We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Katie Oleksiak Burns. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Katie below.
Katie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.
I’ve always been into letters. Since I can remember, I was doodling quotes from my favorite songs on the back of my notebooks and practicing all different ways to write my signature. I have naturally good handwriting, and I always received loads of compliments on it. But becoming an artist? Let alone, an artist who does something with letters? And actually… makes money??? The thought would’ve never, ever crossed my mind… until it did.
During and after college, my love for art turned into a love for painting. One day, I painted a Phillies logo. I LOVED painting the letters. It reignited something in me that remembered how much I have always been drawn to signs and typography and the way letters looked put together. So when my sister was getting married that summer, I offered to do the place cards and address the invitations with nothing more than some good handwriting and a sister who (thankfully) did not care about that sort of thing. She said yes, and I was off.
Two years later, two of my best friends were getting married. Sure enough, they asked me to do their wedding signs. Only this time, I had two more years of practicing lettering under my belt and had gotten my scripts and styles down to a much prettier look. It became clear: I needed to start offering this to other people, and getting paid for it.
Knockout Lettering was born in 2018 as an official side hustle. I customized dozens and dozens of tumblers for bachelorette parties, addressed invitations to baby showers and birthday parties, created signs for nurseries, and gifts for friends around the holidays. I was taking on anything and everything that came my way. And they kept coming my way. I could feel the momentum. More people I didn’t know where reaching out, the jobs where higher in value, the requests were getting larger and larger, forcing me to learn and grow outside my comfort zone in order to say yes to all of them.
By 2020, I was working full-time as Executive Director of a small nonprofit while building Knockout on the side. It was great! I had flexibility in my remote job and continued, steady progress with the business. It wasn’t making a ton of money, but I always had a project on my desk or a new request. And so the story goes, a global pandemic happened and changed the course of everything. My beloved small nonprofit ran out of money that summer with program revenue halted and back up plans exhausted. I was out of the job I had for 8 years — the only job I ever had since graduating college.
I took some time to help my sister with her kids, try to create sellable products online for Knockout, and take a breather from the stressors of running an organization during the pandemic. When it came time to look for another job, it was summer of 2021 and I started back on the grind of applications. I was excited to look for a job — the organization I was with prior was one I had been volunteering with since high school, so I knew it inside and out. I was ready to feel like I was getting my first *real* job out in the world in a new place I didn’t have connections to. I was ready to face adulting in a real way — get the job with the good benefits, stability, nice paycheck, and community of colleagues.
Fortunately, I was offered a job! Yay! The dream! But when reality sunk in, it didn’t actually feel like much of a dream at all. I am someone who has always thrived on a non-traditional schedule. I worked as the only employee, remotely, for 8 years and kept myself motivated every day to grow the organization. I like to sleep in. I like to work late at night. But I had to get a real job, right??? The one with all the stability. This was a 9-5 job, and would’ve been really fulfilling, meaningful work that could propel me into a career in the social impact field just like I always envisioned. But I couldn’t ignore this voice in my head screaming at me that this wasn’t the right choice.
It hit me like a ton of bricks. Your opportunity is NOW. RIGHT NOW. DO NOT TAKE THE JOB. Build your business. See what can happen. You don’t have kids, you don’t have a mortgage or crazy expenses. Maybe, just maybe, all that momentum from before would still be there.
Sadly, reality still existed and I needed to pay the bills. That’s when I realized how many small nonprofits I had worked with over the years who were desperate for help. Desperate for someone like me with loads of experience to come in and help them get it together. I knew they wouldn’t be able to pay much. But I knew they’d be able to pay some.
The next lightbulb went off. Get a part-time job with a small nonprofit that offers a steady paycheck but gives you the other half of your time to work on building the business. Could I do that? Would it make any sense at all to anyone? Could I balance them both? Would more time actually allow the business to grow?
Well, friends. Surprise! I took the risk. I turned down the full-time job with the salary and the benefits and the future trajectory. I said no to a path that was really, really desirable in favor of one with absolutely no certainty. I operated fully on a gut feeling and against the advice of my big sister.
Literally a few days later, someone reached out in a nonprofit group I’m part of looking for a part-time employee to join her team. Her list of qualifications looked like it was plucked straight from my resume. And the start date? The week after my unemployment benefits were set to run out. The stars were already aligning.
I said yes to the part-time job, and got to work. With a whole new outlook and a whole new schedule, I tackled taking Knockout to the next level. This was VERY exciting. For nearly 3 years, I put in the effort to build the backend, expand my network, and improve my skills. So when this nonprofit was running out of money, I knew exactly what I needed to do. I’d been here before. The path was opening up to me again. In June 2024, I left the part-time job and took my business full-time.
The last year plus as a full-time business owner has been incredibly rewarding, eye-opening, and powerful. I am so proud of myself for taking that risk and turning down that full-time job. There is absolutely no way I’d ever have become a full-time business owner if I said yes. My path would’ve gone in a completely different direction. And maybe that would’ve been fine too. Now, I’m forging my own path. I have no idea how long it’ll work or where I’ll go next. But I am only walking this path because of the risk I took turning down secure, full-time employment to follow my passion.
