Soul Discovery Stories: Erika

In 2018, Erika Hairston celebrated her graduation from Yale University and job offer from LinkedIn with a transformative travel experience curated by Girls Trip Tours.?

Immediately drawn to the social impact element of the trip, Erika secured funding from her university to mentor the young girls at the Soronko Academy in Accra during the Girls Trip Ghana 2018 experience. During her trip, she connected with aspiring young female coders and met with African startup founders at MEST Africa Incubator - all aspects of our itinerary.

At a rooftop dinner overlooking the city and all the opportunities within it, she was inspired by Candace NKOTH BISSECK , the first female country manager for tech unicorn Jumia in Cameroon - our special guest for the day. Erika soaked in lessons that Candace, a Forbes 30 under 30 founder, and Girls Trip Tours founder, Eyitemi Popo exchanged with the group.?

The very next morning, Erika launched her first startup, Zimela, which set her on a path towards Edlyft, her company that would go on to raise $1.4M in venture capital in 2020, making her one of the youngest Black women to do so in the world.?

Turns out Erika had been working on the app for months and finally got the confidence to publish it during the Girls Trip Tours experience. The journey to Erika raising venture capital and becoming a Forbes 30 under 30 herself took years of hard work, ingenuity, and dedication. The first time she found the courage to share her entrepreneurial ambition with the world, however, took place on a Girls Trip Tours experience surrounded by women who were rooting for her every desire - without even knowing the details.?

Erika is not the only Hairston who had an epiphany on this Girls Trip Tours experience. Read her mom, Susan Hairston 's soul discovery story here.

Erika's Review:

"Girls Trip was the time of my life! At first I was a bit intimidated by the high cost. However, during the trip with our personal photographer, the endless meals, and all-day driver made every moment perfect. I loved the mentoring aspect of the trip and still keep in touch with some of the girls. This was my first time in West Africa and it made me so excited to return.

There was so much inspiration, self-love, and joy surrounding this trip. Temi was a great host and it was even more exciting to get to meet the local influencers.On top of that it was such a weight off of our shoulders to not have to plan anything, but instead just show up and enjoy the incredible activities Temi had lined up. We also felt like we were in good hands and I can’t wait for the next trip! "