my teeth into and. Build something from scratch, and execute on a vision. And you know, until 2023 when Randall brought this project for me, that is now what is three ducks David M.: Right. Steve Carran: That's incredible. That's great. So you got the project for Three Ducks in 2023, and I believe in April, 2024. You actually purchased the hotel in, in the Hamptons and now Three Ducks is set to open this summer. when are you guys opening? Do you guys have a, have a date yet? Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah, we're looking at, we're looking at early summer. We're we're close. Steve Carran: Okay. You're getting Elizabeth Bakhash: We're close. We're getting there. Yeah. Steve Carran: Awesome. So you mentioned you were waiting for a project to sink your teeth into. How did this project become that project and was it kind of one of those spaces where you're like, I never thought I would get into the hotel side of things, or is that what you were looking for? Elizabeth Bakhash: You know, it wasn't necessarily that I was looking for something specifically in the hotel space, but I was looking to build something, um, and I was looking to take something. That wasn't much and build, you know, grow something from the ground up. So I think in a sense, you know, hospitality is the perfect space to do that. but when I first saw this property with Randall in 20, in fall of 2023, I believe it was before we even got into the physical structure of the building. I was just blown away by the land that three ducks sits on. Um, so if you can imagine, it's essentially 1.6 acres, but it's in this weird triangle shape, um, with the building kind of set all the way at the bottom of the triangle. So what you end up with is almost 1.6 acres of untouched land. And I was. Blown away by that. And it's funny because, you know, throughout that negotiation process, I felt like every time I went back there, that piece of land seemed to grow. Like it must have been the opportunity or the excitement, that was forming in my mind, but it kept getting bigger and bigger. I was surprised by that. It was on one of those visits where I suppose the, the landscapers hadn't been in a while and the grass had it been overgrown and it was, it was wild and it just, this beautiful meadow revealed itself, and I think that vision kind of started the foundation for this embracing of the natural world that is so central to three ducks. David M.: And so how did your background and brand experience influence you in your approach to three ducks? Elizabeth Bakhash: so, you know, it's funny, Randall and I, we've, you know, we've done so much on this project and we've been true decision makers At every point. I feel like we've been knocking it out on the decisions, but when it came to building the brand, I would say it was like both the most fun and the most challenging part because I think we were both so passionate about. Building the brand and it was our baby. but I think what we've ended up, I, I'm glad that we went through that tedious process because I think what we've ended up with is so special, um, and so unique. So I think a couple things that are the critical elements of the brand we've created. So the name, the characters, and then these unique touches that we've infused throughout the experience. So. In terms of the name, like Three Ducks, what's that about? duck farming is actually a big part of Long Island's history dating back to the 1850s. so we thought first, you know, it fits with the area. and as we dug more into that story and the idea of ducks. We learned that ducks are actually symbolic of balance change and new beginnings. And in a way, you know, going back to when I saw that land, like that's really what we're doing to this piece of land is giving it a new lease on life, um, and restoring balance to it. Uh, so we loved that concept. and then. We wanted to inject the brand with a little bit of fun and whimsy. I think the Hamptons tends to have a lot of serious exclusive, brands, and that's not really what the Hamptons historically was. The Hamptons is historically a place for farmland, a place for artists, I think in the early, early 20th century, there was a lot of landscape artists there, and then there was the bohemian abstract expressionist movement. So we, we wanted to give a little bit of that fun into the brand. so we created these illustrated characters, which you, you can see. Throughout the digital experience and the printed experience on site. And they're ducks. They're ducks doing things that, you know, are we imagine or we hope that our guests are doing, whether that's riding a bike or having a drink or spending an afternoon in the sun. so we love our characters and they're a great addition. Then I think there's like these moments of surprise. So, a funny anecdote is about the time, same time as we were closing on the property. I was down in Durham at a friend's wedding and there was a guy dressed as a Fox, a po. His name is Poetry Fox. doing custom on the spot poems, uh, with a prompt and my husband. Gave him three ducks, and he came back with