We recently connected with Amy Brown and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Amy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

It seemed like an obvious decision. Get out while I still had some semblance of passion and sanity intact. But, after 18 years of being in education, there was a sense of guilt looming for wanting to take the risk to try something else. I felt like I was not only abandoning a system into which I had poured so much–but also countless children and their families. But, with so many factors weighing against me staying (the typical things people hear: tons of responsibility, low autonomy/classroom control, disproportionate pay, etc.)–the choice became clear to me to make a career switch. I knew I wanted to stay in a ‘helping’ role, so I started scouring the websites of local non profits. I came across a ton of organizations who are doing great work to address the endless issues our communities are facing. But, when I found The BrandLab, a lightbulb went off in my brain (and heart). Changing the face and voice of advertising and marketing…but why? Labor market data shows that close to 80% of employees in the advertising sector are white. And close to 60% are male. The mission of The BrandLab suddenly became the obvious choice for my desire to promote social justice and equity. It is critical to me that the messaging we receive accurately reflects the society it is supposed to represent. As fate would have it, TBL x KC was about to relaunch, and needed someone with the exact skills I possess to expand their programming in order to elevate young talent of color in the advertising and marketing industry. So, I took the risk to leave the school building and make the move to an organization that, while heavily rooted in educational initiatives–is basically advertising and marketing. The current report: so far, so GREAT!

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 joined The BrandLab with eighteen years of successful experience working as an educational coordinator, teacher, and school leader. After graduating from the University of Missouri and starting out as a teacher, I followed my passion and went to graduate school to obtain my master’s degree in School Leadership at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. I then went on to lead several successful innovative educational programs in both South America (Chile) and New York City (Harlem).
Through these experiences, I developed clear systems and structures that allowed me and various stakeholders to execute strategic visions around programming that equip, educate, and empower youth through authentic and meaningful learning experiences.
I have leveraged my experience and successful track record to join The BrandLab in working with The amazing KC team, the board, and other key stakeholders, in order to affect change in the marketing and advertising industry and the lives of the young people we serve.
I work to expand The BrandLab partnerships so that the impact of the organization can be felt in corporate spaces and marketing and advertising agencies across the city. I also manage The BrandLab’s corporate and agency partnerships and oversee quality partnership experiences.

A bit about The BrandLab:
Long before the renewed racial reckoning and bold commitments to DEIB in 2020, The BrandLab was working to address the stark inequities for talent of color to learn about and launch careers in the marketing and advertising industry.

Racial disparities within the industry persist. TBL is working to ensure the industry professionals behind the advertisements and the media our society consumes authentically reflects diverse communities.

The BrandLab launched in 2009 in the Twin Cities. Since 2009, The BrandLab has expanded to Kansas City and most recently to Milwaukee.

The momentum is growing. Yet work remains. We envision talent of color launching sustainable careers in workplaces of inclusivity and belonging.

We take a long-term, holistic approach to reaching our vision through four main pillars of work: Exposure, Opportunity, Access, and Equity. We work with organizations and agencies to provide rich internships for young BIPOC talent. We also have a variety of year round programming that exists to connect students with agencies and organizations in order to develop their skills in a way that will support them as advertising and marketing professionals. and champions of social justice.
More can be found at https://thebrandlabkc.org/.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

This question resonated with me because it is something I have had to do a lot of trial and error to figure out. Since much of the contact I have with our partners is done virtually/electronically, I keep in touch through a lot of emails and Zoom calls. There is a fine line between persistence and annoyance, however. I want to cultivate relationships of mutual trust and respect, which can sometimes be difficult when I don’t get that face-to-face interaction time. I think this is where fostering brand loyalty plays a huge role. I try to keep partners engaged and passionate about being involved by providing them with data on the efficacy of our initiatives, as well as with personal testimonials about the individuals whose lives are being changed as a result of our work. The combination of data and storytelling seems to be the most effective way to foster brand loyalty, engagement, and continued communication.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The main goal behind the work I do is to advance equity and social justice. I started out early on in my career working with a very affluent population of children and families. I saw the amazing resources available to them and was called to try to emulate those high quality experiences in communities that lacked the same resources for a variety of reasons. I feel like like passion, talent, and hard work of ALL individuals should be celebrated and utilized–regardless of the background from which they come. This is why I love that I found The BrandLab, and am able to help elevate young people of color into meaningful work that greatly affects our society.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thebrandlabkc.org/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-brown-390693247/. https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/tbl-kansascity/