.png)
In Her Prime
Big-city living can feel like a grind, but In Her Prime is where women hit pause, tune in, and turn up. From boardrooms to brunch tables, we’re bringing bold conversations about careers, confidence, and crushing it—all while keeping it real.
We’re Elise and Domenika, the voices behind the mic and the movement. What started as a sister brand to House of Movement has evolved into the podcast women actually want to listen to. It’s where stories get honest, growth feels effortless, and inspiration flows.
Follow us on Instagram @houseofmvment to get involved and keep the conversations going!
In Her Prime
From Startups to Sneakers: Building a Powerhouse Brand with Katherine Johnsen
Today’s episode features an extraordinary guest who is one of the most inspiring female founders we have had the privilege to meet. Katherine is a partner at Counter Culture, a creative agency representing some of the biggest influencers, and the founder of Common Ace, one of the fastest-growing female footwear communities and marketplaces. Beyond that, she has played a pivotal role in leading marketing and partnerships for major tech conferences like Startupfest and ran early-stage startup programs over a decade ago, working with now-iconic brands like Mejuri. Throughout her career, she’s consistently broken barriers in male-dominated industries, paving the way for women to thrive
Hi guys, welcome back to our podcast. I'm Elise. And I'm Dom. Today we have a really special guest. She is truly one of the most inspiring just female entrepreneurs that we have ever met. Not only is she a partner at Counterculture, a creative agency that also houses a big roster of a lot of well-known influencers. She also started Common Ace, one of the fastest growing female footwear communities and marketplace. And to top it all off, she helped lead marketing and partnerships for major tech conferences like Startup Fest, ran early startup programs with winning companies like Missouri over a decade ago. And she did all of this while breaking barriers in very male-dominated industries. Welcome, Catherine.
SPEAKER_01:Welcome.
unknown:Wow.
SPEAKER_01:We're like, how do we spotlight her so well when we wrote so much?
SPEAKER_02:Honestly, I need to like take that as my bio that I bring places now.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. Well, we're so happy that you're here. And I don't know if everyone knows this is our first guest. So we're like, we went out all out, got a studio, everything. We start off every episode with Peak and Pit. So just kind of for those that don't know, something that went really well last week, something that sucked, just kind of highlight the ups and downs that everyone goes through. So do you want to start?
SPEAKER_02:Sure. Yeah, I think my peak last week I actually was in New York for a really exciting meeting that um was with like a big publishing house. I feel like I all like you know, when you're like my fingers across a little bit, but it was just um it was an opportunity that kind of knocked that you're like, oh, that's super exciting. Um, and I think my pit is uh we were trying to get something launched for before the holidays that just with mail strikes and you know manufacturing and all of that is not happening, which was a little bit of a disappointment, but also just like the reality is a business. So it wasn't meant to be.
SPEAKER_01:Okay. And the meeting that you had in New York, how like was that how long were you anticipating that for? Did it come out of the blue?
SPEAKER_02:It actually came out of the blue. I we are working on a cool collab with Common Ace that came through this really great agency out of Beverly Hills, and I got a call from her the week prior, and she said, Hey, you're gonna get a phone call from this publishing house. I put you forward for this opportunity. And I was like, Oh, I don't know that I'm actually like quite a fit for exactly what that is. And she was like, just say yes, like it'll open up other opportunities, whatever. And I was in London actually at the time, and it was she was like, Yes, it'll be next week.
SPEAKER_01:And I was like, Okay, great. Tell me where I need to be. Um, did you were in New York for how long?
SPEAKER_02:I was in New York for three days. I was there Wednesday through Saturday last week. Okay, lovely. Yeah, so it was we'll see. You know, I feel like sometimes in those opportunities when you feel like you're batting up a little bit. Like I did feel like I was like, I don't know. I think there's people who are probably more experienced like out of your weight class.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, like, but honestly, sometimes I think like you were meant to have that interview, and like it's just that's just how it goes.
SPEAKER_02:That's kind of what I feel. I'm always like, you gotta go. Like if you feel like you're a little bit out of your depth, you're moving the right direction. I always feel like so. I was a little bit out of my depth. So we'll we will see what comes out of that. But it was, yeah, it was just one of those opportunities that you think to yourself, like, oh my god, 20-year-old me would be like, Well, this is so cool.
SPEAKER_01:Gagging over this.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I would be because 31-year-old me is too.
SPEAKER_01:I'm like, you know, very nice. Okay, you're okay.
SPEAKER_00:My peak and pet are like more superficial. I can do those too. Like, don't worry if that's what we my peak is Codalie emailed me to be on their PR list.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, but it was so okay. I'm gonna give a background. Then it was the the night before her and I were on her couch. We're like, can you imagine if Codalie like uh reached out to one of us like and we were like holding each other's hand, we're like, okay, now let's go home. And then literally the next day she sends it to me, she's like, get the fuck out. And she's like, Codolie DM'd me.
SPEAKER_02:And I was like, I love that. We love Cotolie. Like reservatrolls.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, this is this is what I'm saying. Because I had never had their products before, and Dom got me on that product.
SPEAKER_01:I went to France this year and I bought so much Cotolis because I like the tax backs or whatever. I bought like literally six of everything, and then I came back and I'm like, You have to use Cotolit. Like I've been using it for like two years, it's very pricey. Like, here's like 120 Canadian for like the retro thing. But anyways, I got her on and then I love this patiently waiting. No, 100%.
SPEAKER_02:And I feel like when you're a loyalist, it pays off. Like, well, I think like I also don't have the follow-over count. So, like, it's so much less, it's so much less about the numbers these days as it is about like truly the community. It's like 100 true fans theory. Like, I'm just like, if you have a hundred people that care about what you're doing, you are so much more.
SPEAKER_01:100 likes, 100 comments, 100 people sharing. Yeah, yeah. No, that is true.
SPEAKER_02:It's true. Like you a lot of times, like that is far more influence than people that now have like two million plus followers, where it's like, but would any of them actually like show up to something you're doing? You know, like you start to get so big that you kind of like lose the pinnacle of the community.
SPEAKER_00:I actually saw a chart recently and it was talking about like ROI from companies, and it was like a just a graph of like different stages of influencers, yeah, and like the larger the following, the lower the ROI. And like the ROI was highest on people with like a thousand followers. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:I'm like okay. Yeah, no, it is true. Yeah, and then your pet.
SPEAKER_00:My pit is we tried to film the podcast last week and we didn't have a cord and it didn't turn off. Yeah, it was awful. And we just started mining.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it was awful. I literally drove an hour and a half down in traffic from Richmond Hill, got down there, and I was like so excited, and then it just didn't work out.
