Samella Watson and Grace McBride stopped by the PhocusWire studio at The Phocuswright Conference to discuss how participating in the Philip C. Wolf Memorial Scholarship program is helping them shape their startups.
The scholarship provided Watson and McBride with tickets and accommodations for conference as well as acceptance into a mentorship program of their choice at the event and membership to the Travel Tech Executive Fellowship.
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Watson, founder and CEO of BLCK, says the conference gave them “access to amazing people who’ve already done amazing things” and helped her see “how we are going to help shape the future.”
BLCK is a turnkey marketplace that enables people to find, bid and lease fully furnished units so they can generate passive income in the short-term rental sector.
The company is launching in the new year, when Watson hopes to “see hundreds of people start businesses.”
McBride is founder and CEO of Lucia, a freelancer marketplace that brings flexible work to the travel industry, which McBride says will help with labor shortages. Lucia launched in the third quarter of 2022.
The conference empowers the founders to “push the boundaries of travel tech” and encourages trailblazers to challenge the status quote, McBride says.
Watch the video below for the scholarship recipients’ conversation with PhocusWire senior reporter Kathryn Walson.
Executive Interview: Philip C. Wolf Memorial Scholarship recipients