We were lucky to catch up with Natalie Brandt recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Natalie, how did you come up with the name of your company? Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand? We’d love to hear all the details.

The word Conduite has evolved a lot for me in the past few years. From initially learning its meaning, to being a reference for how I viewed myself and my work, I have a lot of thoughts on it.

I was running a magazine a few years back, called The Reel Magazine. At the time my Dad had actually suggested I call it “Conduit Magazine”, since it’s focus was building something for creatives, by connecting creatives. At the time it didn’t make sense for me, I didn’t really like the way it looked. A few years later, when I began full-time freelancing I naturally was drawn back to the word as I learned my strengths as an individual – the biggest one being a connector within my community.

I do this often, I like to change words and make them my own version. I decided to make my Instagram handle “the Conduite” to post my portfolio work. I added an “e”at the end. It instantly felt cooler, chicer, and differentiated myself. That was the birth of my own brand. I was The Conduite.

Now, looking at how far I have come in the past year or so, I can’t think of a more perfect word for what we do as an agency and how much I pride our team on connecting brands, and people.

For folks who may not have read about you before, can you please tell our readers about yourself, how you got into your industry / business / discipline / craft etc, what type of products/services/creative works you provide, what problems you solve for your clients and/or what you think sets you apart from others. What are you most proud of and what are the main things you want potential clients/followers/fans to know about you/your brand/your work/ etc. 

Please provide as much detail as you feel relevant as this is one of the core questions where the reader will get to know about you and your brand/organization/etc

Ever since I was young, I was very interested in the creative side of advertising and marketing. I didn’t know what I would do with that, but I would catch myself coming up with ideas for commercials and advertisements all the time. My passion for creative began with films and photography. I began freelancing in high school, with small projects with no budgets just to build my portfolio. I knew at the time, that this was something that gave me passion. I began with small music artists, designing their cover albums and photographing them in college.

As I studied in New York, I landed bigger positions freelancing and working with photographers, magazines, publishing agencies. I’ve worn every hat from being an assistant, photographer, graphic designer, director, you name it. My last full time corporate gig was at a large advertising agency, I continued to perfect my craft on the side. I saw many things I loved and many flaws of these large corporations. This intrigued me.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I don’t know much about my reputation, but I like to think I am great with people. Building your own brand and reputation takes time and will continue to be a slow burn. I think one of my greatest strengths is my relationship with people. That has carried me from job to job, just fostering the relationships with people I meet. I am a people person, I always have been a talker. I think a big part of this business is also gaining trust. I am a big believer in not being a “pushy” sales person.

Nobody likes to feel forced into working with you. I take my time with clients and want to genuinely build trust before working together. It’s good for me and the client to make sure we are in a trusting relationship.

New York is funny like that- once you know and trust someone, another few doors will opens to a whole other network of people. As i’ve gained more credibility with my clients, and friends, and kept every door open, I think my reputation began to grow with more and more people in the community. I have been told I am a natural networker. I don’t even like the word “networking” because it sounds so forced. But I just naturally would talk about what I do when meeting new people, and am always prepared to discuss new opportunities to help brands or people be more successful. At the end of the day, my job is to work with people and bring their ideas to life. It’s something I love to do and it honestly comes very naturally to me.

Did your side hustle turn into your main/full time business or career? If so, please tell us the story of how you got started with this side-hustle and how it scaled up to where it is today? What were some of the key milestones?

I don’t know if I ever fully felt “ready” and I’m not sure anyone who quits their job or starts anything ever does. There is never a perfect time. But I knew I couldn’t stay working where I was much longer.

When I began full-time freelancing I only had 2 clients and had no idea where I’d be a year later. I had one goal in mind, and I continue this goal as I grow: this is supposed to be enjoyable. For me that is what it comes down to, is enjoyability. If

I am no longer enjoying what I am doing, then I need to find something that I find joy in.

Once I began growing this business and building relationships with my clients, the rest came. I say this all the time but do what you love and the money will come. I went from 2 clients by myself, to now more than 10 in under 6 months, I was able to bring on an incredible assistant who has transformed this business for me. And then eventually we brought in interns, freelancers, and more staff as we gain new business. This is when I realized my skills of fostering relationships and connecting people together was one of my biggest strengths, and ultimately has contributed to our company success.

Every day is super different, I think that’s why I love what I do so much. I’m able to learn to work with so many different types of people and understand their various needs. I love my team, I learn from them everyday. They teach me a lot of Gen Z slang, and they know way more than I do about social media. I’ve had to trust my gut on who I hire and give my team the freedom to create their work. When you really trust your team, I believe that is when real success begins. It takes more than a few weeks or even months to understand what someone is capable of, something I always wished previous employers would’ve given me the time to do, and see. Nothing is worse than an employer who hires someone to do a job and does not give them the freedom to do it. Our work, building brands and images takes time. In this fast paced world, I value that and value clients who believe in us and trust us.

I can’t wait to see what we accomplish in the near future. I am so thankful to my team, and all of our clients who trust us and give us the keys to their brand. I feel honored anytime we get to work with someone on their business. I am so excited for what is to come for me and The Conduite team!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theconduite.com
• Instagram: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.instagram.com/theconduite/%3Fhl%3Den&ved=2ahUKEwiHkIqqn_CIAxVwF1kFHfwrCu0QFnoECBkQAQ&usg=AOvVaw2kJeGBcGxMDBUbTYWZSiNc
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/theconduite/posts/?feedView=all

Image Credits
Natalies headshot photo by Madison Puricelli
1st, 2nd, & 3rd additional photos by Jay Sprogell