SPEAKER_00:It just didn't work out. But it was just one of those days, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Um, okay, I would say my peak, I'm going to Miami next weekend for our basil. Love, I'll be there too. Yeah, is that what it is? Our Basil. Okay. So it just like worked out because my girlfriends and I, we were supposed to do New York for Halloween. New York didn't work out, and then we're like, okay, let's go to Miami December 6th, and then we ended up looking at the dates. We're like, my god, it's Basil weekend. So we're like so excited. We've like already reached out to a few promoters, like just trying to get our ins. But I'm super excited. I've never been to Miami. I have a few girlfriends, like the three other girls that I've been with have gone. So I'm super excited. We leave Wednesday night, come back Sunday morning. And then I can finish off with my pit. I'm like stressed out about holiday financials, like gift giving, especially now that I'm older and like I have big girl money. I'm like, I want to put thought into gifts, but I'm like just calculating how much. Like, what am I gonna drop$3,000 on gifts for like mom, dad, sister, boyfriend, like my boyfriend's parents that I'm like really close with, like in that give and I'm like stressed out, and like and I'm going away for New Year's. It's just a lot.
SPEAKER_02:It becomes a lot, it's like a really substantial time of year. And I I do find too that sort of like lifestyle inflation happens, like I know as you start making more money, and you're like, okay, but like I can afford the better.
SPEAKER_01:You know, like you're like, I can afford nice things. Like, I want to give my mom something nice.
SPEAKER_00:Well, you almost then feel bad for not getting something nicer because you're like, I because you're like, we know I buy it for myself.
SPEAKER_01:So that's why like my mom's like, I know you've gone on four trips this year, like, why am I getting a hundred dollar like candle? Like, and I know she would never say it, but yeah, yeah, yeah. I would I'm always and I my mom would give me the like the moon and the stars. So I'm like, why would I not so I'm like stressed about it? But I actually saw it was funny, I saw this stat the other day. It said that it was like the average American, so I don't know what it would be to Canadian, but during Black Friday from September to beginning of December, it spends anywhere between$35,000 to$55,000 on like gifts just with sales, so much thing. And it was like on a I don't know what like news outlet it was, but it was saying it was anywhere between just like the sales starting so early and people getting so overwhelmed with just like groceries and decorations and anything related to the holidays.
SPEAKER_02:Oh no, it's a lot. And I I even made a video about travel Tuesday the other day, and I was like, you really have to be like cognizant of if it's worth it for you. Same with like Black Friday, like as someone who obviously, you know, promotes products and consumerism in a lot of ways, I always say to people genuinely, and I think, you know, because as I've mentioned to you guys, like I've had, you know, my brothers run through some health issues over the past couple years that have just um really like perspective, totally in a way where it's just like, you know, acceptance of the situation you have and gratitude for what you have is is everything. Like if you don't have your health, you have nothing. And I think sometimes we think like, oh, like I'm gonna get that bag and it's gonna bring me the joy, or I'm gonna get that. And then you get a few of those things and you realize it doesn't change anything. So I think sometimes just the like intentionality of what really brings me joy, like what who are the people that really fill my cup? What are the things I use frequently all the time that like are a part of my lifestyle every day, and not just like a you know, I'm gonna wear this once. Yeah. Um, I think it's just a good check-in with yourself because I've had years where I'm just like, you check your credit card and you're like, like I'm out of, I am unhinged.
SPEAKER_00:Getting into your background and your career journey, yes. How did you start, I guess, all of the things that you are doing now? Yeah. Let's start from the beginning.
SPEAKER_02:So I um started working one summer for this company called Startup Fest. Um, Phil, who was, you know, still one of my bosses, you know, 14 years later, and I had connected. Um, I had actually like ended up kind of volunteering at an event my dad was speaking at. He had called me and said, Hey, um, you know, my friend Phil had someone not show up to do registration. I was like 18 at the time. He's like, Will you come? I was like, No, I'm at spring break in Miami. And he was like, Yeah, you're about over. I was like, okay. So I just literally like was checking people in. I was like scanning badges at this conference in Miami. And I got to talking with Phil a little bit, and he was like, you know, what do you what are you doing in the summer? Like, I'm kind of starting running this project. And um flash forward, I ended up moving to Montreal that summer and working on building out kind of the early days of Startup Fest, which was, you know, maybe 600, 700 people at the time and bringing together really the Canadian startup ecosystem. And I did everything from walking his dog to like sitting in meetings at Apple. And um, then when we were there, we kind of started conceptualizing the elevator world tour, which was the you know, unique ways to do pitch competitions, pre-Shark Tank, pre-Dragon's Den, any of that. And I was in university at the time and I really wanted to like be a part of these things. So I kind of did a lot of my classes like remote. I would get Phil to like write a letter, and I'd be like, Yeah, I'll show up for the exam. And um, we went and ran these elevator world tours in different cities. We did the Eiffel Tower in Paris, we did the CN Tower, we did the Azraeli Tower in Tel Aviv, ICC in Hong Kong. We would pick um about a hundred startups from those cities that were really, you know, promising companies. And then I would work with those kind of different organizations and Phil's network to find angel investors who each wanted to kick in 10K to build out these$100,000 investment prizes. And we started kind of running these all over and getting a lot of traction, and that in turn grew Startup Fest. And so um when I graduated, I ended up doing that full-time. And you know, Startup Fest in its peak was, you know, north of eight to nine thousand people pre-pandemic. We're now just getting back there, um, you know, kind of since the pandemic. And then from that, we launched the biggest digital government conference too. So we bring together biggest companies in tech with public sector in both Canada, US, the 11 digital nations, and essentially teach the government how to become more tech savvy. Wow. Um, yeah, which is like very interesting and kind of random, honestly. And um through that, I had always been kind of creating content, probably since my early 20s, on Instagram, and I had connected with my now business partners at Counterculture, um, Ash and Tara through Instagram. Actually, years ago, I was maybe like 25, 26. I got a DM from Ash, and he was like, Hey, we're running this program with Skyvodka, and we're looking for someone in Calgary who like has a lot of Calgary followers. Can you get on the phone call? And we'd like followed each other through sneakers, and I remember him calling me and being like, Hey, like this is the program, like whatever. And I was like, Oh, like, okay, like it sounds kind of legit. Like, I don't know.
SPEAKER_01:He's like, I'll see the vodka.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I was like, I think Sky vodka, like for sure. And I ended up doing this program, and there was actually two other male influencers of the program, and whoever like got the most contest entries won a trip to San Francisco.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, so you popped off.
