Ethnic Ties

06/21/2024

Fam, we are so excited to announce our participation in ICA's 7th spring cohort of the Lab. The Lab at ICA is a program track for early-stage businesses looking to strengthen their business model, stabilize operations, establish a path for growth, and get ready to take on capital. All companies that complete the Lab are priority applications for up to $50K from ICA’s Seed Equity Fund. Selected businesses for Cohort 7 are:

‍Ade Deyhe, founded by Akintunde Ahmad, an ethically produced fashion brand with unisex outerwear made from hand woven fabrics across Sub Saharan Africa.

Bealthy, founded by Jacoby Stuart, a business development startup that provides digital educational products and network connections for entrepreneurs.

Cocoa & Onyx, founded by Felicia Bradley, a pet accessory brand that makes functional products for people with pets.

Daybreak, co-founded by Michelle Tu and Stanislav Kroll, a third-wave coffee brand inspired by Vietnamese coffee culture.

De La Creamery, founded by Stephanie De Le Cruz, a company that makes handmade ice cream inspired by traditional Mexican flavors.

DEVAN GREGORI, founded by Devan Gregori, an ethically made apparel brand with everyday essentials and approachable statement pieces.

‍Dr. A’s Lo-Fi Kava, founded by August Varlack, a beverage brand aimed at helping people curb alcohol consumption while still having “healthy buzzed” times.

Ethnic Ties, founded by Acacia WoodsChan, a grassroots cultural organization that leverages tourism to support underserved Black and Brown communities.

Finance Friday, founded by Anthony Walker, an organization focused on educating families on business finance and entrepreneurship through video content, books, and curriculum.

Hella Coastal, founded by Chaz Hubbard, a brewery and lifestyle brand that produces approachable beers for novice beer drinkers and connoisseurs alike.

Hooked Coffee, founded by Natalie Ma, a single-serve coffee platform that transforms coffee from partners and specialty roasters into sustainable, easy-to-brew formats.

hot boi chili oil, co-founded by Alex Nguyen and Tram Huynh, an artisanal chili crunch with spice infused oils and garlic that supports nonprofit organizations in the community.

Huhu, founded by Meng Li, a parenting gear brand that offers functional, every-day products for parents.

‍Hungry Kitchens, founded by Mohamed Abdelmeguid, a selection of food experience products crafted with Mediterranean California Fusion influences.

Josu, co-founded by Parker Thomas, an Asian and Korean-inspired artisanal salt company with their ingredients sourced from a family farm in Imjado, South Korea.

Karl Marie, founded by Kyra Lumpkin, a clean-air fragrance brand specializing in home and body fragrances made with non-toxic ingredients.

‍Koast Kombucha, founded by Aaron Ho, bottles kombucha brewed with simple ingredients in oak barrels.

‍Living Flora, founded by Deb Chung, a company that makes flavored water kefir, a fermented probiotic beverage.

Luna Bags, founded by Luna Afroz, a sustainable, cruelty-free unisex bag company.

Mukupati, founded by Eliana Lopez, a mother-led business that creates sustainable underwear, pajamas and playwear for children.

NARRA, co-founded by Miggy Reyes, an Asian-inspired beverage company that makes plant-based tea lattes with no added sugar and zero artificial ingredients.

Olori, founded by Tomide Awe, an African-inspired handbag company.

‍Plant Culture, founded by Meiko Scott, a plant-based culinary brand formerly known as Hella Nuts.

Sakura Soup, founded by Tomo Kusaka, a company that makes bottled ramen soup based and broth concentrates

‍Terra & Self, founded by Kenne Johnson, a skincare brand that makes beauty products with high quality and naturally derived ingredients.

The Healing Place Apothecary, founded by Nubian Flunder, a wellness company that uses holistic skincare to encourage daily self-care rituals for busy women.

The Herbal Alchemist, founded by Sade Adeyemi, an affordable, plant-powered skincare brand made with organic ingredients.

The Jefas, founded by Aurora Diaz, an e-commerce platform for emerging Latina beauty brands.

‍Unified Pieces, founded by Gamaliel James, an Oakland-based jigsaw puzzle company.

Congrats to our fellow participants, and thank you to our beloved community, partners and supporters for your continued support!

06/12/2024

Thank you story_soul_collector for hosting us on the "I Have Questions" podcast! Our founder .acaciatravels loved sharing about our work and travel stats for people of color, industry trends and a review of what "sustainable" travel can be. Listen to the whole episode at link in bio and share your comments, questions, ideas here.

06/11/2024

We've been in the lab working on , and are so excited to be partnering with to support Embrace Kongo, a new 10 -day cultural immersion exchange initiative in Congo Brazzaville.

We are excited to be the official travel agency of this amazing opportunity to immerse in the music, culture and tapestry of Congolese culture, hosted by a legacy, staple organization in Oakland, pan-African and global culture.