this like, brilliant, quirky poem. So we've actually had him create three, uh, excuse me, 12 unique poems, one for each room, with some silly, some silly, some serious prompts like the, the ducks coming back from the winery. and you know, we just, we hope to infuse moments of fun throughout this day. Steve Carran: That's great. Kind of to that point. So is there, and I don't know if you have this fully fleshed out yet, but is there an aspect of the guest experience that you know you're gonna offer that I guess you're really excited about? Or is there an an aspect of the, of the stay or something at the property where you see it or you think about kind of that guest experience where you're like, that is awesome. Elizabeth Bakhash: That's an easy one. So we, We did so much to the, the guest building, but that was an existing structure. What we've actually done, is build, a ground up structure at the center of that triangular field that I was mentioning earlier, which we're calling the barn. and that's really the central hub of the property and we're, we're super excited about it. So. When you think about 12 rooms, yes, there's checking in and checking out, but you know, if, if every check in and checkout takes a minute, it's, it's a quick experience. So not wanting to, Overinvest in the lobby experience, but make it really a multifunctional space that can be flexible. Um, so what it is, it's a indoor outdoor barn with basically a huge bi-fold glass in the center so it can be completely opened up and open air. that will of course be where you check in. It will have a small market where you can buy things from local purveyors in the area, which you'd really like to celebrate. and then outside a place to sit, have a morning coffee. we're offering a really lovely, simple breakfast to work and gather. things as simple as, like we've took the time to put the reception desk on wheels so that we can totally transform the space for events, making sure that we can. You know, flex this space for whatever our guests need. So, we're very excited about that. Steve Carran: It sounds awesome. Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah, David M.: So I have a question for you. Do the Ducks have Elizabeth Bakhash: sure they do. They're not, they're not customer facing. But yes, it's, um, Amelia Quinn and Oliver of course. David M.: Which one's the Elizabeth Bakhash: have. Very am Amelia's a bit cheeky and social Oliver's active. And Quinn is a, is an old soul, uh, that just wants to sit under a tree. Steve Carran: Uh, that is, that's fantastic. Um, so now we're gonna get into the section where we talk about kinda industry thoughts a little bit and, you know, kind of how Three Ducks is is gonna be a hotel in the Hamptons. So, what advice do you have for somebody who's looking to go through a similar process, maybe renovating an. Renovating an old hotel or building a hotel, and kind of a, not a newer market, but maybe a market that hasn't been as saturated by hotels. Elizabeth Bakhash: my advice would be to stay true. Stay true to your vision, to your original vision, and try, you know, although you may be getting down into details that you never thought you would have to understand. I think yesterday we had an hour conversation about. The brackets for the soaps in the, in the showers. never lose sight of your original vision and never compromise on the quality of what you're putting into your hotel. Ultimately, you know, a hotel. Is, you know, you wanna get ADR and occupancy, and in order to command those high ADRs you have to deliver a quality product. in many instances we've tried to use negotiation in lieu of value engineering. and we, we've tried To not kind of substitute for a cheaper option, and just preserve the quality as much as we can. Steve Carran: Sure. Were there any unexpected, I guess, challenges that came up or, or even, uh, some, some welcome surprises, that happened. As you are bringing this hotel to life. Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah. I think the fact that it's 12 rooms is probably the biggest challenge. I think the size presents challenges both on the customer experience side as well as the business side. So what I mean that by that is on the customer side, you know, when you, when you're building a large scale hotel, you have the resources and the space to. Offer and deliver large scale amenities, but with 12 rooms, like it just doesn't make sense in many cases to do that. I think we took this challenge and flipped it on its head a little bit and brought, tried to bring everything back to the brand, which is really about delivering. Simple, meaningful experiences and this idea of quality over quantity. so like, for example, let's take breakfast. You know, obviously with 12 rooms you can't offer a, you know. Huge spread and a buffet and multiple courses, but instead, you know, can we deliver a, a couple of very high quality items that sets your tone for your day. Similarly, I think, you know, spa is a big one that people want in the Hamptons, but with 12 rooms, again, like it just doesn't make sense to