Am I Entrepreneuring Yet? An update on Wildflower Tours.

I’m writing this as I fly back from my first EVER, international Wildflower Tour trip. And let me just tell you, it was a total success!! I’m honestly trying to fight back happy tears as I sit here because the reality hasn’t sunk in yet... I am 100% going after my dreams, and it’s working out. Anyways, let’s back up a bit, so you can see just how I got here.So after the Palm Springs trip was all said and done, I received some pretty awesome feedback from the ladies who went. They told me what they loved and what I could work on for the next trip, for you ladies, THANK YOU!! Honest and constructive criticism, while trying to build a successful business is vital to its impending success.I took every word into consideration as I began to plan my next adventure. Which brings me to the first  major decision, HOW could I top my last trip?! Where could we go, that would challenge and fuel both my entrepreneurial spirit as well as my wanderlust? And of course, where would the ladies want to go?!I researched destinations for several months, ultimately coming to the conclusion that I needed to take the next trip overseas. But, of course, not too far, since this would be a first for me.. so, I “slept on it” and that is how TULUM, México became the destination for WFT’s next destination!Once I made the final decision, I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT. It was a mix of anxiety and excitement for three months as I finalized sponsors both nationally and internationally, created the itinerary and found suitable accommodations. Fun fact: planning a huge event in a place you’ve never been, choosing a location when you don’t know the lay of the land, and working with companies overseas can be daunting and stressful at times.If you followed my last post on the entrepreneurial life, you’ll know I like to get sponsors for a “swag bag” for the ladies who attend the trip. It gives them an extra something from their getaway and helps me perfect my skills with the marketing/ contract side of things.I reached out to, well over 300 companies both in the US and overseas, ultimately securing five “swag sponsors” for the ladies. These companies include, Coola Sunscreen, DivvyUp socks, Cōbō water bottles, RX bars and Milolii Love bracelets. All of these companies were in the United States, so it was only a matter of collecting the items at my house and figuring out how to pack it all for the trip. Piece of cake.Then I began reaching out to restaurants overseas. I wanted to secure a complimentary breakfast or dinner of some sort, just to make the trip even more special. Again , I may have reached out to every single company in the tiny town of Tulum. There was only ONE company who responded to me, Campanella Crémerie. After a few emails back and forth,  we agreed on a marketing contract that would benefit both companies. I couldn’t believe I had scored my first international sponsor. Now the fun part, trusting the deal would still stand when we arrived. There was no way to know for sure until we got into Tulum and I reached out while there. So I was cautiously excited.I researched many places to stay, and let me say, there are SO MANY awesome places to stay in Tulum, both on the beach avenue and in the town. I ultimately picked an AirBnB that seemed to good to be true! There was no way of knowing where it really was in relation to “all the things” or what it would really look like, again, until I got there to see for myself. That was nerve racking.Once all those moving pieces were set into place, such as securing sponsors, creating an itinerary and setting a fair price point, I nervously launched the Tulum Getaway to the public. The response was unreal. Within twenty minutes of launching, I had over ten emails asking for more information. It was unbelievable. I had made the right decision to go abroad, and this trip was going to be like no other!Within two weeks of launching the trip, it was sold out!!!! YUP. It sold out. It seemed like everything was just too good to be true. Things were happening flawlessly. But then...Two people backed out. And two more after that. I had set a non refundable deposit, to try and avoid that, but looking back now, it either needs to be a way higher deposit or people have to pay in full, upfront. Either way, when those four people backed out, I was met with the issue of having to spend more money to put the trip on, while everyone else got a great deal. After crunching all the numbers, it would cost me over 2,000$ to cover the ladies who had cancelled the trip. And I would most definitely not make ANY sort of profit. I’d be losing, a lot.I know entrepreneurship has that risk factor, where you invest you own money, and may loose some trying to make things happen, but I was going to do everything in my power to make that financial blow as minimal as possible, I mean, I still wanted to make some sort of profit, even if it was 60$ a person.So I relaunched the now “not sold out” Tulum getaway, but the timing was too short. People either had made other travel plans or didn’t have enough time to collect the money they needed. I needed to come up with a solution to still pull this off. I couldn’t change the itinerary, I had no control over the flight prices, however I did have some wiggle room with the accommodation. Most everything was sold out in the city, but I checked every single day to see if there was a suitable house that could help with the financial blow from the four ladies who backed out. THANKFULLY, (or in hindsight, not so thankfully.. I’ll get to that later) I found a place that really seemed too good to be true, and almost covered the money gap I needed to fill. WOOOH, crises averted.One minute it felt like the trip was so far away and next thing I knew, I was packing my bags both anxiously and excitedly. The ladies LOVED all the swag sponsors, and every single one came in handy. The Cobo water bottles kept our water ice cold (which was SO NEEDED in the humidity of the Tulum jungle).  The bracelets dressed up any outfit, so when we went swimming in a Cenote and then out to dinner, we could get a little fancy with our cute Milolii Love bangles. The DivvyUp socks, kept our feet protected from ourselves as we tried not to scratch all our big bites, as well as, kept our feet nice and warm for the airplane rides home! They were designed with palm leaves to remind the ladies of our time in paradise together. The RX bars served as our on the go breakfast most days, as well as on the road snacks after hours of snorkeling or hiking the ruins. And of course, the Coola sunscreen was used every single day to protect our skin from the hot Caribbean sun. Even better, it is an all natural sunscreen, meaning we could use it while swimming in the Cenotes and Xel Ha Eco Park while being conscious of preserving the environment.Ali, from Campanella Crémerie, El Patio and Casa Colonial, is an absolutely lovely person! Not only did he take time to sit down with us and give us a little history lesson of Tulum and its citizens, but he provided amazing tips to make our trip even better!There was one HUGE hiccup, that I am still dealing with, even thought the trip is over. Without getting into all the details, the AirBnB I decided on, turned out to be a total disaster, the hosts were up to something very shady, making everyone feel uncomfortable and forcing me to find last minute accommodations on our last night in Tulum.Thankfully, Ali came to the rescue and helped us with accommodations at his hotel, Casa Colonial Vintage Hotel. Hands down, this is where I’ll be staying every single time I come to Tulum now.All in all, the entire trip was a success!! There were hiccups here and there but overall, it couldn’t have gone any better. I, again, learned SO MUCH from this trip.I overcame obstacles, when at times, I really didn’t think I could. I cried, I laughed, and tried my best. But more importantly, by planning and executing this trip, it helped me to practice the essence of believing in and trusting the process. And ultimately knowing, things will all work out as long as I keep following my vision.Again, as I am sitting on this plane ride home, I’m in disbelief. I’m so grateful for; the companies who supported my vision, the support system of family and friends at home, who remind me to keep going when I feel like giving up, and most importantly, I am FOREVER GRATEFUL for the women who went on this trip. They allowed me to bring this lifelong dream into fruition. Although my trips aren’t flawless (yet) these ladies rolled with the punches and made this trip everything I could have ever asked for. They became friends. Bonded over shared experiences. Overcame personal fears with the help from one another and left with a new sense of adventure and desire to travel.I can’t say thank you enough, so I’ll just end with it.THANK YOU!!Check Out Wildflower Tours website and stay tuned for upcoming trips!Companies I worked with:Campanella Crémerie El PatioCasa Colonial Coola RX Bars Divvy Up socks Milolii Love bracelets Cobo bottles