This incredible journey will unfold in Congo-Brazzaville, officially named The Republic of Congo, not to be confused with its neighbor, the Democratic Republic of Congo or DRC. Get ready to explore this rich cultural landscape and witness the vibrant energy of Brazzaville during our 10-day cultural immersion and learn more at the link: https://buff.ly/4aY4G0M

02/16/2024

Fam, we are so excited to share that we will be participating in the upcoming Black Joy Parade with our new schoolbus, Etny! Join us in celebrating, and reach out if you're interested in joining our procession ( a few spots left- DM for more info). We love what stands for and are excited to also share some real local Black Futures Month activations. Let us say- the second part of the month is boutta be ITTTTT!!!! This weekend is packed, so get your schedules ready!

02/15/2024

We had to share a new promo video using that we played around with for an upcoming event... Remember to get your 24% discount on tours in February to commemorate Blasian New Year...

This video shows ONLY a small portion of the groups we were fortunate to host last year, ranging from pre-K to elders. We are honored to have welcomed , , (all seen in this video) and more!

Much thanks to our community partners and local businesses , , , and more for your partnership and for all that you do for our local community!

02/12/2024

Oi gente! We are in the midst of Brazilian carnaval, which started on Feb 9th and lasts until Feb 17th this year! We know a lot of attention and travels are focused on Rio Carnaval, which is an experience all its own. We want to highlight the carnaval of Salvador, the city with the highest Afr0 descendant population outside of west Africa, the first place of embarkment for the Atlantic Slave trade in Brazil- the Recôncavo.

We absolutely favor the street party-style carnaval of Salvador, which welcomes Soteropolitanos (Salvador locals), Brazilians from all over the country and millions from out of town. Visited by national artists like , , and , to name a few, studies suggest that the city welcomes and additional 2 million visitors for Carnaval. City demographics in 2023 accounted for 3,958,384 people residing in the city of Salvador, with the following self-identification: 1,186,416 persons identify as Pardo (Multiracial) (49.1%); 825,509 as Black (34.1%); 398,688 as White (16.5%); and 4,395 as Amerindian (0.2%); 2,605 as Asian (0.1%).

If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, cultural celebrations are taking place this weekend with , so join in on the celebrations!!!

02/06/2024

One of the most rewarding parts of hosting our Black Oakland tour includes welcoming our Town babies to integrate into the vibrant culture and history all around them. We were honored to host kids summer camp last year in collaboration with , which allowed us to offer FREE tours to Oakland-based youth.

Get your crew and come on a tour during Black History Month! Sign up at link in bio

02/06/2024

Fam, we INNIT!!! Our favorite time of year just started, and Happy Black Diaspora Month! This year we are doing things a little bit differently as we will be highlighting our local African American and global Black diaspora! February just started and already, we celebrated a huge event, Festa de Iemanja in Salvador, Brazil- our destination for our November group trip!

We were fortunate to experience the magic a few years ago when we took an intimate group trip, and we are excited to be able to celebrate locally with events hosted by , a Brazilian culture center located in Berkeley, CA! Check their upcoming events and sign up at link in bio! We are honored to welcome Afro-Brazilian contemporary dancer Pitta the weekend of February 9th and then celebrate the Yemanja Arts Festival 2024 from Feb 17-24th! Join us minha gente and get some insights into Afro-Brazilian culture before we head out in November!

01/30/2024

Why are we traveling to Brazil? At that, why Salvador? A few reasons this place is near and dear to my heart:

1) I studied abroad here in 2009, and found parts of my identity that I didn't know were even missing.

*Storytime: I was in my 3rd year of college at UC Santa Cruz, double-majoring in Global Economics and Language Studies. For BOTH majors, a requirement for graduation was to study abroad, which is why I chose that path. I was fluent in French, but EAP Education Abroad Program would NOTA accept me due to my compromised GPA- a 3.2 after working 2-3 part time jobs to pay for school.

I started looking into the study abroad program for Salvador, Bahia, Brasil, which was a language and Afro-Brazilian program after a colleague shared about her own study abroad experience, lending me some MP3s to study while we were in an internship program in Washington DC (yes, I do a lot now and I did a LOT back then). I was accepted and immediately fell in love with Salvador. Little did I realize it was referred to as Black Rome due to its high Afro-descendant population (upwards of 90%) and felt an immediate affinity to the city, the people and the experiences.

Pictured here in Pelourinho, one of the main cultural and historic centers of the city my first week in Salvador.

2) After living here for study abroad and coming back every few years, Ties is ready to resume our group travel, which we last facilitated in 2016.

3) Post-pandemic, we are focused on leveraging tourism as a tool of community and economic solidarity with our global diaspora family, so we are intentional about what type of travel we support.

***Trivia moment: anyone know why the neighborhood is named "Pelourinho" ?

01/27/2024

We are super excited to have announced our upcoming group trips to Oaxaca, Mexico for Dia de los Mu***os in October 2024 and Salvador, Brazil for Dia de Consciênca Negra in November 2024! You know trips like these are for homies, so tag your travel buddy and let them know they need to be thereeeeee!

01/26/2024

Ok fam, the day is here! Join us on IG Live today at 10am PST/ 1pm EST to learn about our travel destinations for 2024!