build a standalone. Spa offering. But what we've done instead is identify local partners in West Hampton to offer in-room spa services. So there's ways around it. and then on the revenue side, I, I think I mentioned this, but like it's really about driving the ADRs that you need. And I, I kind of covered this in that staying true to quality and Also drive, continuing to drive occupancy in the Hamptons after Labor Day, uh, after and before Memorial Day. You know, how can we double down on events such as maybe it's weddings in the fall and corporate retreats in the spring to really extend that occupancy both ways. David M.: Okay. You've done a really good job talking about ways to improve the guest experience, like the breakfast and even just being able to roll out the reception desk. Is there anything else that. We haven't covered that you wanna cover about the really enhancing the guest experience at the property. Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah, sure. So, couple things. The, the property is really comprised of three elements. So I've, I've mentioned already the barn, the guest house with the rooms, and I, I hope we can get into that in a moment. and then there's the land and the property, which is so lush and beautiful. Within the land, we've focused on delivering a really beautiful fire pit. So we have a six foot cortan steel, wood burning fire pit. Three ducks is all about. We want our guests to experience all that West Hampton has to offer. But can we create a gathering place at the end of the day, perhaps like after, after dinner, for a place for people to have wine with their friends and family, maybe meet other guests at the hotel. So that fire pit is at another one of those gathering places that we try to deliver. and then. We also, because we're all about discovery and getting out there, we wanted to also offer our guests tools to do that. so we are having free, free bicycles on property to take around. We have a, um, a mo, which is an open Air beach vehicle. Um, it's really cute actually. Um, which you can rent by the hour or for a whole day. We've packaged up, these little guides. So guide for a sunny day, for a rainy day, a guide for seeing and be seen or unwinding. It's kind of like pick your, you know, pick your path for the day. and we've tried to curate as many of those experiences for our guests as possible. Steve Carran: That's great. That's great. And, and I'm curious to hear this one, you, you mentioned you wanna talk about rooms, you know, here we go. We were on the same page with writing these questions. Um, were there any, I, I guess when I walk into a hotel room, I've walked into some that are great, make me feel at home. And then other ones I'm like, it feels like a. Cookie cutter, like it's the same as the one next door and it feels a little bit more corporate-y. were there any specific design elements that had a big impact on, I guess, creating a unique guest experience and making them feel comfortable, and immersed in at three Ducks? Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah, I mean the design was the most incredible, part and most gratifying for me, I think. Um, so again, you know, reaching back to that moment when I saw that un uncut grass and that wild nature, The design of the rooms is all about that inspired by nature concept, and we're calling it Garden Fresh Interiors. Um, so we want to, as people enter the room, we wanna make it feel like it's just a continuation of their path in these gardens that they've just, came out. And we've done that in a couple of different ways. First is through. Embedding natural shapes as much as we can. So you'll see, we have this beautiful custom cabinetry and the finger poles that you use to open the doors are all these kind of natural pebble shapes. The lighting, it again looks, it, it's, it's not a circle, it's a pebble. the gardens out, the private gardens that each room has outside. Isn't defined by a square or a rectangle. They're circular and organic. So we love that notion of organic shapes. And then in terms of the textures of the room as well, bringing in as much natural texture. As we possibly could. So handmade clay tiles or, the floor was a huge one for me. I was obsessed with this. Everybody's, you know, so quick to flock to a, you know, an oak floor. We were like, let's go with ash. Which really, shows you the variation in the wood. The headboard looks like moss. So we really tried to get into every detail as possible to make this feel natural. David M.: So one of the, the biggest challenges, especially for unique hotels is how do you transform the actual property to the online world and represent that the right way? What's that experience been like for you as far as getting the, you know, everything you talked about, you know, looking at the overgrown grass. I know that's probably not what you're gonna show on the website, but how are you translating that experience to the online site? Elizabeth Bakhash: That's a great question. Um, I appreciate the, the, the branding question and translation of that. whew. Well, we've