Melissa Kiguwa's background spans three continents—  Europe, the United States, and Africa, but she is currently based in Los Angeles where she is CEO of Obánj, the luxury sustainability company she founded in 2020.

Before founding her company, Melissa worked as a radio and television host; a producer for both commercial and broadcast radio including the BBC World Service; and for Get Lifted, John Legend's production company. She currently hosts the podcast, Grit & Grace, in collaboration with the London School of Economics Accelerator for Women Founders where she interviews brilliant women with an audacious vision for the world.

She is also building a reputation as one of the best emerging writing talents from the African continent. Her first collection of poetry, Reveries of Longing, was published in 2014 and selected as one of "This is Africa’s 100 best books in fiction, poetry, memoir and non-fiction." She has also been recognized as an influential African artist to know and celebrate. Melissa is a 2020 PEN America Emerging Voices Fellow and is working on an adventure memoir about her international exploits.

She graduated from the London School of Economics with her MSc in Media, Communication, and Development in 2015.

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Niqua is the owner of Financially Winning and she completed her debt free journey in May 2021, tackling $21K of student loan debt in 11 months. Originally from the Virgin Islands, she uses Financially Winning to focus on providing resources and tips to help individuals with their finances, from budgeting to debt payoff and more! Niqua is also a travel blogger, owns an Etsy Shop and provides personalized coaching sessions, to help each individual create a financial action plan to improve their overall financial wellness and build wealth. She has traveled to 20+ countries and 24 states. Her travel platform shares budget travel tips, travel hacks and experiences. She is currently on a journey to travel to all 50 states!

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Angelic Marnier is the Founder of Corporate Countdown – a web based coaching system that helps women transition out of their 9 to 5 jobs and into careers that excite them. She is a Cum Laude UCLA graduate, with a BA in Mass Communications.

Born in Washington, DC, her and her Mom moved to Southern California when she was 7 and she grew up in Inglewood with dreams of making it big. Her first jobs out of college were at Fox and Disney. She quickly learned that corporate America was not a good fit for her, so she dove feet first into real estate financing. There she really was able to make her mark and got a good taste of not having a boss and making her own schedule. She was in love.

Unfortunately, when the real estate market crashed during the great recession she made the move back to corporate America, still in real estate financing. She worked her way to the top where she was dealing with the firm’s highest-echelon clients, those having $1M+ in liquid assets. While working with these types of clients every day she began to see common traits and more importantly she saw that she could get to where they were at too.

Time after time her and her co-workers would talk and dream about getting out of their desk jobs, but had no clue how. They needed a proven system they could follow and see results that would allow them to replace their income so that they could spend more time with their kids and spouses, instead of giving the best hours of their day to someone else’s dream. They wanted to have a safe transition out, so there were no major interruptions in their income...and that’s how Corporate Countdown came to be.

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Grab the FREE Budget Like A Boss Ebook or get straight to winning with money by grabbing the Budget Class Replay

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Tyler Chanel is an ethical blogger and model based in Los Angeles California. Her blog and YouTube Channel, Thrifts & Tangles, provides educational tips to inspire others to give thrifting, sustainability, and their natural selves a chance.

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Simone is currently a Clinical Professional Counselor-Intern and owner of her therapeutic practice Simone Hooks Therapy Services. Simone received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology (w/ a minor in Sociology)from The University of Nevada, Las Vegas and her Master’s Degree from GCU in professional Counseling. Simone initially chose Psychology because of her love for dolphins and aspiration to become a dolphin trainer. During her studies, she fell more and more in love with the idea of helping people instead. With a history of sexual/physical/emotions abuse, an autistic brother, and a mother who struggled with alcohol abuse heavily influenced her decision to become a therapist. She realized that there are people out there that would benefit from having someone to talk to who can relate to them on many different levels. Simone aspires to continue her broad scope of practice, however specialize in sexual related therapy to assist those who have been victims or sexual abuse, those who are struggling with physical intimacy, and those who may be sexual offenders.

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Hi, my name is Ynetta CEO of Boss Hair Lab. Ever since I was 16 I’ve been learning how to care for my own hair. It’s been a journey from relaxed, to jerry curls, to braids, to extensions, to bald-headed scallywag, to natural, etc. It’s been a long journey, but I have learned a lot and now I love educating and helping people to properly take care of their beautiful, kinky, coily, hair.

My knowledge is based on my trials and tribulations from experimenting on mine, my family, and my friend's hair.

I’m aware and sensitive to the challenges many black women have when it comes to maintaining and growing their hair, and I provide solutions to help you with the process.

I am available for hair consultations and I created a wonderful Ayurvedic hair oil called Vital Veggie Oil. It is comprised of 14 different herbs and oils that are sourced from 10 countries. I handmake every batch and it takes 6 weeks to produce every vital drop.

Boss Hair Lab uses natural, organic, high-quality ingredients which are eco-friendly, not tested on animals, free of synthetic fragrances, and silicones.

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Michelle Valdner is the founder of Live Happy Counseling a private practice based in Bethpage, NY. She is a NYS Licensed Mental Health Counselor (#006710), National Certified Counselor, and a registered yoga teacher. Michelle is committed to helping and healing others. She specializes in helping women overcome anxiety, manage stress, and reconnect with their true authentic SELF. Visit livehappycounseling.com for more information.

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Jamilly Whitfield is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 15 years of experience in treating, children, adolescents, women and families in the areas of complex trauma, immigration, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, neglect, intimate partner violence, anxiety, depression and a host of other adverse experiences. Jamilly used her expertise in the Social Work field to launch her Podcast Beauteous Me and now expanding her niche into coaching women. Jamilly is a wife, mom, and now author of a collaborative book called We Heal!

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