We were lucky to catch up with Chrissy Rowden recently and have shared our conversation below.

Chrissy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

My mission is to connect people in the community with not only what they need but also with experiences or things they will enjoy. If that happens to be with local and/or small businesses that are about spreading kindness and love and are giving back, even better!

During the day, I work in marketing at a medical pregnancy center that helps women and families in the community. There are so many resources available to help the underserved, but most do not know what is out there. I love the opportunity to share hope and discover their options while finding community.

My hobby (and the start of it all) is Granola & Grace, where I share fashion, lifestyle, my faith, and local content. Most of what I share supports small businesses and/or neighbors. I believe that behind every local storefront or online small shop is another person living out their dream, supporting their family and making the world a better place. I love the opportunity to help them spread the word.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a mom to four young men, ranging in age from 14-year-old twins to 21. I needed a fun, girly outlet. Enter Granola & Grace. I started creating content in 2013 on clean eating, beauty, and non-toxic products. While I have a good handle on what is good for me, I also have a healthy awareness of my shortcomings. That is where grace comes in. I recognize that I’m both inwardly and outwardly flawed. I have received so much grace. I need to not only accept it but also share that grace with others.

“Granola and Grace” turned into what it is today because of two separate instances.

1. Two women, on separate occasions, cleaned out their well-stocked closets and shared their castoffs with me! Their random acts of kindness kindled a passion for styling outfits with what I had on hand. Though I didn’t feel like a fashionista, I was asked by friends to help them style outfits and organize their closets. I began collaborating with brands. What a blessing!
2. I won a cupcake a day for a year from a local bakery in Georgia. I knew I should not be eating a cupcake a day, so I began to share them with friends, acquaintances, servers at restaurants, gym owners, Aldi cashiers, and the list goes on. Some of these were documented on social media, and more people began to hear about this bakery. My relationship with the owners was so sweet, and at the end of the year, they awarded me “a cupcake a day for life.” Then we moved to Florida – ha!
Now I work in marketing for a local nonprofit. I continue to create content, assist with event production, photoshoots, and video production, while managing social media. I love it!

What am I most proud of? Being told that my willingness to be “real” makes others feel like they can be themselves around me. Being yourself encourages others to be themselves.

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

I spent many hours changing my methods based on what another “expert” in the field said should be done. The results I received were lost time with little to no results to show for it. What works for one person is not guaranteed to work for you. Looking back, I would pick one reliable source and focus on producing quality content consistently.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

I was new in my marketing position, and before my employment, there was not much humor implemented into our social media or marketing.

A fundraising event came up, and I had an idea for a video, but I feared how it would be received. We moved forward with the project and shared it with the world.

The initial feedback was not what I hoped for, and I felt so discouraged. A couple of weeks later, our CEO received a call from a donor. The recent videos prompted them to make a sizable donation.

I was elated. It was the confirmation I needed to move forward and try new things. Not everything has had that outcome, but I have learned to try things, scared or not.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Granola_n_Grace

Image Credits
Melissa Torani Photography Maurine Victor