We were lucky to catch up with Carol Chenkin recently and have shared our conversation below.
Carol, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job?
The only other job I had before creating my own agency was working for the world’s largest Public Relations Firm, Burson Marsteller. There I learned that if we can fully understand our client’s business like it’s our own, we can better solve their problems and succeed in furthering their goals and objectives.
Perhaps most importantly, I learned that relationships are everything. Trust, credibility, and long-term partnerships don’t happen overnight—they’re earned by showing up consistently, doing what you say you’ll do, and treating every project as if it were your own business on the line. That philosophy has guided my work for over 25 years and continues to shape how I approach both client work and my own brand today.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Carol is the Founder & Managing Partner of CLC Enterprises, based in Boca Raton, Florida.
For the last 26 plus years, CLC Enterprises has provided turnkey marketing services for its clients- focusing in the areas of branding, creative services, strategic partnership development, event marketing, cause-related marketing, retail channel sales and distribution, digital marketing, and product licensing.
CLC works with entities of all sizes, from start-ups to Fortune 1000 companies, including but not limited to the areas of real estate, nonprofit, entertainment, business-to-business, fashion retail, financial services, technology, healthcare, and more. In addition, she has helped raise millions of dollars for a myriad of nonprofit organizations through innovative event marketing strategies.
Recent accomplishments include:
Literary & Film/TV Agent for The Way It Was: My Life With Frank Sinatra
Literary & Film/TV Agent for Director & Producer Don Mischer
Director of Artist Business Development for TrueFire Studios (includes TrueFire, Artistworks, JamPlay, & FaderPro)
Executive Producer of World of Guitar, Seasons 1&2, as seen on public television
Associate Producer of Guitar Man (The Joe Bonamassa Documentary), now available on demand via Amazon & Apple
Talent Coordinator for Keeping the Blues Alive Stream-A-Thon & Live From Nerdville podcast with Joe Bonamassa
Designated Marketing Team for 3 internationally recognized nonprofits formed in response to the Parkland School Shooting
Carol started her career at Young & Rubicam, rising to Vice President of Event Marketing & Branding of Y&R’s public relations firm Burson-Marsteller. During her 12-year tenure, Carol worked with clients such as AT&T, American Express, the US Army, and the New York Stock Exchange on a variety of marketing initiatives and events.
Carol is a graduate of the VPA and the Newhouse School of Communication at Syracuse University.
Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.
What started as a passion project organically evolved into a meaningful extension of my core business.
Through Carol Lee Calling, I began sharing my lifelong interests in fashion, beauty, wellness, and lifestyle—initially as a creative outlet and a way to connect with women who, like me, were navigating midlife with confidence, curiosity, and style. I wasn’t trying to “build an influencer brand” at first; I was simply being authentic and consistent.
As the audience grew—now over 10,000 followers and more than 100,000 monthly views—it became clear that this wasn’t just content, it was a community. That’s when I applied the same strategic thinking we use every day at CLC Enterprises: brand positioning, storytelling, content planning, analytics, partnerships, and monetization.
Rather than treating Carol Lee Calling as something separate, I leveraged CLC’s existing infrastructure—creative resources, digital marketing systems, brand partnerships, media relations, and business development expertise—to professionalize and scale it. The result is a platform that not only generates revenue through brand collaborations, affiliate relationships, and digital products but also strengthens CLC by opening new verticals in influencer marketing, lifestyle branding, and consumer engagement.
In many ways, Carol Lee Calling became a living case study for our clients: proof that passion, when paired with strategy, discipline, and infrastructure, can evolve from a side hustle into a scalable, revenue-generating business asset
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
My co-founder and partner for over 35 years is also my husband. We both worked together at Burson Marsteller in NYC, and whether active as he is now or as a confident and advisor, we have always collaborated on key aspects of the business. My partner/husband has also brought in other expertise into the agency, including sustainability, digital media, and technology.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.clcent.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clcenterprises/?e=aa59e61c-76f7-4bbb-8898-bed1fc3f3a31&g=5
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carolleecallingblog
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CarolLeeCalling