What's your guess? Are we heading to Peru? Colombia? Dominican Republic? Find out todayyyyyyy

01/25/2024

ICYMI: ya girl ain't new to dis, I'm true to dis

I started to redistribute the share of the tourism economy, which has largely favored colonial powers in the East, most notably Europe. The trend has been similar for the last decade, and in 2022, inbound travel figures included:

595.75 million travelers to Europe
156.52 million travelers to the Americas
95.38 million travelers to Asia and the Pacific
69.3 million travelers to the Middle East
48.36 million travelers to Africa

Our upcoming group travels focus on areas that are underrepresented in the tourism and travel industry- creating intentional investment into the areas that have historically been a target of their natural and human resources.

According to the Conference Board, "The restorative tourism market will continue to grow in the coming decade, presenting new revenue-generating opportunities. Global travelers are looking for sustainable destinations and experiences that preserve and restore local environments and culture (2022)."

01/24/2024

Ok fam, we are READY to share where we're headed this FRIDAY!!! We are excited, nervous and intentional and welcome to you get excited with us. Set your calendar- big news this FRIDAY!!!

01/21/2024

Storytime: I, Acacia, the founder of Ethnic Ties, have been traveling internationally since I was 17.

My first international trip was to the Bahamas, on the ultimate girls trip, which my parents sent me on since I was the first in my family to get into college ( Santa Cruz stand up!) and the experience changed MY LIFE!!!

From there, I had the opportunity to travel (mostly in groups) to places like Ecuador, Honduras, Peru for microfinance-related projects, as I was studying Global Economics with an emphasis on international development. I then participated in cultural programs that took me to China, Thailand, Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina, Ghana, all with study abroad organizations hosted through Fulbright, the State Department or local orgs like the Friends of Roots program for "overseas" Chinese.

I never planned on traveling for vacay, so never went to places I didn't have someone I knew or for a particular purpose. It wasn't until I was 30 that I traveled to France for a friends wedding, and then to Morocco to "explore." I always saw travel and tourism as economic activities, for the simple reasons that:

+visitor spending reached nearly $40 billion in 2017, and has continued to increase for the last seven years (Tourism Economics, 2023)
+International visitor spending rose by 81.9% in 2022, but still 40.4% behind 2019 numbers (World Travel & Tourism Council, 2023)
+Prior to the pandemic, Travel & Tourism (including its direct, indirect, and induced impacts) accounted for 1 in 5 new jobs created across the world during 2014-2019, and 10.3% of all jobs (334 million) and 10.4% of global GDP (US$ 10 trillion) in 2019 (World Travel & Tourism Council, 2023)

So, with more than almost 20 years of group and values-based travels, I am so excited to be curating 2 (and counting) international group trips, that all focus on inclusive cultural tourism. We use travel as a tool for community engagement and restorative economies, and I couldn't be more honored to step into this part of my personal and professional travel journey.

03/07/2023

Excited to partner with Bioneers this year as they welcome guests from all over the US to convene in Berkeley, CA!!! See our East Bay Solidarity Tour in action, and sign up for tix today before prices go up at MIDNIGHT!!!

From climate disruption to economic unrest, the challenges we face today call for big ideas from revolutionary leaders. Join us at in April to join forces for a brighter future. Ticket prices increase on 11:59 PM PST March 6, so register soon! https://lnkd.in/gfKtTmHu

02/23/2023

A Black History Month celebration of culture and connection within the Bay Area Airbnb Host community

02/01/2023

01/18/2023

Excited to start the New Year on KRON 4's "Live in the Bay"'s segment, on MLK Day! Check out our visit and bring your group on our local tours, and sign up BEFORE February 1 for a discount on ALL tours!

Check out our latest segment on KRON 4 and bring your crew for discounts!

01/16/2023

The big wheels of massive change are turning. Be part of the Bioneers community of leadership in this time when we’re all called upon to be leaders. We invite you to join us at in April to join forces for a brighter future.

Register for the 34th annual event featuring visionary and practical solutions.

10/16/2022

Today is the last day to get your votes in!!! 🗳

Please take 30 seconds to vote at the link in bio, we are option H. Fort this off you who have been following us, this will help our tours to grow by hiring locals to expand our limited operation and to highlight the work no of local no small businesses on our tours. Thank you in advanced!

.acaciatravels

10/15/2022

Thank you Excelerate America for the opportunity! FB Fam, we are in our last stretch, vote for option H!!!

10/15/2022

SOOOOO since panny we been dabbling in local tours of Oakland, focusing on our Taco tour, Black Oakland Tour and developing our Chinatown tour. AND we need your vote to get to the next round of funding to expand our tours, hire local tour guides and be able to do the work that lies at the heart of our activities.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take 30 seconds to tap this link and vote for option H, Ethnic Ties travels. It means so much to us and we thank you SO much in advance!

PS see some of the groups we've been honored to share our beloved town with this year...
https://www.excelerateamerica.com/.../grant-competition...