Travel Industry Veteran Jena Gardner Launches The Travelers Collection

NEW YORK, NY (November 2009) – Jena Gardner, President and CEO of JG Black Book of Travel announces the launch of The Traveler’s Collection, a new retail website that offers a carefully curated collection of home décor, apparel and accessory items from artisans around the globe.  

Inspired by Ms. Gardner’s own travel experiences, The Travelers Collection features essential items for style conscious consumers on the go – cotton caftans from Lebanon, leather sandals from Pakistan, jewelry from Bali – as well as locally crafted items that capture the flavor of the destinations in which they are made  – saddle bags from Turkey, woven baskets from Botswana, rugs from Marrakech.

An active philanthropist, Ms. Gardner will utilize The Travelers Collection site to highlight women artisans and business owners from around the world. She will donate a portion of the site's revenues to organizations that promote women’s causes and serve underprivileged women in order to provide further sustainability within their communities.

“When women earn income, they reinvest 90 percent of it into the well being of their families, as compared to men who tend to reinvest only 30 – 40 percent,” says Ms. Gardner.  “As a female business owner, I feel a significant responsibility to harness my resources to directly empower other women to support themselves and the future of their families.”

In preparation for the launch of The Traveler’s Collection, Ms. Gardner tapped into her affiliation with the Women’s President Organization (WPO) to source items for the site as well as promote it to other women business owners. 

Through the WPO, Ms. Gardner connected with Michelle Korevaar, CEO of Spice4Life, a South African based website that connects women with the opportunity to embrace their true potential and ultimate purpose. “My mission is to connect women with other women to showcase their talents in the business world,” said  Ms. Korevaar. “I am excited to feature The Traveler’s Collection on Spice4Life, and collaborate with Jena to empower women artisans in South Africa.”

About Jena Gardner

Entrepreneur, travel industry icon and marketing expert Jena Gardner founded JG Black Book of Travel in 2002, and has built it into a highly successful consulting firm that provides expert marketing, promotion and sales services to the world’s finest travel providers. 

Ms. Gardner’s innovative approach to business has garnered her several accolades and awards, including a 2009 Top 25 Most Extraordinary Minds in Sales & Marketing HSMAI Adrian Award, 2009 Enterprising Women of the Year Award and Diversity Business’ Top 100 Women Owned Businesses in the State of New York. Ms. Gardner’s successful growth strategy has also landed JG Black Book of Travel on the 2009 Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America.  

Ms. Gardner is a member of numerous marketing, travel and executive associations including the Global Business Coalition, Women Presidents' Organization, National Association of Women Business Owners, Women Impacting Public Policy, National Center for Policy Analysis, Enterprising Women Advisory Board, Forbes Woman Advisory Board, Virtuoso Hotel Committee, Luxury Marketing Council and HSMAI.