SPEAKER_02:So I obviously was like committed to winning. I was like, I'm gonna beat these boys, obviously. Won that, went to San Francisco. I feel like that campaign was maybe like a six thousand dollar campaign or something, and I was like, this is the coolest thing ever. And through that, I really like developed a great friendship with Ash and Tara. And flash forward a couple years later, we ended up all um kind of partnering to go more full-time at the agency, which Tara had been running kind of independently herself at the time. Ash was senior at LG, and I transitioned my role at Startup Fest to be more of like a fractional CMO type partnerships person. I I love that team. Um, I love still getting to work with them. I think they're like some of the smartest, most interesting people. But I just needed a shift. Nothing else. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So I kind of moved in that direction and then so when you got into, I guess, counterculture, that would have been like what year range would that have been?
SPEAKER_02:2020, 2021 kind of thing. Yeah. So it's been about three and a half, four years.
SPEAKER_00:So when did you start growing your personal following?
SPEAKER_02:I'd say my personal following, I started growing in like 2017-ish on Instagram.
SPEAKER_00:Was influencers like a big thing at that point? Or do you think it's like skyrocketed?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, it's totally skyrocketed. Like it was, it was just Instagram was really the only platform anyone was doing YouTube, of course. And um, I had a, you know, a really good girlfriend of mine in university was like, you know, fabulous beauty YouTuber, and she was doing a really great job. And um, I just really was kind of sharing all the cities I was in, and I was getting a lot of questions about recommendations because my mom sort of stuff. Yeah, like travel stuff. My mom was a flight attendant, so I had flight passes. So when I wasn't traveling for a startup fest, I was always using my flight passes to try to like. I had a girlfriend who was living in London at the time, and I would just like basically you just pay like the the airport fees and like taxes. So I would just That's a good perk. It was amazing. We call my mom a pretty queen of the cards. I I do, they're much less like when you turn 25, your priority goes down. So like I rare, I maybe use them like twice a year, but the flights have to be quite open for you to get on. But when I was like under 25, um, it's based on seniority, and my mom had worked for Air Canada for years, so I had pretty good seniority, and it was amazing. It was amazing. So I like would I used it all the time. Like I was like, I'm embarrassed, I'm in London. I was like, give me a plane, like we'll go. And so I actually launched city guides to like share a lot of the places that I would go, and that was kind of my first like real foray. The sneaker stuff kind of came at secondary. I just like was wearing a lot of cool sneakers. My brother had always been really into sneakers. Um, my ex-boyfriend at the time was very into sneakers, and we would be like in Japan or in LA or New York, and we were always like the sneaker stores, and so that was kind of a default, but yeah, it was like a very organic kind of growth for me.
SPEAKER_00:I feel like sneakers back then was like such a thing because I think back to when I was in like first year, second year, and oh my god, like that was my number one focus was to get like a pair of Jordans. Totally. I used to be obsessed with like the Jordan 4s, the metallic reds. I was obsessed with those shoes. And then I got the the um, you know, like the black and orange ones. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Then I got those and I was just like, I would wear those colors.
SPEAKER_02:Oh yeah, you're like, I need them. Yeah. It was and it's so funny how like the the trends, like so many of those silhouettes are timeless silhouettes that will forever be. I always say, like, dunks are never out because like dunks are one of the most iconic sneaker silhouettes. Like if you love wearing a dunk, wear a dunk. But it is so funny to see the stuff, like how much now the trends will shift, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Like, and did you always like when you were like 15, 16, and like did you know you wanted to do something creative, or was it just like the conference that your dad, like, do you think the opportunities kind of just aligned?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, that's it's a really good question. Like, I always liked the creative stuff, like I was always like collaging and like making it.
SPEAKER_01:I think when you're younger, like you didn't have TikTok that like like now I look at my little cousin, she's like, Oh, I want to be on TikTok because like it's right there in your face and you're visualizing yourself doing it. Yeah. Like what was creative when you were younger?
SPEAKER_00:Like how sometimes I think it just like comes to you though, because when I think back to when I was in like grade school and high school, and all my friends wanted like toys and whatever, or like electronics, and I wanted drones, yeah. And I used to make my little drone videos and post them all over my Instagram all the time, and then I went to school for science, but it's funny how like I made my way back to like the filming side, yeah.
SPEAKER_02:I just I don't know, I just think it's like you just find it, you find it, and I feel like um, you know, my older brother has always been very, very creative, okay, he's super creative. And we grew up in Calgary, which is a little more, you know, oil and gas, like a little bit regressive. I remember my brother used to be like crocheting in the back of class, and like he was wearing like LRG, and like just like he was always shopping from Carmelou, which like I feel like some people might get the reference, might be a little young, but like Carmelou was like the spot, and he was wearing like just bright, like cool clothes, and for like a small town vibe, yeah. Like he was just very um, yeah, just like super creative, and he definitely like exposed me to a lot of those things, like very artistic, very like thinks very differently than I do, even to this day. You know, like I'm I'm like a great reader, writing, like all of that stuff. My brother's like not at all, but he's like physics, building things. And so I think that that was big for me. And I was always like collaging, I loved magazines, I loved like all of that stuff. But honestly, I think when I started working with Startup Fest at a really young age and getting into this environment where people were so creative, but also just realizing that like, oh, you can kind of do whatever you want. Like I felt like in Alberta, it was like there's this is what you do. And you, if you're gonna do engineering, you're doing petroleum engineering because oil and gas. And I realized there were all these people creating things. And when you realize that like the people who've built the structures in which we exist are no smarter than you or me or anyone, they're like, Oh, I can really kind of do anything. And that was like so inspiring.
SPEAKER_00:It's funny how you kind of started in like travel, I guess, social media, and you still do that because your TikTok is a lot of travel advice.
SPEAKER_02:It's so funny because I will always think like this must not be very interesting to people. And then people are like, oh my god, I love that. Like, give us more, the packing list, the whatever. Um, and I think I recognize that I travel a a lot.
SPEAKER_00:How much in a in like I don't know, I wanna I don't know if I want to say a month, but like a month would you travel?
SPEAKER_02:I would say on average, I'm in Toronto probably a week of every month.
SPEAKER_01:So what is it? Oh, that's a really good question.
SPEAKER_02:I actually, my favorite place in the entire world is Tefino. Like it west, yeah, it's just like surf town. I think it's the furthest western point in Canada. I absolutely love it. That always shocks people. I think they think I'm gonna be like New York, like but um, I just love, I'm like such a water girl and I love to just like be in solitude. Did you live in LA? Um, I don't know that I could live, like as much as I spend half of my time in LA right now, for sure. I don't know that LA is a place that like calls me for the long term.
