Kate Blazar, Founder/CEO of Animosa writes about how her dreams of travel as a young girl have morphed into a full time career – with one product off the rack already – Go With Your Flow.
As a young girl, I spent countless hours gazing at magazine pictures and daydreaming about the places I wanted to explore and things I wanted to see – volcanoes, wildlife, temples, beaches, works of art, glaciers.
One of my favorite games was spinning a globe as fast as I could, using my finger to stop the rotation, and imagining exploring wherever my finger landed.
By the time I was 14, I had saved enough money from years of babysitting and yard work to embark on my first overseas adventure. That first international trip sealed the deal: I was hooked on travel. 30 countries and 5 continents later, my list of new places to explore just keeps getting longer.
And as of very recently, my wanderlust extended beyond a personal hobby into a full-time profession.
I just launched a company called Animosa that designs gear and products for women who travel.
“Animosa” is a Latin, Spanish, and Italian adjective for a strong, bold, brave, spirited woman.
Our first product is specific to handling menstruation while traveling (or spending time outdoors). Of course, managing a monthly bleed is not an issue for all ages of female travelers, but for most women, it is a consideration for three or four decades of their lives. And I may just be extremely unlucky, but I always seem to get my period when I’m traveling.
On more occasions than I care to recount, traveling on my period has translated into various “menstrual misadventures,” as I now lovingly call these unpleasant, awkward, and even mortifying experiences.
Being caught off guard or otherwise challenged by my period while traveling in remote and undeveloped places ultimately provided the inspiration to create a menstrual hygiene and disposal travel kit, which we call the Go With Your Flow pack.
Developing the Go With Your Flow pack has been a silver lining from my travel adventures that I never anticipated, but that I hope ultimately helps many other women as they explore the world. Check it out on Kickstarter
From here forward, Animosa will develop many other travel products that equip and empower women to explore. Of course, I plan to travel and field test everything!
