#SPURmoments: Olia Bosovik
Founder | Travabond
Assistant Director | Venture Development Center at UT Dallas
Olia Bosovik is a world traveller from Eastern Europe and an aspiring entrepreneur, who along with a few friends co-founded Travabond- a web platform for planning unique off-the-beaten path bachelorette trips and girlfriend getaways. Her team recently had a successful campaign on SPURstartup, that you can see here, to get this business up and going.
She graduated with an MBA from UT Dallas in December of 2015 where she came up with the idea for the startup and where her team took third place in UTD’s Business Idea Competition.Prior to joining UTD as an Assistant Director of the Venture Development Center, Olia worked in commercial lending for Comerica Bank where she got to work with small businesses, real estate development, and oil and gas exploration companies. When she’s not traveling, working on her startup or at work you can find her doing Pilates, playing tennis and sand volleyball, hanging out at a local coffee shop, and trying out new venues and things to do around Dallas.
Why do you want to be an entrepreneur?
I am passionate about working with smart, driven and creative people and about helping others. I get excited thinking that one day something I created will make someone else's life better and add value to them. I also like to be in charge of my own life and destiny. I don’t like to be confined by rules and hierarchy. It was difficult to work for a large financial institution because of that. I am a self-motivated, fast paced, efficient, and impatient. I like getting things done and prefer to fix things that don’t work then wait forever to get something done just right. Most large companies do not operate this way, so I found myself feeling stuck working in that environment. I have also failed numerously in my life and have always come out stronger and with lessons that taught me how to do better next time. i think it’s important to understand that and be ready going into entrepreneurship.
How do you balance school, work, and your startup?
It’s all about time management. I worked full-time while I was getting my bachelors degree full time, so juggling multiple things at once is not new to me. Prioritizing and making to-do lists is key an making sure to put everything in the calendar is what I try to do so I don’t forget where I have to be and when.
What inspired you to start Travabond?
I love traveling. It has always been my passion and a source of inspiration. I love learning about new places, meeting new people, emerging myself in a local culture, it changed my perspective of the world, and made me realize how small we are compared to the rest of it. My passion for traveling and recognizing the pains of planning group trips inspired me to start the business.
What is it like working for IIE when you are a new entrepreneur yourself?
It’s amazing! Best decision I’ve ever made. It’s true they say: we must align our actions with our goals. I take pride in being a part of someone else’s journey and supporting them, creating programs and finding resources to help other startups. One day tables will turn and I will be in need of support and I will have a network of people and resources to offer me the help and support.
What advice do you have for other aspiring student entrepreneurs who want to start their business in college?
Now is the best time. Quit planning and start doing. I wish we would have launched our website sooner. There is nothing to lose, I mean literally nothing. Most of us don’t have families, kids, mortgages etc to worry about, so even if the idea completely fails you’ll be so much more equipped to succeed with the next one.