SPEAKER_00:I don't know if it really calls anybody. I think like people fantasize LA and even my boyfriend is like, we're gonna move to Pacific Palestines and we're gonna do the do the thing. Yeah, and I'm like, maybe we could get a house there, but I don't know if it's like I think it's different than what you think it is.
SPEAKER_02:I think you have to really know who you are to have a good time in LA. I think that LA can be, um, you know, like I broke my nose when I was like 13, and it doesn't really bug me, you know? Like I'm I'm just like, yeah, like my nose is probably the least interesting thing about me, like whatever. And when I spend too much time in LA, I'll be like, I should definitely know. I should get my nose.
SPEAKER_00:Like this is like oh my god, yeah. And that's no, like it was there in May, and I stayed at the one hotel by the Equinox. And we were at the Equinox one day, and I'm like, I can't work out here.
SPEAKER_02:It's crazy. It's crazy. But I think what you realize too is like Oh, that like doesn't seem real though. It's it's a it's a weird place. But I think the more time I spent there, you realize that like a lot of people that you look at and you look at these people and you're like, oh my god, like your life looks so amazing, or you're so perfect, or whatever. They're sometimes, and I'm generalizing, but like they're sometimes the least happy people that you know, you know, because when you're chasing certain things that you think are what will bring you happiness, you're like, all right, well, I got it, and I'm still not super happy. So but I'm definitely someone who like home to me is the people that I'm with far more than a place. Like I don't feel super homesick. My best friends live all over like Montreal, LA, Philly, Toronto. Um, and so I'm just happy to be like where the people I want to be on. Yeah, that's fair.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I know I like that. So when you got into counterculture, yes, um counterculture now. I have heard of it just because you guys roster like a lot of large influencers, but it's a small roster, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02:Totally. It's actually the smallest part of our business, is the influencer side.
SPEAKER_01:So how many influencers do you guys have if you're allowed to?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, no, no, um, full time on our roster, less than 15. I should probably know that I said off the top of my head, but like Toronto-based or no, uh Toronto-based, we have maybe three, three that are Toronto-based, um, who are awesome. And, you know, and then we have some creators that I feel like are just like less, they're more niche in the markets they live in. So, like, we work with Liz B. Croft. She was a New York-based psychotherapist. Her clients are NBA players, entertainers. She does a lot of like mental health programming for different brands. We just did a program with Adidas, she's done stuff with Meta this year, she's just on Shaq's podcast. Um, we represent this girl Alyssa, who's out in Calgary. She's actually one of the top financial uh podcasters and authors in the country. So she does really, really fabulous content for like couples and their finances. Um, in Toronto, we have Sid Wingold, you guys might know, who's awesome and like lovely, and such a great example of how you can very much be yourself and still grow. Like, she is so herself and so funny. She's the only person I know that will like put on her Karen costume and like walk down the street and is completely unfazed. Like, she's just, and it's yeah. So we work with a lot of people that are such awesome people that it's so exciting to see them get, you know, the accolades they deserve because they're just like building cool things on the internet. But yeah, it is actually the smallest part of our business. So we we also run influencer campaigns for different brands or agencies. Sometimes larger agencies will hire us to run programming for them.
SPEAKER_03:Okay.
SPEAKER_02:Um, and then we also have a few clients on Retainer that we do kind of full service e-com management, branding, everything. Seasons is one of them. You guys might have seen the really aesthetic diffusers.
SPEAKER_01:Yes. We were literally.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, we're happy to get you guys. Oh my god, we're happy to send you some. Yeah, we're the agency on record for seasons. So, like, we work with brands like that, um, which is super fun.
SPEAKER_01:And for brands, is it you guys outreach? They find you a mix of both.
SPEAKER_02:We are, you know, at the point right now, I would say, where we we are intentionally boutique and we like it that way. We have a small team um and we don't have aspirations to like have a 15-person team. It's been an amazing way for us to be able to work on the projects we love, leverage our team to do that, and work with brands that we really like. So uh we we definitely have pitched to brands before or do like call for proposals and and submit in RFPs, but typically the brands we work with now come to us and we see if there's an organic fit. Um, and we're also pretty well known for like doing culturally relevant programming. So if brands want to do, you know, an interesting campaign that is a little more grassroots, like we're we're great for that. Um, and and love to kind of consult on different like experiential things. We've done programs with Canada Goose and things like Creators Table. We also run a small platform called GuAP, which is kind of our subscription-based creator community because we get a lot of inbound from creators who I, you know, I love to have conversations with creators, and so often I say to them, like, you don't need management, or at least you don't need it yet. You maybe you just need some support on how to best price yourself, how to structure deals. Um, so we bring people into this community and then they have direct access to our team as well. So WOAP is something we're excited about that we like don't advertise a ton, but is a really cool kind of way to do it. It's we've been kind of slowly doing it over the past like eight months, I would say. Um, it's something that's just like been a natural pipeline for us when there's creators that, you know, we'd love to work with, but A, we don't have the bandwidth to support them properly, and B, they just like don't fully need management. Yeah. So it's a great way to be like, hey, you can speak to our team directly, you have direct access in Slack, we'll do lunch and we'll do calls.
SPEAKER_01:Because I think a lot of people are like, I there's a lot of questions that are just not they can't get the answers to. So then to have like a portal or something from an agency that they really admire, I think is totally because it opens up a conversation for things that you can't just Google online. Like we talk about rates and stuff or just charging and just getting into the influencer industry ourselves, and like you no one really talks about it.
SPEAKER_00:No one talks about it because people are myself. Like I had to come up with my rates out of thin air, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Basically go from there and then we found out that she was like severely undercharging.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, we were like, no, I was like, raise your rates right now. Yeah, um, now we're good, yeah. But um, even like uh I have a couple clients that pay like what I thought a couple months ago was way too high, yeah. And apparently it's not. Totally. And I have like girls messaging me all the time being like, What are your rates? Like, what should I charge? And I'll openly tell people what I charge because like I wish somebody told me.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, totally. And I think a lot of times, too, there's a lot of like misconceptions in the industry where I'll hear sometimes from like one of our girls, they'll be like, Well, this person's charging this. And I'm like, they may have gotten that one time from a brand, but one of the things that like we take pride in with our creators is long-term relationships. I'm like, it is very easy to get the first check with anything, with brand partnerships, with vendor. Like, it's easy to get the first check. It's very hard to get the second. And I would way rather get one of our creators in at a$7,000 deal that the brand feels comfortable with, that they know will perform well, that we build a great relationship and get four of them than get them in at a$15,000 deal that it's like, okay, great. Well, I'm glad you got the check one time. The brand feels like they overspent. You feel like you don't know why they're not doing that. And so I think sometimes um we always say too, like, we don't do standardized media kits for our creators. We have like a place where you can go to see all their demographics and their stats, but their rates do fluctuate in terms of, you know, if it's a Canadian small business, we're not gonna charge what I'm charging Sephora, you know? And yeah, and I think that sometimes too, there needs to be that flexibility. Like, I so often still love to like personally work with brands that I know don't have the check to, you know, pay what I would charge some large corporation, and that's okay. And I think it's important to like discern that as well because that's how you build long-term relationships with people, you know.
