We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kristin Marquet. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kristin below.

Kristin, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

I had worked in consulting for four years, and then during the Financial Crisis, I had lost my job. In fact, everyone in my office lost their jobs. At that point, I had decided whether to get a job or launch a business. I decided to launch my first business, a PR firm. After six months, I had scaled the company to a full-service agency with a team and 30 clients. The journey was grueling because I worked around the clock. I burnt out very quickly, so I reassessed the direction of the company, and decided to niche down and focus on serving a few verticals.

Kristin, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Shortly after I graduated from college, I had worked as a PR and marketing manager for a law firm for a year because I was considering applying to law school. Yet after a year, I realized that I didn’t enjoy it, so I started in management consulting for four years. But during the financial crisis, my office in the Northeast shut down and I was laid off from my position. At that point, I had to make a tough decision: “Do I look for a job in this down economy, or Do I start a business?” After a few days of weighing the pros and cons of getting a job or starting a business, I decided to take the risk and launch my first business—a PR firm that works with female entrepreneurs and fashion brands. I never looked back after that. And in my early thirties, I returned to school and obtained another graduate degree, but from New York University this time.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Lack of Clarity — Not knowing what industry I wanted to serve cost me a lot of time and money. One week I would want to do professional services, the next I would want to focus on medical and health, and then the next I would want to focus on fashion. I finally figured out where my best contacts were, and my strongest skill set and commitment to wellness/fashion/lifestyle/female entrepreneurship.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Discounting Prices — About 14 years ago, I thought I had to discount my prices to compete, but quickly learned that perception is reality, meaning that you get what you pay for.

When I started out, I quoted a potential client a low monthly fee but was asked why my prices were so cheap in contrast to the competition. That company hired a different firm because I was considered “too cheap” so I doubled my prices and never had a problem selling them since then.

Contact Info:

• Website: Marquet.company
• Instagram: Instagram.com/femfounder
• Twitter: Twitter.com/kristinmarquet