Student Debt Free at 29: Local Woman Finds Independence With Help of Avon

Georgiana has always faced some sort of adversity being a woman of color. And as a woman of color, she didn’t know any millionaires that looked like her.

Georgiana received an Avon book at 17 and decided to start selling while in high school. She never saw anyone else her age doing this, but she just wanted pocket money for books. In her Avon book, she found a photo of a woman named Donna Reed-Mitchell from Jamaica, where her parents are from. She read more about Donna and found out she lives in the Bronx, close to her home as she was born in Brooklyn and now lives in Queens, and found that Donna built a million dollar business with Avon. As a first generation American, finding out that something so amazing can happen for people not from here gave her hope. Georgiana never thought in her wildest dreams that she could be at Donna’s level.

“I was afraid to talk to people. Avon’s people and the direct managers were great at encouraging me in my business and in school. I taught myself and was encouraged by Donna and it was great to see someone who looked like me. I didn’t know if I could make something out of it. A lot of people said I wouldn’t make it – that as an architect I was in the wrong career. I went for two careers that people said I couldn’t do. I had to disprove the naysayers.”

As of April 2016, Georgiana is out of student debt. And, at 29 years old, she’s an Avon leader with around 150 people on her team, and a full time architectural designer. Avon has given her confidence to come out of her shell, with an extra income to not only pay off her student debt but for emergencies, too.

To top it all off, Georgiana, one in a family of five, has never left the country before due to the high cost of travel. Avon has allowed her to leave the country for the first time with a 7 day, 6 night all expenses paid trip to Tahiti. She goes in September with a +1.

Georgiana wants to share her success so she can inspire future Representatives to join Avon. She wants her story to be heard to a younger generation – to start with finding money for books and tuition, like she did. And in this social selling economy, she shares her Avon clothing and make up on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

In this tough economy with constant glass ceilings for women, especially women of color, Georgiana found her independence in the most unexpected place.

If you want to learn more about Georgiana's journey to independence, you can visit Avon.com.