Meet Nina Millan of Travel Creators

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nina Millan.

Hi Nina, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today. 
I am originally from the Bronx, NY, raised as a child upstate in Rockland County, NY. I grew up in a single-parent household with my brother and grandmother both living with me at the time. For most of my young childhood, everything was seemingly normal and uneventful. My mother worked long hours, and my grandmother tended to the home and helped me with basic needs for school. I was a gifted child growing up, an artist at a young age. I was always making something. You couldn’t keep paper, post-its, or tape in the house because I would use it along with other odds and ends to create games, new toys, or inventions I just knew I would develop one day. Even though I had older siblings, I was raised much like an only child just because they were at least a decade older than me. This time to myself really laid the foundation for how I live and work today; much of it I learned from watching my mother navigate the delicate bureaucracy of the corporate world. 

My mother was a powerful and organized woman, working as a high-level executive assistant for some C-suite bosses at major corporations like UBS, GE, WWE and eventually ending her career at Pepsi. She taught me so much about the corporate world, bringing home her stories from work and the calculated moves of its employees. It might be then when I realized how serious the world was, and I had no idea what I was in for. 

Around 11 years of age, I started helping her with corporate events, and that’s where I got my first taste of what crafting experiences for people was like. I loved the whirr and whimsy of organizing events. To me, it was much like a well-performed symphony of people, vendors, logistics, and the overall magic of it coming together and the fulfillment of pulling it off. Seeing people enjoy themselves and have that time to bond and connect with each other was something I loved. Looking back, I feel like this brief experience helped my mom, shaped how I work with others, and is part of my agency, Travel Creators. 

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Around the age of 15 is when I entered adulthood early. For years I largely raised myself because my mother had a long commute and worked long hours. My grandmother moved back to Baltimore to help my aunt with her kids years before, and my brother was grown and living on his own. So that meant school, sports, work, homework, and lots of alone time. This spiraled into curiosity about boys. My mother and I never had “the talk” that most kids have with their parents. I was a good student, smart and creative, but I never really had someone to turn to about all the things teens go through. Months later, I found out that I was pregnant with my daughter, and things were about to drastically change. I hid my pregnancy because my mother used threats as her version of birth control, always telling me that if I ever got pregnant, I would have to live in a home for teen moms vs staying in her house where she was done raising kids. I attribute this attitude to her own sad and difficult upbringing. What is it about mothers and daughters ending up at odds as they grow up together? Giving birth as a black teen was also traumatic. Even though I had a stable living situation, because I was a black teen about to have a baby with no plan, they looked at me as if I was at risk. Two days after giving birth to my daughter, CPS took her from me and off to foster care. I didn’t get to spend the first week of my new baby’s life with her. No skin to skin, no bonding. A stranger was with my child, and I felt like a war started inside me. I was determined to get her back home with me and to never be in a situation where I didn’t have control over my own life. I refused to be a statistic. 

Unfortunately, things began to unravel at home; by the time I was 17, I found myself homeless with my almost 1-year-old baby in the middle of NY winter. An argument over a cellphone bill made my mom react with rage, and she kicked us out of the apartment I grew up in and put us on the streets. She changed the locks, and a few months later moved out of our 2-bedroom apartment to an empty 1-bedroom apartment across the hall. I was on the streets for about 3 months before my brother found me and helped me get set up again in a new apartment. Once I got on my feet, I got on every free or government program I could find. 

I finished high school later that year and got a decent job selling cell phones in the Palisades Center mall. I saved every penny to later get a computer and a few bootleg copies of Adobe programs, and I began learning graphic design. My desire to become an artist is where I met my friend, now turned husband. He was doing some graphic work for fun back in 2002, and I stalked him on AIM so he could teach me the basics. It was like I finally had an outlet for my creativity. I was able to start creating websites for fun and simple Flash animations. 

Fast forward a few years later I had held many different jobs in a pursuit to increase my experience and income. I left the mall and started working as a receptionist at a gym, this job eventually landed me a job working at a small non-profit art gallery in Haverstraw, NY. I was the receptionist and program coordinator. I got my feet wet helping the director host gallery exhibitions and after-school art programs for latch-key kids like me. It was so rewarding being able to teach and mentor young talented kids. From there, I got a job as an admin at an early intervention therapy business. This was my first major pay increase and this job helped me save money to move to NJ in 2006 and get my own apartment. 

Moving to NJ was the best thing I could have done. It got me away from my toxic family, it gave me easy transportation options, better jobs and better pay. I began freelancing as a designer around work and eventually left the therapy office to work in the housing industry as an after-market sales rep for an electrical contractor. This job was a pivotal point in my career, not because I wanted to work in housing, but with the crash of 2008, I was eventually laid off and given the chance to go to school for graphic design, fully paid by the labor department. Finally, I could get proper training in art, design, and media production. With the money coming in from unemployment and the extensions due to the housing and economic recession, I was able to go to school full-time and complete my Associate of Applied Science in design, media, and Production in under 2 years. I graduated in 2009 and then started the path towards my bachelor’s at the School of Visual Arts in NYC later that fall. 

