Event Spotlight: Lift Detroit Gala

On Saturday, May 18th, hundreds of guests gathered at the Detroit Historical Museum for the second annual Lift: Detroit gala.  The gala, which was put on by the Lift: Detroit team, was centered around entrepreneurship, professionalism, and community outreach in the city.  One of the main goals of the event was for guests to network with one another and discuss how they could all come together to figure out how they could create a stronger Detroit.

Several local vendors set up tables in the venue to promote themselves and inform people about their businesses and organizations; Y.A.B. being among one of them!  At our vendor table, we were able to converse with a number of young, ambitious, and beautiful women about Y.A.B. and discussed the different ways they can get involved with us.  We even gave out samples of our body butter – it was a big hit! We networked with so many amazing people that we can’t wait to collaborate with.

As a volunteer for the gala, I had additional tasks to do. I was on the PR team for the event, so in addition to live tweeting and taking pictures, I was in charge of taking tickets and checking guests in.  I enjoyed being able to converse with the guests when they first entered, not to mention I was able to get a peek at what everyone was wearing! I loved seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces when they arrived; you could tell that they were so happy to be in attendance.

There has already been talk about how next year’s gala is going to be bigger and better.  We were very thankful to be given the opportunity to participate in the event, and we are definitely looking forward to next year. 

 

-Evann

Advance & Network With Y.A.B.

Y.A.B. is an organization started by three African American young women that were college peers at Michigan State University that wanted to bring together other young African American women that not only possess a “job” or “career”, but bring a unique aesthetic to what they do.

We have encountered young women opening vintage styling boutiques, being the chemist behind well-known make-up brands, creating hair essentials/products, creating health drinks, touring across the world as a well-developed harpist, etc. These young women are not just a product of their communities but actually changing and engaging in their communities…and we feel that it is imperative to share with the world and each other. We have attended, supported, and promoted events for women of color in Detroit, Chicago and plan to continue to do so in other major cities as well as internationally.

We are currently working on collaborative events as well as working with different magazines and other publications to feature our members and their individual businesses through our venture partnership. Our venture partnership, which serves as a conglomerate to female entrepreneurs, consists of about 20 businesses thus far that we promote on a regular basis through marketing/advertising, product placement, etc. We also have set up a high school internship program for young girls of Detroit and Metro Detroit to gain entrepreneurial experience through interning with our Social Media and Editorial Department of our business as well as a mentorship program entitled “From Girls to Young, Ambitious, and Beautiful Women” where we go into inner city schools and prepare workshops for young girls on self-awareness and branding, social media etiquette, and entrepreneurship/career building. Our mentorship program has picked up recognition throughout the midwest, especially in Michigan. We have created a vast following not only locally, but nationally as well via our social media sites. 

Overall, Y.A.B. welcomes members who want to network with like-minded professionals in the business realm, share hopes and practical issues, and find answers to business and personal career-oriented challenges.  Y.A.B. provides a robust knowledge of well-rounded and sophisticated young women who want to create a better tomorrow.  This progressive organization offers comprehensive programs structures to effectively bring value to a diverse group of professionals.

As a member of Y.A.B., you will immediately gain a grand network of like-minded women!  We will host local monthly/annual social & networking events (which will soon expand to major cities across the U.S.) and you will have the opportunity to be featured on our website and our magazine, as well as promote your personal endeavors.