SPEAKER_00:I think even with sponsors that we work with for House and Movement, um we have started like locking in longer-term.
SPEAKER_01:That's been our biggest thing, that's been our biggest thing for our events, and that's something that we're like super proud of. Is Elisa's done like a great job of like pitching ourselves to brands and really like explaining kind of like the problem that we're trying to solve here in Toronto and like the solution that House and Movement offers and why it's beneficial for the both of us to have. And we've been able to secure like three six month long-term sponsors instead of like one really cool event. Totally. But then okay, we have another event down the line, and like now what? But now we're like set up for like a lot of different things.
SPEAKER_00:And then eventually the goal would be to then like monetize it, so then like really charge the brands. But absolutely, like we're kind of at a point where we're we're like in the in between right now, so within the next few months, like I would assume that we would start charging these brands.
SPEAKER_01:But yeah, I think like but that's important though that like you that you mentioned it because that's something that we're like really trying to pride ourselves on, is like you can't just be a one and done type of thing because then you just have no then you run out, you have no resume, you have nothing to show for yourself repair.
SPEAKER_02:You know, like it's I think that so often people get hung up on being like, well, I won't do it unless I get paid, or and and there's definitely a line, you know, where it's like, okay, like this is made by rent. You know, yeah, like our bills okay, but I do think that there is a line of like understanding where people are at. And um, you know, we've had the great fortune of like being able to work with so many creators that we've been able to pay their fees to because we've worked with the brands that have been able to, that when I'm doing a launch with Common Ace and we're sending out shoes, you know, I send to a lot of these women with zero expectation. You know, I'm like, I would love to get these in your hands. I think it'd be exciting. And I think because of that, people are like, you know, I'm so happy to sport, like, no, no problem. And I think it's just thinking more long term. Like so often, people are like, I want that check. And it's like, right, but look at your long term objectives. And you guys will certainly very soon be at a place where it's like, right, but we've built this community. And if you guys would like to be able to use our mailing list or communicate with them directly through XYZ, these are those tiers of pricing. And now you've created a Media property, you know, like that that has so many avenues for monetization that you've just built intentionally by including the right brands without nickel and diming in the early days. I think it'll really pay off for you.
SPEAKER_00:Well, I think something we have also started transitioning into is because we both do marketing, like I'm freelance and she's more on the corporate side. So we like kind of know different things. We have like toggled along the line of like maybe offering marketing services or like branding services and stuff. So sometimes our payment towards like a brand that's like a non-monetary payment would be just through UGC. Yeah. So like if we, you know, really want this brand for three to six months and we feel like it's really beneficial, but they're kind of iffy, we're like, okay, we'll throw in the smart.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. Yeah. Cause you're like, honestly, it's low lift on our end. We're happy to do it. Like figuring out how you can bulk up those deals is everything. Like, I so often will, you know, we'll look at creators that have multiple avenues and a brand will reach out for something and maybe they don't have the budget to hit with that, you know, one certain thing. But it's like, okay, well, what if we included podcasts in this? What if we there's this opportunity that they're doing at this event? Can we include it? Like looking at things more holistically, because so often brands have budgets in buckets, right? And it's like, okay, well, my bucket's empty, but like if we can do it over through this person's bucket and get a little bit more from events, you know?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, you know. Yeah. And so figuring out like we calculating where you allocate your stuff.
SPEAKER_02:And I think the easiest thing, like what I always come back to when we're negotiating for influencers, when I'm negotiating for startup fest, any partnerships, it's about understanding everyone's objectives. Like, I love to sit down with brand and be like, what does success look like to you? What are your KPIs? What does your team measure you on? And they'll be like, I want signups for this program, or I want whatever it is. Okay, great. Well, here's how we best feel we can help you meet those.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Easy. Like, I think so often people are people are guessing. Like it's like, yeah, well, is this, you know, and we have creators who are way better for brand awareness than they are for conversion. It's like, if you guys have, you know, EMV as your biggest mark of success, you want that earned media value to be high, great, let's work with this creator because you're gonna get insane um numbers on views and engagement, but perhaps not directly on conversion. And so I think it's just people sometimes miss the step of being like, Yeah, what are your objectives here? Because then we'll probably build a longer term relationship naturally.
SPEAKER_01:Do you think like brands sometimes miss that and they will just get fixated on a certain influence because of or influencer based off of like a status, and then they don't actually know what they can offer? Yeah, like you saying, like how you will do your best to like be a matchmaker and pair influencers with the right brands that so it's a win-win for everybody. Yeah. Do you think that brands are like, I want her based off of just what we see on social media, but then she might not be a best fit? Do you desire to be able to do that? Definitely.
SPEAKER_02:I also think, and we've seen this happen over the years. I think that sometimes brands miss the mark on cultural relevancy. Okay. I think sometimes brands partner with someone because they see just numbers, like they're like, this is gonna perform, but maybe they're missing how that creator is perceived by their community, actually. I'll use the Ares Tour as a great example. I think that some brands would have seen greater success by going to an influencer who's maybe already been to the Eras Tour.
