We recently connected with Katelyn Tufford and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Katelyn thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

I’m a content creator by effect of the pandemic. I had just graduated from university and started by remote job in corporate communications when I decided to pursue content creation as a hobby. My niche was always supporting small and local businesses. I focused in on this area because I noticed not many people had blogs dedicated to supporting local, despite the major push towards it at the time, let alone blogs that showcased the very practical ways to incorporate items from local shops into your everyday, for the long-run. I wanted a way to showcase that the things we were already buying from large retailers for the convenience were also supplied by smaller retailers and that we should support them instead. The way I saw it, small business owners’ livelihoods depended on their businesses and faced more of a risk than the big box stores during the lockdowns. I knew if I took the ‘aesthetic’ route that it would resonate with people – or at least people in my circle. Thus, my mission was born out of my vision to uplift small business owners during a super tense time and demonstrate supporting local as more than just a trendy thing to do, but as a practical and sustainable move that could fit into your everyday life. I set out to teach people that we should care about our small businesses and how to start showing support.

I owe this mission to my morals, which I owe to my grandparents. They taught me to be kind, to see the beauty in little things and above all else, to help others. My grandparents are the only people I know that would ACTUALLY take their shirts off their backs to give to someone in need. I married my morals with my love for storytelling and my creative eye, and “@katelynsadia Life & Style Blogger” was born.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Absolutely! @katelynsadia isn’t just a social media handle, it is my pride and joy. I run this account as a life and style Instagram and TikTok (but mostly Instagram) blog that shines a light on small businesses and brands local to Toronto, Ontario and Canada as a whole. It’s a space for me to create content that showcases local discoveries, spots that are doing cool things, and a lifestyle based on adventure. It all centers around the theme of ‘how to support local in your everyday’.

I knew the thing that powered me the most was making connections. I love talking to small business owners, learning their story and their ‘why’ – and then harnessing that energy in my content and posts to sell their story to my followers. I was challenging myself to make people really believe in a brand. I promoted brands I believed in and trusted, which – in the influencer industry – is hard to do. Influencers are working, too. It’s a side hussle for many if not a full-time gig. You’ll hear the phrase ‘gifted doesn’t pay the bills’, which in turn leads to creators posting things that they are paid to post, which tends to minimize the element of authenticity. In the beginning, I was actually buying my own ‘props’ for content (hint: supporting small businesses) rather than relying on gifted items. To this day, I wholeheartedly believe it was this authenticity that garnered the most attention, reach and engagement and brought me the most success in the influencer marketing industry.

The story goes like this: I started by promoting small shops and shop owners local to me during the lockdowns, which snowballed into working with small brands, then larger brands (often Toronto-based and/or Canadian!) and becoming an affiliate partner for some really great companies. I provide self-branded content creation services, gifted and paid, as well as user generated content. I always preferred creating content with a brand for use on my own page because to me, that was the premise of my brand. I built a brand on authenticity, storytelling and connection. Because of this, I me some incredible local and distant creators, became good friends with some of them and even made friend IRL. It was a bonus that this taught me about community engagement first hand!

I wanted my blog to be a place where people could visit to find small or local business inspiration, whether it’s shopping for themselves or gifting. This is what set me apart from other life and style accounts – no one else in my circle was dedicating their blogs to the small/local shops. I found myself working with some of the most amazing people and brands in Canada as well. I was invited to PR events in-person when lockdowns started lifting, I attended brand photoshoots for businesses that I befriended online, and I made some of the most loyal online friends that I’ve been blessed to know. Some of them even sent me gifts around the Holidays which secretly made me cry happy tears. These brands appreciated me, I felt seen. Exactly the way I wanted to make them feel all along.

The proudest moments in my journey were when my followers would send me notes about how they bought from xyz business and how much they loved every part of the process. My brother once sent me a text after trying on a sweat suit he bought from a Vancouver-based brand, package overflowing with handwritten thank you cards, saying, “I feel like I’m supporting someone following their dream and that makes me happy.” Happy tears.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

In an interesting pivot, I’m actually in the process of marrying my side hustle WITH my career to turn it into another side hustle, with plans to eventually grow it into my full time business. Essentially, while I’ve been pursuing content creation as a creative outlet, I have also been growing my professional career in marketing communications. My days are spent working in the public service, where I create strategies and written materials that represent a well-established brand. Through working in government communications and now with small business owners who are running their operations while wearing all the hats themselves, I have a deeper appreciation for digital marketing. I have seen first-hand how a brand is created and maintained online and the power that social media holds. I want to help inspire business owners to invest in their story – their ‘why’ – and how to harness digital marketing to bring in sales.

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Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My creative journey is backed by my mission to embrace the beauty in the mundane. Whether that’s appreciating gloomy weather for the coziness it has to offer, smiling at a stranger in a sea of zombies on the subway during my morning commute, or helping small businesses stay afloat in my community by advocating for them online, I have always believed that there is beauty in each day. My morals are a direct reflection of the environment I grew up in, one that was motivated by love and kindness and continuous self-improvement. I have felt supported every step of the way in my personal and professional life, and that is what drives me in my creative journey each and every day. If I have the capacity and willingness to infuse creativity into my life while uplifting others, why wouldn’t I?

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @katelynsadia
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/katelyntufford