Connect Who or what is your inspiration in business?

The women in the meetings and events industry inspire me every day. It is a field built largely by women, yet the tools we use have never truly been built for us. Watching fellow planners burn out from outdated sourcing processes pushed me to stop waiting for someone else to fix it. I also draw inspiration from my own story — losing my job during the pandemic, raising two kids at home, and choosing to build something anyway. That decision changed everything, for me and for the industry I l

How do you stay motivated?

I stay motivated by the problem I am solving. Event professionals are consistently ranked among the most stressed professionals in the world, and the sourcing process is a major reason why. Every time I hear a planner say Virsitour saved them hours or helped them make a faster, more confident decision, I remember why I started. I also lean on the community of women around me — we push each other forward. When it gets hard, I come back to the mission: make life easier for event professional

What would you do with the $25,000?

This funding would scale Virsitour in the markets where our impact is most felt. The meetings and events industry is made up largely of women who have lacked a platform built around how they work. I would accelerate supplier onboarding in key destinations, invest in targeted marketing to reach more planners, and strengthen our virtual sourcing technology — proving a bootstrapped, female-founded startup can outperform platforms that have existed for decades.