Going to art school in NYC for graphic design and marketing was a dream come true, and going to SVA made it even better. I was surrounded by the most talented people I have ever met. I was lucky to be attending such a prestigious school in such a popular degree program. It shaped my creative process, how I took feedback and criticism, and how I collaborated and worked with others. We had classes at Google because one of my professors worked in their Media Lab. Another of my professors, Bob Geraldi, produced Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” video! I was finally in a place with people and connections that would help me elevate my career in a big way. I excelled at SVA so much that I was hired by Scholastic a month before graduation at my senior portfolio review. This is how I got my start in education technology. 

By day I was working on campaigns for Scholastic and by night I was building my creative agency and freelancing. I started bringing on clients in all industries, from sports agencies, NYT best-selling authors, nonprofits, and entrepreneurs. This early work has become crucial to the framework of how I help entrepreneurs today. On the side, I also began doing event planning, and I became a travel agent so I could extend my ability to scale globally. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
Fast forward to the present, I am happily married to that guy I stalked on AIM about Adobe, I have 2 more kids, boys 8 and 5 who are autistic but completely gifted and amazing. Through them, I have learned patience and empathy. For work, I am now a design director working for Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in their Services Experience + Product Development business. I create the style and design for apps and resources we make for teachers so they can improve their practice. Being in the education space and working around learning products has shaped the way I mentor as a marketing coach. It’s helped me combine the nuances of mindset work with business foundations, marketing, design, sales, and social media, and this is what led me to build Travel Creators. 

Travel Creators is your compass in the world of business and marketing through the looking glass of wanderlust. Now that I have built a successful career as a designer, marketer and mentor, I decided to combine all my loves into a business for new entrepreneurs. Most people don’t know how to pull inspiration from wherever they are; we help you do that so you can always feel inspired and ready to create great content for your brand. 

The most important time in your business is how you get off to a good start. So many of the marketing coaches today only focus on seasoned business owners who know the lingo, and they only teach tactics. For me, I realize that I can help someone with passion and a great idea to turn it into a thriving business full of creative clarity and visual confidence. I have clients from around the globe and, over the years, have mentored many entrepreneurs from LA and California at large. 

We understand the journey of a new entrepreneur – the passion, the ideas, the uncertainty. That’s why we offer a multifaceted approach to guide you from fledgling idea to thriving business. 

Here’s what sets us apart: 

Creative Clarity: We’re design experts, crafting visually stunning brands that resonate with your target audience. Forget cookie-cutter templates; we help you uncover your unique voice and translate it into a brand that shines. 

Marketing Smarts: We don’t just talk strategy; we implement it. From social media to email marketing, we equip you with the tools and know-how to reach your ideal clients. 

Empathy in Action: We’ve faced challenges, too. Knowing firsthand the ups and downs of entrepreneurship allows us to offer supportive coaching and tailor our approach to your individual needs. 

Travel Creators is more than services – it’s an experience. We offer: 

The Travel Creators Club: Your hub for learning and community. Access educational modules, Q&A sessions, and a network of fellow entrepreneurs. 

VIP 1:1 Mentoring: Get personalized guidance and accountability from a seasoned marketing pro who acts as your on-demand CMO. 

Curated Marketing Experiences: From brand-building retreats to content-creation workshops, we bring your marketing strategy to life in impactful ways. 

We’re most proud of seeing our clients transform. Witnessing your passion turn into profit, your confidence soars, and your brand makes a mark on the world – that’s what fuels us. 

We are here to empower your entrepreneurial journey. We’re not just offering services; we’re partnering with you in success. We believe in the power of your ideas, and we’re here to help you turn them into something extraordinary. 

We help you: 

Tap into the power of global storytelling: Go beyond stock photos and generic messaging. We work with you to weave your own unique travel experiences into your brand narrative, adding depth, authenticity, and a touch of wanderlust. 

Design with a global lens: From incorporating cultural motifs into your logo to drawing inspiration from diverse design trends, we create visuals that resonate with a global audience. 

Craft marketing campaigns that spark wanderlust: We’ll develop targeted campaigns that reach travelers where they are – on social media platforms, travel blogs, and even immersive experiences like pop-up events. 

We’re not just marketers, we’re travel enthusiasts, always on the lookout for new cultures, trends, and experiences to inject into your brand, and I am proud to say I built the business I wish I had growing up as an entrepreneur. 

The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you, and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Since my side hustle was in the travel industry, going through the pandemic was hard. Everything shut down, and I had to pivot to booking travel for essential workers and people in healthcare. This allowed me to still have a side income, but it was rough. 

However, I knew coming out of this that the next big business would be experiences because we would all be starving for connection. This taught me that we needed to create a company that helps people learn as they travel the world. 

I knew that I needed to teach people how to build a life and a business that fit around it. A lot of it has paid off because the demand for travel and curated experiences has gone through the roof. Our calendar is already booked out for brand days and curated experiences for the next year! 

Pricing:

• Travel Creators Club – For a limited time become a lifetime member for $499
• Travel Creators Academy – $1,000 off special
• Book a Brand Day – Starting at $5,000
• Curated Experiences – Starting at $1,000
• Become a travel agent + training for $179

Contact Info:

• Website: travelcreators.co
• Instagram: @travelcreators.co
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/travelcreators.co
• Other: https://www.facebook.com/re.nina