We were lucky to catch up with Jess Hoy recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jess, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

The idea for my work as a talent and influencer representative and talent relations consultant grew out of years spent observing the importance of needing a combined agent and public relations consultant. I observe cultural movements and industry developments in lieu of short cycled trends to develop a well-defined and authentic personal brand that builds long-term relevance and public interest. By blending strategic representation with thoughtful brand storytelling, I help talent cultivate a consistent and genuine presence that expands their influence beyond a single project, turning their identity, values and interests into a living platform that drives paid partnerships, brand relationships, speaking engagements, and creative opportunities that celebrate individuality and storytelling rather than just visibility.

Before launching my business, I built a career selling brand sponsorships and managing sponsorship activation strategies, which gave me a deep understanding of how brands think, spend, and measure success. As budgets began shifting away from traditional event sponsorships toward social media integration and engagement, I recognized an opportunity to bring that strategic insight into the talent representation and relations space to drive opportunities for revenue development for individuals, brands, organizations and special events.

Jess, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Ultimately I have always been deeply interested in pop culture news and trends as well as entertainment culture as it pertains to art, film, television and music. A lot of my career has centered around special events and festivals where I had to convene the perfect balance of celebrity participation and creative brand activation that can drive earned media coverage, social media engagement and brand sponsorship revenue. And while I still do develop and manage special events, I am approaching them each with strategy that combines talent relations, sponsor and brand partner sales and public relations.

I also saw a way to combine this expertise into developing a personal brand in the public eye. I love sharing the personal story and passion of an individual with the public in meaningful ways and I seek individuals with a strong story to tell. Someone who isn’t afraid to be three dimensional. A model can also be an activist and creative entrepreneur. A fashion influencer can have an inspirational story to tell around representation and perseverance. A person who has been incarcerated can be a fearless cultural commentator and content creator. It’s the multitudes that intrigue me.

I’ve also taken this experience to media brands where I help to identify and secure talent for editorial and photo features that can tell unique and impactful stories as well as bringing these to life in the form of a special event. At the end of the day, I love to see my work reflected at and around cultural conversation and I love the joy a good party can bring.

Have you ever had to pivot?

My career has oscillated between self employment and working for major agencies and while I have found both to be incredibly rewarding and important for my career development, I do prefer to be in professional environments where I am building and creating something rather than being inserted into an existing system. I need to feel the opportunity to develop creative strategy and take calculated risks because those are what I’ve always seen turn into the most impactful successes. Understanding this has been a main driving factor in the shifts and changes throughout the course of my career.

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

Growing up my education really stressed the importance of leadership with a sort of romanticism around being a solo trailblazer at the top of the mountain. I internalized this as rejecting help early in my career because I felt it meant that I wouldn’t be the one behind an accomplishment. But I’ve learned that I should take help, support and assistance whenever offered as well as seek guidance where possible. It all helps to expand your perspective, understanding and time management. An important part of success is knowing how to collaborate with the strengths of those around you to support your own path to success.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoybot/?hl=en
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jess-hoy-3415876/

Image Credits

Photo and Styling by Stine Goya