We were lucky to catch up with Karie Engels recently and have shared our conversation below.
Karie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
Ideas can happen anywhere and inspiration is everywhere. In about 2011, I decided to jump into the just emerging and growing Facebook Foodie arena and talk about entertaining at home. The platform quickly grew too small for the ideas I was jotting down, and as I was approached by Connoisseur Magazine, CBS Seattle and Comcast Xfinity to contribute to their budding online platforms, I knew I couldn’t keep writing about recipes and how to entertain at home. There was only so far I could take that genre’ without recycling my own or other people’s ideas. I started talking to the foodie page owners and highlighting their accomplishments on all the platforms I was contributing to and I asked them the same question you ask your creatives. The whys, the whens, the hows. There, I found my niche.
Up until this moment, I didn’t look at it as a business, it was a place to release creativity. As it began to consume more of my time, I decided to go full-time as a freelance writer. It wasn’t long afterwards that a colleague reached out and suggested I take it to a blog, I jumped on that advice and immersed myself in a digital platform without limits.
Winemakers, chefs and food and beverage peeps began reaching out to be included in articles. I met and spent time with some amazing people, traveled a bit for written pieces and grew into the role. Freelance writing didn’t pay well, so I put on a few hats and subsidized the writing and blog with foodie bits, creating and photographing recipes for companies such as Rhodes Bread dough, etc., which was a blast! I would not have been happy simply writing, I needed to keep moving forward, creating more, fleshing out new ideas.
At some point, I was asked to do a television spot as a lifestyle expert for a morning talk show in Seattle, and jumped at the chance. It was life changing – I found the vibe of a live audience invigorating and realized I never wanted to pursue anything else. Media was my forever home.
My “blog” still didn’t have a refined definition. It was lackluster, dull and without direction. I wrote pieces, guest contributors wrote pieces, and that was about it. It was simply a space. It was only after the publisher of Seattle Magazine called me into his office to chat, that not only inspired my direction, but also my resolve to give it some sparkle. I was asked about my content, where I sourced it and what my plans were for my budding site. He dangled a possible editor position for the interior design section, of course with the understanding I couldn’t operate my own independent site. In that one moment Basil & Salt was truly born and the direction? Everything about what makes your home a home. I became the managing editor of basil & salt and turned it into an official business.
When Basil & Salt held its first wedding planner event in partnership with Kleinfeld New York, I envisioned big things for the publication. It was taking off quickly and I was still the only individual working behind the scenes setting content, working with PR firms, designing the site and working with outside writers.
In 2019 I had the opportunity to take it to print and wrap that launch around an Amazon Prime Video series traveling, talking with chefs, and visiting cities across the country. Basil & Salt hosted its first virtual wine tasting and we were on our way. As our plans deepend, the team was beyond exuberant. We talked with celebrity chefs, locations, we walked through episodes,we began an online cooking series with well-known chefs, and as our first published physical issue was printed and mailed out to subscribers, we lost all of our funding for the series due to the pandemic. It hit us hard and knocked the wind out of me, out of all of us. A major pivot was necessary and I didn’t know if I had anything left in me to pick it up and keep going. Creativity though, never dies. It might bury itself and hide for a while, but really it’s just adjusting sails, only to emerge with fervor and shiny, new ideas.
My site was (still is) fluid. I design, redesign, revamp, republish, and it has once again evolved, this time into food news, celebrity chefs and small business information, recipes, DIY and interior design. As the digital world in all our everyday lives changes, we are exposed to more information in small, quick bits which has widened all of our areas of interest. I began paring down pieces from articles to small blurbs called Basil & Salt quick bites.I pushed the printed copies idea aside and got to work on other things.
Having worked on every side of the media, being interviewed on the radio, for magazine articles, quoted in inc.com, working with PR firms for my own articles, I realized I could assist area restaurants and winemakers with their marketing. It didn’t take long for this to become the alter-ego of basil & salt. As we move forward today – Basil & Salt is the umbrella of all, and Basil Designs is the brand management company. I am fortunate to work with many different types of brands and my brand is always on the move, which I love.
Your question was about idea to execution and the actual launch of the business, and obviously I don’t really have a clear answer. It’s an ongoing process, and as the digital landscape for all of us evolves almost daily, the idea and execution of new business ideas is a consistent process – it just keeps moving and morphing. I love what I do, who I work with, and the ever changing landscape.
Karie, 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?
When Basil Designs grew as an offshoot of Basil & Salt, it was a natural pivot. Writing copy for digital ads and social media was second nature. I had already sourced and curated a rather extensive photo library, and graphic design today is incredibly simple. New design platforms pop often, and now with the implementation of ai to source information, it’s broadened the availability of gear and supplies for all of us in brand management.
Basil Designs goes beyond social media. We work with brands as a whole. Creating and promoting a brand is more than just posting at the right time of day on platforms and using trending hashtags. Social platforms are in direct competition with each other and the rules are changing daily. As a brand management and marketing company it’s my job to keep up with every shift and nuance to ensure my clients the best experience and exposure.
In my past career, I was a Senior Brand Manager for a major manufacturing company with several different brands under one roof. I understand what needs to happen not only for companies to find their voice and stay on brand, but also how to proceed, from start to finish, through a product launch and this experience gives me a slight edge.
One of my current clients has been in business for nearly 100 years and as we work together to “gather” the brand, rewrite copy, add them to new platforms and prepare for the relaunch – it is such an invigorating process and an exciting time for all of us. That actual “go” moment is filled with so much adrenaline.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
The pandemic and closure of everything hit many industries hard. A lot of people lost everything.
My company at that time was poised to take the next step into travel, a Prime video series and printed publishing. I sat too long through reassurances funding was still and would be available and everything was moving on track. The reality was it wasn’t, and with one phone call it all plunged into nothingness. It was gone. It was nearly debilitating, I just sat down for a “minute”, thinking that was it. It’s all finished. But I couldn’t sit in the muck too long, it’s not in my nature.
The digital world makes nearly everything possible. I began sourcing clients for brand management and working with as many design platforms as I could find to hone my skills. I wrote about the types of businesses that were blooming during the shutdown and these stories were inspiring! The more I worked through it, the more I realized that we will never be sure a situation like this, the pandemic and the shuttering of all, wouldn’t happen again and that we need to be prepared to take entire business models digital only, at any moment, if necessary.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
The most effective strategy has been complete brand management and knowing there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to marketing and advertising. Every client is unique and they should be treated as such.
Clients who contract with us even for simple social media management for a short-term, will receive more than just postings on platforms. I will work with their team to hone their message, and I will train their people so they can eventually take it on internally.
I audit their website and let them know where changes need to be made, for example; how to keep consumers on their site, where the deadlinks are and how to improve the overall brand image.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://basilandsalt.com/ https://www.basil-designs.com/
- Instagram: @basilandsalt @basildesigns
- Facebook: basilandsalt page basil-designs page https://www.facebook.com/karieengels1 creator account
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/k-engels/
- Twitter: @karieengels