Doctor
Kiona
Hotelier. Serial Entrepreneur.
Academic. Media Mastermind.
SAY HELLO
“The world is so abundant—and we can all win.”
Doctor Kiona is a serial entrepreneur and academic redefining what modern enterprise looks and feels like. Her portfolio spans multiple industries, including beauty through Jaguar Salon; travel through Reroot; construction through Construction Solutions International; hospitality through Seúl Haus; education through Grad SKU and Business Brunch; and media via documentaries and commercial production. Each venture is built with intention, elegance, and cultural fluency.
Working across six continents, she designs cross cultural, multilingual businesses rooted in community, education, and lived experience. Her work centers learning through travel and connection, rejecting extractive models in favor of a people over profits philosophy. The result is profitable companies that lead with purpose rather than exploitation.
Equally recognized for her sharp wit and well-manicured nails, as well as a career defined by awards and recognition, Doctor Kiona embodies a new archetype of leadership. One that lives in the trenches, co creating pathways and stepping back as others step forward. Her mission is simple and rigorous: to prioritize human development by inviting people to meet themselves at their core.
check the receipts
#1
Travel podcast, How Not to Travel, hitting the top spot in 13 countries.
$600,000
Raised for local communities through give-back programs.
37,000
Weekly visitors to her top travel blog, How Not to Travel Like a Basic Bitch which has been archived to make way for the Reroot travel blog.
4
Degrees earned before age 27.
3M
Weekly views on Instagram, @DoctorKiona.
1,300+
Students learning through Reroot, a decentralized university.
Building Businesses
A regenerative model
A serial entrepreneur across construction, hospitality, beauty, travel, and media, Doctor Kiona approaches business as both a regenerative practice and a profitable pursuit. Her work values measurable results and human impact; through her educational workshops, she guides those seeking to find their path.
ADVOCATING FOR DISAGREGGATION
Academic research
A Ph.D. and founder of a decentralized university, Doctor Kiona brings lived experience to her critique of traditional academia. Her work centers on disaggregated data and cultural dissonance, and she leads practical workshops on getting into graduate school and thriving once there.
Media Production
A CULTURALLY-RELEVANT APPROACH
A top rated podcaster, author, travel influencer, award winning blogger, and documentary producer, Doctor Kiona produces and creatively directs commercials through a distinctly cultural lens. From actors and makeup artists to costumes, music, and props, every element is sourced from the local community; circulating investment back into the communities she works.
Hear her speak
Embrace nuance and transcend cultural barriers.
Doctor Kiona’s upbringing instilled a unique perspective, allowing her to oscillate between class and cultures. As a Ph.D. who grew up beneath the poverty line, a daughter of immigrants from East and West, raised on the most diverse island in the world, Doctor Kiona brings unrivaled nuance to education, travel, and business.
Signature workshops:
Black and Asian Solidarity in History
AAPI Issues
Advocating for Disaggregated Data
Grad School for People of Color
Building Regenerative Companies
Female and Minority Entrepreneurship
Why Traditional Classrooms Don't Work
Nuances In Ethical Travel
...And many more