SPEAKER_01:Oh my god. And say I spoke about this with a girl.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and and you know, I'm so happy for those people that got to go multiple times. Like I'm just saying, in theory, I think what could have been interesting is let's say you've been a couple times and a brand approaches you. Imagine if you went to that brand and you said, Hey, I would love to share this opportunity with one of my followers. I'm happy to share that experience online. I'm happy to share how we did that, but I think it would reflect better on the brand and on me, honestly, if I got to share this with someone in my community. And I think that sometimes brands miss the mark on what your objective of the campaign actually is because I don't know that you bringing seven influencers that have already been to the show was necessarily the greatest mark. I will say one of our creators went with a brand that I felt approached it really well because they brought her as more of a thank you for the work that we've done together and excited to continue the relationship without some big like PR experience around it. And I thought that that was just like a tasteful approach for them because it left a really great taste in her mouth. It felt authentic, it felt like a great. Yeah. And I think too, you know, a lot of the times brand when I look at my girlfriends that work at certain brands and we'll have these conversations too, they're like, look, you know, I need earned media value, I need the certain amount of impressions. So maybe this creator isn't my number one pick, but I know they're gonna post 15 times today. So like that checks a box for me. And a lot of times that's it. You know, I think of a lot of the interesting people I like to follow in the internet, and you know, I'll I'll see them do something, and I'm like, oh, that's interesting. Like, they certainly didn't do like a ton of coverage for that, or you know, and it's like a lot of brands don't love that. Like, brands still have KPIs that they need to meet. And so I think that there is a balance there for sure of brands being like, maybe this isn't my top pick, but like I need coverage. So if that person's gonna really thirst for it, like I'm in.
SPEAKER_00:I know someone had I even had the call today with a brand that is in Sephora and I we're working with them for House of Movement, and um they wanted to be like a sole sponsor for one of their upcoming launches for one of our events, yeah. And I was like, great, like that's a great idea. And they were like, Um, can we host it with influencers?
SPEAKER_01:And I said no because our whole brand of House of Movement it would look so bad on our part if we were just like, hey girls of Toronto, we're actually just gonna do Toronto, like influencer based.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and what I said to her on the call, I was like, if I'm being honest, I think you will benefit more from a community event as opposed to an influencer event. Because as much as there are influencers with that cult following and they have, you know, the pull, a lot of the influencers get stuff for free. So they're not gonna be your customers. Totally the community is gonna be your customers. So if you can get girls in and trying the products and loving it and talking to them, yeah, they're the ones who are gonna go to Sephora and buy it 100%.
SPEAKER_02:And and they're the ones who end up like talking about it all the time. One of my favorite things to do with common ace is like we send shoes all the time to everyday women. Like, my toxic trait actually is like running into someone will be like, oh my god, like you're the sneaker girl or something. And I'll be like, send me your address, we'll send you shoes. And my team's like, Heather, stop doing that. And I'm like, whatever.
SPEAKER_01:Like a little too many of this.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, like I'm like, oh, another pair of shoes. But like, that's so much more exciting to me. You know, we ran an event last year uh with a good friend of mine, Dave, Dave, who's a fabulous uh footwear designer called Creator's Table. And I went to Canada Goose and I was like, hey, um, I'm really inspired by you know, one of the guys I've worked with at Startup Fest forever, Alistair. He fabulous, like serial founder, author, amazing. And he runs something every year called Bit North, where he brings 30 people that he's met that year in interesting places together, usually to a chalet in Quebec, and everybody gives a five-minute talk on something unrelated to what they do for work. I went to my first Bit North when I was like 25. It was the coolest thing in the world to me. I was like, I was I spoke, I actually spoke about uh comparing the sneaker industry to the drug trade because I didn't work in sneakers at all at the time, so I was allowed. And I then since then have become the sneaker plug for that community of tech founders for sure. But um it was so exciting to me. And I was like, oh my god, the only reason I got in this door is because of Alistair, but I loved it. And so I wanted to run my own version of it last year. So I went to Canada Goose and I was like, hey, um, you know, I know that you guys are kind of pushing the footwear angle. We're gonna bring in 30 people who are interested in footwear, not influencers, like journalists, designers, you know, to me, the most influential people that don't really share it online. And it was so fun because all of those people got really fabulous PR boxes with like the Glacier Trail sneaker and coats and everything. And they were so excited. Like they really opened it and they were like, oh my gosh, like this is so amazing because they don't get PR every day. Yeah, and it's like it was it's so much cooler, you know? And it's not to say that I don't love working with influencers and love working with creators because so many of them are still very grateful for what they have and stuff, but it is really exciting to get to share those opportunities with like the everyday awesome people that are just like, this is cool, right? Like, you guys haven't lost touch of the fact that, like, this is crazy that this is our jobs.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah. I know definitely we're gonna get a question for like the people that you guys work with, the influencers on your roster. How do you guys select that? How does someone apply? Do you reach out? Like, I definitely know someone will be interested. Maybe someone looking for management, looking for a mentor. How do you guys go about kind of selecting and like really representing?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, so it's a little bit of both. Um, we've definitely had creators that we've reached out to over the years that we've brought in that are usually kind of early in their creator career. I think that's something we kind of take pride in. I always say it's very easy to see someone who's like already making a ton of money and growing some big community to be like, hey, we'll manage you. Um, but I think it's more of a testament when you see people who are like creative and doing something interesting, and you're like, I like, I like, I like him. Like he's gonna do something. So we try and keep our eye out for that type of thing. Um we do get quite a bit of outreach and we'll try and, you know, have conversations with people. And a lot of the times they're early days. Like we have creators reach out who are signed to another agency, perhaps, and they share a lot of the grievances. Yeah. And um, we, you know, we run things very differently. We have no clause that locks creators in. We we're not in the business of like making people work with us if they're not happy, or vice versa. There's a lot of agencies that make you buy out of your contract or things like that. We try and wrap up things clean and like always wish people well. Um, but you know, for us, that's just like not really the type of business we want to run. And additionally, we run everything really transparently. I think because Tara and myself are creators as well. So, like all of our roster gets their own email that they can just log into. It forwards to our team, but they can just log in, they see all their emails come in, they have full transparency because for me, like, I want to know that my emails are getting answered. Like, and and I would say 90% of agencies, you don't see any of them. It's just like, oh, I'm not sure.
