Today we’d like to introduce you to Chloe Ranford.
Chloe, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
In August of 2016, I left my home in Brisbane, Australia to begin a semester abroad in Sheffield, England. To document this life-changing adventure, I decided to use the hashtag #studyabroad when posting photos of my travels to Instagram. This was how Rakbo found me – and, after checking out my profile and seeing I was a journalism student, the company reached out to ask if I’d like to join their team of international student writers.
I (of course) jumped at the opportunity. I was already in the process of publishing the occasional travel article to my personal blog (for the family’s sake), so I thought channeling my creative energy into an outlet that could ACTUALLY get my work noticed wasn’t too much of a step up. I then began pitching, writing and publishing bi-monthly articles to Rakbo.
In March of 2017, after five months of contributing, I was offered the position of Editor-In-Chief at the company, after the departure of its previous one.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The biggest struggles I have faced working with Rakbo have been navigating time zones (I live in Australia, while the rest of the Rakbo team is based in Indiana) and working from home. (It’s too easy to procrastinate when you’re surrounded by the comforts of your home!)
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Rakbo is a unique online community of like-minded international students whose goal it is to capture the heart of educational travel. We are a place where exchange students at all stages of their journeys can meet, inspire and inform one another through forums, groups and blog posts. At Rakbo, we strive to remove the challenges that surround student travel; a standpoint which we believe is crucial in paving the path towards a more open and connected world.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was (and still am) a huge lover of stories. I spent a lot of my spare time reading, playing narrative-driven video games or watching re-runs of popular English comedy shows such as ‘The IT Crowd’, ‘QI’ and ‘Red Dwarf’. (How do the English manage to pen such witty one-liners?)
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rakbo.com
- Phone: 317 531 2919
- Email: team@rakbo.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/team.rakbo/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teamrakbo/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/teamrakbo
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
