039: How Her Mission To Empower Women in Travel Is Changing The Tourism Industry

An estimated 80 to 85% of all travel-related purchases and decisions are made by women, and women make up a majority of the workforce across the industry. But did you know that less than 10% of those in higher management positions in the travel industry identify as female?

Iris Serbanescu is on a mission to change the status quo and help women and non-binary folks, especially those of color or who are part of the LGBTQ community, launch and scale their own travel businesses. In January of 2022, she founded wmnsWORK, an accelerator program aimed at empowering folks with the knowledge and support to attain their goals of entrepreneurship while also furthering ownership and increasing gender equality in this sector.

There are quite a few people I've met in this industry who are educators and interested in course creation or leading trainings or workshops for newcomers in their niche. I think this is a great episode if you've ever considered transitioning out of what you're doing into a teaching role. Whether that be working as a travel agent or running your own tour company, and instead transitioning into teaching others how to essentially follow in your footsteps.

On the other hand, if you are in the early stages of your business and interested in being taught by some of the brightest minds in the industry, and you'd like to connect with people who are equally passionate about gender equality and supporting a great cause, then I definitely recommend checking out wmnsWORK. The next cohort is starting September 19, 2022, so you've still got until August 1st to apply if you're interested. Not all applicants will necessarily get a place, you do have to apply to be considered, but definitely check it out if it's something that interests you.

As I listened back to our conversation it definitely sounds like I'm an affiliate for her program because I endorse it so much. But I'm not an affiliate, I just love what Iris is doing and I'm so excited to see women helping one another achieve big goals in this industry. I genuinely believe that the more we support one another, the further we go and the more we can achieve.

I'm excited to share what Iris is doing and really believe in the mission she supports. Iris comes with a wealth of knowledge and shares some pretty jarring statistics on gender inequality in the travel industry. It was fascinating to hear how she started this accelerator program and what she's learned since it first launched earlier this year. Iris is also super charismatic, so I’m sure you’ll enjoy this episode!

Find the show notes and resources mentioned in the episode here.

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