SPEAKER_01:Like, my my manager got it, or so it's funny that you that you talk about. So I work, like Elise said, corporate marketing, and we actually were meeting with a client and we were asking about their Google ad budget. And they had said to us, they're like, honestly, like, I don't know, you're gonna have to talk to my agency because like they have all that information. Yeah, like so. We asked them, we're like, Why, why don't you know? They're like, Oh, like we just they just want to handle it, like we're like not allowed to see it, basically. Yeah, so it's like I didn't know that. Like, I thought if you worked for if you were under an agency, it would be like there wasn't gonna be like a wall between you and the agent, but I guess that does happen. No, so it's good that you like as an agency, you guys, there's full transparency and it's open and honest conversations with the brand deals that come in and yeah, that sort of stuff.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and I think for us, like what I find the thin red thread is I love working with people who are doing interesting things offline and just have chosen to share it on the internet, and that's like with zero judgment to people who are, you know, whatever. Full-time online? Yeah, and not even that, because you know, I a lot of our creators are full-time creators, but they're doing interesting things with their lives, you know. I think sometimes it's it's easy to get sucked into feeling like everything you're doing is just to create content, and that's not creating an actual holistic life or like fulfilling as a human. So I think that that's really important. Like, I love, you know, Liz is someone we've worked with for years. I think so highly of her because she has a full caseload of like patients that she sees all the time. And then she shares a lot of mental health content, connecting the dots between sports and mental health and fashion. And, you know, it's so cool. I'm like, how interesting that you're like building this and sharing it online. And, you know, I look at someone like Sid, who I mentioned earlier, such a fabulous entertainer, you know, like she writes all of her own skits, sketches. Like she'll send in concepts for things. I'm like, what in what world did you come up with that? Like, what? Like, you know, she's a talent on screen. I'm like, I'd love to see that girl's gonna have her own show one day, and I can't wait to see it, you know? Um, so yeah, I think that that's something that we and and for me, I also am like I look for good people. Like at the end of the day, like on and off screen. Totally. My my whole like ethos is building cool things with smart people. That's how I like to spend my time and describe everything I do. And I'm like, I we're a team with anyone we work with. Like, I want to feel like people are well-intentioned, with good attitudes, and like, you know, grateful for the opportunities they get and all of those things. And you know, the vast majority of creators for sure are. And there's like, you know, an underlying amount in every market that definitely you're like, okay, maybe we need to like touch grass. Like, this is yeah, this is a pretty fortunate way to spend your time.
SPEAKER_00:You're friends with your partners, right?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and they're married to each other.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, really?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, yeah, yeah. So Ash and Tara are married to each other, and they're like two of my best friends.
SPEAKER_00:So I think another question people would ask, and I feel like people ask myself and John this is like, what is your biggest struggle? It's like working with friends.
SPEAKER_02:I think that you have to, there's a couple things. You have to be able to separate your friendship and the business sometimes. Like, we've had hard conversations over the years that you have to be able to have. And at the end of the day, I love them as my best friends, always, regardless of whatever else will ebb and flow. Um, I think that the pros will always outweigh the cons for me. So I I love working with my best friends because, like, what's more fun than getting to do cool stuff with your best friends? Yeah. But I do think that like honest communication is really important. Like, um, you have to be able to sometimes hit those moments where it's like, hey, like you're not holding up your end of the deal. And and we both had those conversations where it's like, hey, like we said we're gonna do this, and like, what are you doing? You know, and and also understanding like it's almost like a marriage in a lot of ways. Like now, um, Tara and I really like run the agency together. And we, when I've had things going on in my personal life or she has and stuff, it's like catching each other when you need to, you know, like I've been dealing with stuff with my family over the past little while, and and even today I was just like trying to do things, and she was like, just cancel your meetings. Like it's you're just like I got it. You know, yeah, like it's all good. And so I think um that's one of the best parts of working with your friends is like just an understanding of humanness, but you really have to make sure that you respect each other, like at its core. I it's like a relationship, like as long as you respect each other, the rest can work itself out.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, no, that's great. Cause I think I think it can be challenging, especially because you don't want to blur that line between when you close the laptop off and like you can't look at the other person in front of you. And like for anyone that works with a significant other or mom or dad, like whatever relationship it is, you want to make sure that when like five o'clock hits, when you like clock off, you're like, okay, we're good. We're not and you can like communicate and talk through things and not let it affect because I can even imagine like working it with a spouse, like that can be like your totally like your partner's like that can be similar work to me.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. And that's like a hard line. Like, we do not work together, totally.
SPEAKER_02:And I mean, I have great respect for Ash and Tara. I feel like you guys should have Tara on the podcast one time. Well, she can dive into that because they have, you know, have managed to build a company together. You know, we work on multiple projects all together. Um, and they would be the first ones to tell you that like you have to have clear boundaries and like, um, but at the end of the day, like they both respect each other and they're both really good at complimentary things, which I think is awesome, you know. And I think that that's also important in your friends. Like, Tara is so creative and like so talented in so many ways that I'm just I'm like, Tara, can you help me? Like when we relaunched Common Ace, you know, even if I had like all the budget in the world, I still would have gone to Tara to do like all of our branding and brand book and everything because she just has like such an incredible eye. She's she's so like intentional with the design choices she makes, and she knows me so incredibly well. So I think it's really important too when you have like complimentary skill sets to like let people shine as they do.
SPEAKER_01:So talking about skill sets, someone that wants, we get a lot of people are always just asking us how we got into marketing. What would you say for someone that wants to work for an agency, wants to get into a creative field?
SPEAKER_00:Or even just like starting up like advice like for us, even that are starting this company, but also like hustling on the side just for like income purposes. Yeah. What would be like pieces of advice that you would give for that?
SPEAKER_02:I think, you know, number one, your relationships are everything. Um, I I worked with this guy at Microsoft, you know, almost a decade ago. Now I was telling this story actually the other day in New York, and it made me think of what he had said. He told me that your relationships are absolutely everything. He gave a talk one time about how he was named like the number one guy to know in New York City in the startup scene. Because whenever he would be on a plane or anything, he would reach out to 50 people or 20 people, like however long the time would permit, and reach out to people when you don't need anything from them.
SPEAKER_01:Reach out in a way as like checking in. Totally.
SPEAKER_02:Or add value. You know, I think some of the things that have helped me the most over the past like five, 10 years has been supporting people genuinely. Like when a friend launches a business or something, I'm buying that from them. When someone is doing something exciting, I want to share that from them. I want to reach out and see how I can add value, like give more than you take in everything that you do. It comes back to you tenfold. And I think so often, especially when you're in your 20s and stuff, you sometimes feel like someone else's success takes away from yours. And the sooner you realize that like it doesn't, like there's enough room at the table for everyone. I've always been like, why wouldn't I want my best friends to be like so smart, so successful, so cool? Like, what do I want to have like duds? You know, like not at all. And you will have people where it's like, um, I feel like you're not happy for me. Like we can. And that's normal, you know, but I always say, like, nobody who's in the arena has any time to like look at what you're doing. You know, the only people that are passing judgment are people who are not happy in their own lives. So I think that's like the biggest thing is just like give more than you take and add value because now, so often, like, someone will reach out to me who I haven't spoken to in years, or like never engages on anything I do. And they're like, hey, can you do whatever? I'll probably do it because I'm happy to help. But like, I'm way more happy to help someone who I'm like relationship. Hey, like it's great. Yeah. And I just feel like I'm now at a place where I'm able to authentically reach out to people, be like, hey, I'm doing this thing, and I love you. And they'll pick up the phone, you know? Yeah. And I think that that's really, really important. Is and it's also like, be super nice to people because I actually, when I years ago, there was a role open at Startup Fest, and this girl had applied. And when I thought back to like my high school experience, she was just like the one girl that I was like, Oh, you knew she just wasn't, yeah, and she applied to work for this role that I was hiring for at Startup Fest. And I remember sitting with Alistair, who I worked with, and looking at him and being like, I need you to god check me. Cause this girl applied, and she, you know, is essentially like qualified for the role. But I was like, she just honestly like was not super nice to me in high school. Like, I can like remember, and he was like, That's the game of life, baby. And he just like ripped it up.