had. Again, like we've, we've tried to infuse those little quirky moments of the illustrations. I think that's really prevalent on our online presence. You'll see that in our website as well as our Instagram. and I think another thing, another technique that we've been using online is embedding a little bit of animation into the illustrations and even, as we move into photography trying to do. Like a one to two second, video to just give a little bit of movement. Uh, I think that helps translate that natural experience. David M.: That makes sense. Steve Carran: Hundred percent. Agree. We a hundred percent agree. So one, one thing that you talked about was incorporating the community into your hotel, and one thing we talk about on this podcast a lot is building up a hyperlocal experience for hotels. Can you tell us more about, you know, three ducks connection with the community? And I also would love to hear any advice. You have four hotels on how to build that connection with the community. Elizabeth Bakhash: Sure. So, I mean, again, you know, this has been a project where Randall and I have both had to roll up our sleeves on everything. So this was really an exercise of let's come together. Build a huge list of everything that we know and love in Westhampton and just do one-on-one outreach to people and go, you know, go down the list. And the engagement has been overwhelmingly positive. I think people were looking for another, you know, there's not many hotel options out there. It's a actually a. Section of the Hamptons where it's totally underserved, which is good for us. Um, but, but the local businesses are ready, willing, and able to engage. And we've had, uh, you know. Tremendous success in getting them on board. So as we build things like those guides that I mentioned earlier, we'll start to infuse those partners into them. And again, we have a full s full service concierge to help make guests with the help, make the connection for those guests. Steve Carran: That's great. Well, I'm so. Certainly excited to see this property. We might have to make a, make a trip out by you to see this. 'cause it sounds Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah, come on by. Steve Carran: it, we, we might, we might take you up on that. So, um, Elizabeth, this whole time we've been asking you the questions, this is the part of the show where we turn the tables a little bit and let you ask David and I a question Elizabeth Bakhash: Ooh, wasn't prepared for this Steve Carran: I know. Elizabeth Bakhash: Who has been your favorite guest and why? David M.: Steve. Steve Carran: Thanks. Uh, you've been our favorite guest so far, so, uh. Elizabeth Bakhash: That's an easy Steve Carran: That was, that was a layup right there. I'll run with that. No, I love kind of, uh, hearing how hotels got their, uh, got their start and their traditional story and kind of that, that idea. So I've loved this conversation, about how you, coming from a real estate background and a marketing background, have now infused that into hospitality. And now you've built this. Whole area of that guests can now stay at a underserved market while connecting with the community and really building something from the ground up. So I am gonna stick with my answer and I'm, I'm gonna stick with you, David. David M.: I'll, I'll, I'll take an easy one. So probably because we're friends and because, you know, I could answer most of his, the questions I asked him, but Anthony Moy, which was our very first podcast that we aired, uh, he. He's a former gm, uh, had a television show on the travel channel called Hotel Impossible. He had a couple, so I have to mention, I don't wanna kinda mention all them, but he's, if he ever listens to it, he'll be like, why didn't you mention the other show? But yeah, it was just great 'cause he was a friend and it was really kind of our first like, time we really aired an episode. So it was just kind of like, cool. Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah. David M.: Not, not knowing what we were doing at all. Like we always tell people like, if it wasn't for John, we, we don't know where the hell we'd be. 'cause we didn't know what the heck to do equipment platform. So, you know, you kind of like, you know, your first one's always special. So I guess Anthony was kind of, you know, the one that was, you know, was pretty, uh, I think special for us as a group. Elizabeth Bakhash: Can I ask you one more question? David M.: Sure. Steve Carran: Go for it. Elizabeth Bakhash: Okay. On the topic of, you know, experience design, what's a hotel experience that you've maybe had in your personal life that's memorable, um, and unique to that brand? Steve Carran: Yeah, I'll take this one. I'll take this one. 