Why Fora Was Exactly What Danielle Fisher Was Looking For

Image courtesy of Danielle Fisher

Fora Advisor Danielle Fisher has always been in love with travel. Indeed, she was the go-to person for the best restaurant recommendations around the world. She kept up with the latest hotel openings, read all the travel magazines, helped her friends decide where to go for vacation, researched different destinations. People always told her she should be a travel agent, but, career-wise, she didn’t see how it would work. Then she found Fora, and the rest is history.

From events to tech to hospitality

Image courtesy of Danielle Fisher

Danielle earned her degree from the University of Wisconsin’s School of Journalism and Mass Communications, and worked in events and marketing at a public relations firm after graduating. After six years in the industry, much of which involved coordinating partnerships with lifestyle brands, she was drawn to the tech world. She worked at a few startups, and was an early employee of one that eventually got acquired by Yahoo!. 

For two years she worked for a hospitality consultancy firm. She also played a role in restaurant development, primarily in Las Vegas. From there, she freelanced for several startups and creative agencies.

All the while, she said, “My passion for travel kept increasing. But I never really found the right opportunity to work in that space…Yes, the idea of working in travel and booking travel for people and traveling was really appealing, but, as far as a career, I just didn't see that opportunity.”

Then, in 2019, Danielle and her husband learned they would be parents. Danielle had her daughter in January 2020. She had stopped working toward the end of her pregnancy, wanting to spend as much time with her baby as possible. She had her second child, a son, in 2022.

“I always knew that I wanted to be with them and be a stay-at-home mom, as far as being involved in their day-to-day lives — being around and taking them to school and being there when they come home from school,” she said. “But I always hoped that there would be something that I could be doing, whether it was at night, in between — filling those small pockets of time.”

A perfect fit

Image courtesy of Danielle Fisher

Being the tech enthusiast she was, Danielle had subscribed to the newsletter of Forerunner, a venture-capital firm that invests in early-stage start-ups, Fora among them. In one email. Fora was featured.

“Fora seemed like something I could do whenever I wanted, as much as I wanted (or as little as I wanted) and at the times that I wanted,” she said. “I was able to find something that fit perfectly into my lifestyle and my needs at the time.”

Everything clicked. She saw how that common thread — an intense love for travel, learning and discovery — could now materialize as a career. 

With Fora, she said, “I can do something that I'm so excited about." She added, “I love my kids. I want to be with them and do everything with them, but I really needed something for me. And this just came at the perfect time — doing something that I love. It doesn't feel like work.”

With two young kids, free time is sparse, but travel advising provided a fun outlet that fit around Danielle’s schedule. 

“Sometimes I'm sitting in a parking lot waiting for school to end, and I'm confirming something on my phone,” she shared. 

The tech aspect of Fora also attracted her: “It was the job I had always been looking for, but there was never really the right setup. What's so awesome is, to me, it's a tech startup, but for travel. It combines all the things that I've always been interested in. You guys just make it so easy.”

As a tech startup, we’re always looking for ways to make the lives of our advisors easier, because travel advising should be fun; you shouldn’t have to worry about a confusing booking interface, or chasing commission, or blindly navigating all the various travel niches.

“You guys really listen — whether it's to the advisors or other team members,” she said. “Things happen so quickly, and there's always movement and new things being added. You really feel like you're part of it.”

And you’re never alone. It’s impossible to travel to every destination, which is why Fora invests so much into its training program, and into fostering a collaborative, inclusive community.

“If I need to dive in a bit deeper on a certain location or brand, all those resources are there, whether it's the videos, the live trainings, Forum or even some blog posts or trip reports and things that others have put together,” she said. “Those have all been really helpful.” 

Endless opportunity, endless potential 

Images courtesy of Danielle Fisher

Danielle has enjoyed helping others — friends, family members, fellow moms, new clients — get more out of their trip and discover how travel advisors help the world open up.

“There are so many people out there that have never even thought about working with an advisor, or don't understand how it works and how it's so easy,” she said. “I make a little bit of money while I'm doing something that I love doing anyway, and it doesn't cost them anything extra. They just get more for their money. That's been really cool to see that. The opportunities are almost endless.”

Danielle understands the power travel holds, having been on transformative volunteer trips in Africa, luxury getaways with her husband, kid-friendly vacations and everything in between.

“It builds who you are,” she said of travel. “To travel to places that are so different from everything you know, it opens your eyes so much. It just changes who you are and how you see the world.” She added, “It builds so much empathy, understanding and also curiosity.”

If ever there was a valuable asset for the modern travel agent, it’s curiosity. That curiosity fuelled Danielle to join Fora, make her first booking (and many there after) and eventually hit pro status, meaning she’s surpassed an impressive booking-value threshold, and has also completed our advanced training curriculum. This year, her eyes are set on Fora X, an internal agency reserved for our top earners. In other words, she’s just getting started.

“It's been an amazing couple of months, and I'm just super excited,” Danielle said. “The potential is endless.”