SPEAKER_01:He was like, Yeah, no, like I think it's just so important to like be really nice to people and I will say, yeah, I will say that house of movement and just putting myself online has made me really be more mindful of the persona, how I act when I'm out with family, with friends, boyfriends, meeting with my boyfriend, meeting new people. Because like it's been actually really sweet. The both of us have like gone out and people have like recognized us from online. And like it doesn't happen often, but when it does, like, and they're like, Oh my god, like we've been to your event or we've seen your podcast, and like we just love it. You guys are so sweet. Like hearing that recognition, like, or when I go out, like I've it's been so rare. I've been like on Ausington and like at dinner, like my waiter's been like, Are you like from that? And I'm like, Oh my god, yeah, and she's like, You're so sweet, like it means so much, and I really do see the value in like the longevity of your kindness and how charismatic you are, and just how nice of a person because I know down the line I may need someone, or I may need something from a certain someone, and I would hate to be that person that's like, oh no, like don't go to her, like she's just she's just rude.
SPEAKER_00:That's what my boyfriend uses, but he always says, like, keep it something, but it's like basically like do not end with anybody on bad terms because like you don't know, like if 10 years down the line, like you don't want them saying anything, yeah.
SPEAKER_02:And the thing is too, no matter what, there's gonna be people that don't like you, you know, and that's okay. Like, I, as a chronic people pleaser, I'll be like, why? Like, I try to be so nice to everyone, like, I don't know. And that's okay, you know, like you you just can't make everyone happy. But my dad always used to say, like, you know, I use the judge test. Like, if you are about to like make a decision or something, think about going to the person you respect the most in your life and having to explain to them the decision that you made and why. As long as like you can feel good about that, like you're fine, you know. And I think it's just about like if you sleep easy at night with how you treat people and how you like you're keep it moving. No matter what, people are gonna have something to say, but like that's all you can control.
SPEAKER_01:And then just one other thing for someone like a junior marketer, and someone that wants to get into a junior role, like applying to your agency, what is something because I know it's such a saturated field, and when myself, when I was trying to get into a junior marketing role, like just applying on LinkedIn, I would see a hundred applicants, 150 applicants. Like, that's why what makes someone stand out? Like, what would make you guys want to extend the role to a junior marketer? Yeah, someone wanting to get into the creative field, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Even like startup influencers, like girls who have between you know, one and ten thousand followers who that number is just not moving, yeah. In such like a saturated space, like any advice that you would even give to that.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. So I think on the like if you're looking to work in an agency, depending on what aspect of it interests you the most, I think that like networking is huge. I think so often people um underestimate the power and just like reaching out to someone. I I said this to a girl that I I had a drink with last week. You know, I think people assume like 25 people reach out to you every week to be like, hey, can I pick your brain? And like they really don't, you know, like I have months where I probably get like more young women reaching out to me than others, but nine out of 10 times that someone's like, hey, like, do you have time for like a virtual coffee chat or something? I'm happy to because people did that for me so often. And like I think that that can really help you. If I meet someone who's great and ambitious, like I'm happy to maybe we don't have an opportunity that's right, but I have a lot of friends in the in brand space, agency space, tech space that I'm like, I'm happy to connect you. Um, I actually, the girl that worked with me this summer on Common Ace, she came up to me in reformation. I like was literally shopping. She was like, I love your agency, I love your gym. I'm looking for something this summer, and I wasn't really hiring at the time. And she was just like really on it, kept reaching out, and I was like, I respect your hustle. So I think that just like showing intentional interest, definitely taking the time to understand what an agency or brand actually does. Like I find so often all of people reach out and they'll be like, I love to travel and I love shoes. And I'm like, that's amazing. Sort of has nothing to do with like what my actual day-to-day is like or what makes us all money, but like, you know, love that we can connect on that outside. So I think that's important. I do also think that some type of technical skill is always a great asset to have. I think so often now everybody's like, I love to be on social media, I love to be. It's like, okay, like, are you proficient in Adobe Suite? Do you know Figma really well? Are you funny enough?
SPEAKER_01:I just spent the past month learning Figma. Yeah. Let me just say, anyone that knows Figma, like applaud to you. Totally. So hard.
SPEAKER_02:It's hard, but it's stuff like that that's super helpful, right? And so I think that that's really important. Like, if you do have an interest in some type of like technical skill, I think it's great. Like paid social is a fabulous place to be in too. And then on the influencer side, I think so much of it is about like your perseverance. I say to people all the time that if you just go online to be an influencer because you want to be an influencer, you likely won't find success. I have girlfriends that like have never made content in their lives and they'll be like, maybe I should like be an influencer. He's like, the money's good. And I'm like, the people that are successful on the internet enjoy creating content and they are like creative people. You have to go back to your why, you know. Like I have always made internet content because it's fun for me. It's a creative outlet. I enjoy that community. And I think that when you see that in someone, you can tell. And I think the last piece for influencers that like bring me such joy is, you know, I I have created content on TikTok for years before like my TikTok kind of took off. And the only thing that I felt made the difference was when I was just myself. Like we spend so much time looking at what works for other people and thinking, like, okay, well, like that really works for her. So I'm gonna, I'm gonna make that same video. But no matter what, like it's not you, you know, like that's that's not you. And so I think the moment that you lean into yourself and like your personality, what you genuinely like, you will find success. Like your community exists. I say to creators all the time, I'm like, I don't care if you like dogs playing chess, there are tens of thousands of other people that love that too, you know. Like be yourself.
SPEAKER_00:And as cheesy as it sounds like that's that's the key. Thank you guys so much for listening to this week's podcast. Thank you, Catherine, for being our guest. Where can everybody find you?
SPEAKER_02:You can find on socials at GKA or I love it.
SPEAKER_01:I love it. Okay, thank you. We'll talk to you guys soon.