'cause I just, I just had it. so recently I went, March Madness is going on. There were games in Denver. I had two of my best friends fly into town from Washington, DC and we. All went to March Madness. We stayed at an independent hotel called the Rally Hotel. It is in Denver, Colorado, and it is across the street from Coors Field. It is one of the coolest hotels I've ever stayed at because of how they have not only incorporated Colorado, not only Denver, but also baseball and the Colorado Rockies into the whole guest experience. when you walk into the lobby, there's like almost a connector set that baseballs go up and then they drop and they go down all these different le layers, of metal tubing and all when they hit a lever, something over here happens, and. The lobby itself has a Denver flag, Colorado flag Baseballs baseball, baseball bats, all this. It's all centered around baseball and the Colorado Rockies. So when you go to your room, it's crazy. I opened up my, my window and literally I. The Coors Field is right across the street, and I can basically almost see into the stadium. and then they have a square next door where four Rockies games. People gather there and they have a ginormous TV where people can watch games. And inside of that outdoor space, then they have an indoor space where you, they have, I think five, six different restaurants. They're connected to two different bars. So the whole feel while you're there is a, you don't have to leave that area. You can stay in the hotel, you can stay kind of in that outdoor area and visit the restaurants around there. So the whole experience, the guys, they, they loved it because it's like basketball was on all the time and that huge, huge screen. So, just kind of incorporating not only. Colorado, but the Rockies and just sports in general into their whole hotel in that area, it blew me away. And you know, my two buddies were like, you know, it made me look pretty good when I'm picking out the hotel. And they're like, this, this was a great play, especially since we're here for sports. So that was, that was my most recent experience and definitely ranks as one of my favorite. Elizabeth Bakhash: Very cool. I'll have to tell my husband about that. Steve Carran: Yeah. Oh yeah, Elizabeth Bakhash: a sports lover. Steve Carran: Oh, he'll love it. He'll love it. David, what about you? David M.: Oh, I'll, I'll, I'll go. I don't wanna, um, so we, we just went to the mining exchange in Colorado Springs, and what was cool about that was, you know, I'd never been to Colorado Springs and this hotel, it felt like it could have been in London, it could have been in Madrid. It was just this really cool, independent, great vibe. Uh, the staff was amazing. The rooms were. Great. I, I mean, so the whole experience, you, you just, you know, it's just not a, it's not a town that you think about like that, oh, I'm gonna be at this incredible hotel in Colorado Springs, and that's not a dig on Colorado Springs, but it was just, it was just this hotel that you just felt like it could have been anywhere in the world. And like I said, for me, hotel was great, but the guest, the whole experience, we were there for an opening weekend, uh, was pretty cool. Elizabeth Bakhash: Amazing. I have to Steve Carran: Colorado getting booked. The hotel Elizabeth Bakhash: Yeah, I know, I know. Elizabeth Bakhash: what's happening in Colorado? Steve Carran: all good things. All good things. So, uh, Elizabeth, those were great questions. Our producer Jon, he's been listening behind the scenes of this whole time. So we're gonna kick it over to him for one last question before we get you outta here. Elizabeth Bakhash: Uh oh. All right. Jon Bumhoffer: Yeah, it's really cool to hear just about the whole process. Your thought, like the very, it's very thoughtful, everything that's going into it, and you're really close to being able to launch this thing. I'm curious, what are some of those, like, last few things, the, the little bit that's kind of left, I'm, I'm just curious like what are the last few hurdles that get over before this thing can finally be enjoyed by people? Elizabeth Bakhash: I mean, we're so close now I can taste it. so on the construction side, we're almost com. But obviously the weather is just warming up. So we're now in the planting phase, which I think is obviously from everything I said, one of the most important pieces of this project. so the planting is, is happening now and that's very exciting. And then over the next month we'll just be loading in all of the ff and e and, uh, styling the rooms and doing final photography. So, I'm so excited to see how it all comes to life. I think it's gonna be a little difficult, five, six months pregnant to be loading in the FF knee, but, but it, I couldn't be more excited. David M.: That's great. Well, that does it for another episode of The Modern Hotelier. This is where Elizabeth, you get to tell people how they can find out more about Three Ducks Hotel, how they can get in touch with you. With you if they want to. So you can plug away. Elizabeth Bakhash: So you can reach us at threeduckswesthampton.com and follow us on Instagram at Three Ducks West Hampton. Thank you so much guys. David M.: That's great. Well, that does it for another episode of The Modern Hotelier Hospitality's Most Engaged Podcast. Whether you're watching or listening, we appreciate you and we'll see you soon. Thank you, Elizabeth. Steve Carran: Thank you.