Adam Schwab – Co-Founder and CEO of Luxury Escapes: Building a Billion-Dollar Global Travel Empire

Adam Schwab started his career as a corporate lawyer, but it wasn’t long before he realised the traditional path wasn’t for him. With no business plan and zero experience in property or tourism, he and his co-founder took a leap—subleasing backpacker apartments in Melbourne as a side hustle. What followed was years of trial and error, hands-on learning, and a relentless drive to build something bigger.

Today, Adam is the Co-Founder and CEO of Luxury Escapes, one of Australia’s most successful travel brands, with over 600 employees and a global customer base. But the journey to building a billion-dollar business didn’t happen overnight. In fact, it took nearly a decade of failed ideas, tight margins, and risky pivots before they found their sweet spot in curated travel.

In this episode of The Leap, Adam shares how long-term thinking helped them not only scale, but survive one of the worst crises to hit the travel industry—COVID. While competitors laid off staff and refunded millions, Luxury Escapes doubled down, kept every team member, and used the moment to rebuild from the inside out.

He also talks openly about leadership, hiring, loyalty, and what it means to build a business that truly lasts. From staying paranoid (in a good way) to knowing when to get out of your own way, Adam’s story is packed with insights for anyone building a business in uncertain times.

🎧 Listen now to hear how Adam Schwab went from backpacker apartments to boardrooms—and the mindset that got him there.