By CultureBanx Team
When Black & Abroad founders Kent Johnson and Eric Martin would look up certain travel destinations they never saw results tailored towards their demographic. This spurred them to launch a cultural collective dedicated to highlighting black exploration three years ago. “We wanted to change that by creating a platform for reviews of people that looked liked us from people of color,” said Martin. Black & Abroad’s product line includes group and private trips, events, activities, merchandise, and tourism consulting.
African Americans have nearly a $48 billion share of the travel market, according to Mandala Research. “From individual travel stories, to focused original content and crowd sourced information, you’ll always see several representations of the black community,” said Johnson. A day in the life on one of their trips consists of submersive experiences, including social outreach, adventure, unique cuisines and of course “a late night turn up is always included.” They work with brands including major airlines like Norwegian (NAS.OL +0.27%) and tourism boards to effectively market to the black community, in ways that will have a meaningful impact. The business is expanding from four trip destinations to eight destinations by 2020, as they look to effectively help patronize black businesses internationally.
CBx Vibe: “Paris, Tokyo” Lupe Fiasco