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.
My name is Katie, and I’m a Philadelphia-based calligrapher, engraver, and hand-lettering artist. I am one of the fortunate ones who got into the craft having naturally good handwriting. Many calligraphers take classes, but I used Instagram. Seeing what other artists were creating using letters opened my eyes and excited me so much. I learned that it wasn’t just cursive or calligraphy — there’s this whole world of “modern calligraphy” in between waiting to be explored.
I’ve always been attracted to signs. On vacation? Taking photos of signs. Out for a walk? Getting up close to check out the details of storefront signs and logos. I’m drawn to the way the small details can elevate otherwise ordinary moments. What started years ago as a creative outlet — painting signs, experimenting with lettering, and crafting custom gifts for friends and family — eventually grew into a full-time business built around personalization, artistry, details, and memorable experiences.
Today, I specialize in day-of wedding signage and stationery for fun-loving, thoughtful couples, as well as live calligraphy and engraving for brands and businesses. I also offer small business storefront signage and chalkboard menus along with custom gifts and in-studio commissions. If it sounds like fun and you can write on it, I’m up for it! My work spans everything from seating charts and welcome signs to engraved wine bottles to painted holiday windows. While I offer quite a few services, at the heart of each of them is personalization and a meaningful experience.
My clients often come to me because they want something elevated, memorable, unique, and artistic — something that can’t be reproduced or mass-produced. Clients come back to me because of the way I make them feel during the experience working together. I take pride in helping couples take their ideas and turn them into personal touches that feel representative of them on their special day. I care deeply about each project and each couple. I love love, and I understand the gravity of the day they’ve trusted me with. With a listening ear and an eager mind, I do all I can to listen to my couples in order to create pieces that feel unique to their love story.
When I’m creating a piece of signage for someone’s wedding, I go through a meticulous prep process measuring the surface and my designs all to the quarter inch. I like to say that I’m a perfectionist in my art, but not in my life. In order to have clean, graphic, bold impact I’m seeking for the pieces I create, I prioritize the details and do my best to make it look easy. I will redo a letter over and over again until it looks just the way I want. Some people say I have a lot of patience — I’d say I have a lot of standards.
Overall, what I want people to know is that my work is rooted in care — for the details, for the craft, and for the people I’m creating for. My goal is to always make something beautiful and meaningful and for my clients to actually smile when they think back to my part of wedding planning.
Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?
One of my biggest adventures in the signage and stationery business has been working to find the right printing partners. When it comes to taking your art from the page or the screen and sizing it up, printing it on unique materials, and matching colors, there is an exceptional learning curve. It’s one of those things where you don’t know what you don’t know, so you need to find a trusted partner who can realize what you need to know without you telling them. Easy, right?
There is one specific piece of signage I create that I need a very good printer to produce for me. I’ve used 5 different printers for this and have received 5 totally different levels of service and final product. When the first printer I used was less than communicative and didn’t offer the support I needed, I felt unimportant. I had a pretty unique request and a few simple questions. When they’re weren’t interested in helping, I ended up having a talk with one of my husband’s co-workers who works in the marketing department and graciously understood my issues. Turns out it wasn’t that complicated. Onto the next one.
Fortunately, the next printer I tried produced a beautiful product. I was so excited! But when I needed a quote for something? The process was extremely difficult. It would take too long, there wasn’t a real system in place, and often times when I did hear the quote, it was much higher than I wanted to pay. Done with that one.
Next I tried one affiliated with a larger chain. Maybe this would help? Nope. They were the worst ones. They actually put masking tape directly on the front of one of my paper signs… right before I had to deliver it. Huh????
I started to realize — I’m looking to build a relationship with a printing partner. Someone who will listen. Someone who also understands the gravity of the wedding day for the couples I’m working with.
After a couple more attempts, I’ve finally found my people. They are so kind. They are so gracious with their knowledge. They work quickly and professionally. They smile when I walk in the door! It’s the little things.
Through this process, I’ve learned that my partners are an extension of me. I need to trust them as much as my clients trust me. While quality of the work is critical, so are the people you’re working with.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Authenticity is the largest factor that’s helped me build my reputation. I’d like to say it’s my talent, but there are tons of talented people. What makes someone want to work with you, is you. I often received feedback that I seemed to care so much about doing the work. I always thought that was such a funny comment. Of course I do — doesn’t everyone?
Well, I learned that’s not true. Not everyone cares. Not everyone listens. Not everyone is you.
By continually trusting my own instincts and leading with my integrity and values, I’ve created relationships within my industry that I’m really proud of. People know they can trust me. They know I’ll keep my word and deliver on my promises. Instead of trying to be a professional calligrapher, I really just try to be me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.knockoutlettering.com
- Instagram: @knockoutlettering
- Facebook: Knockout Lettering
- Linkedin: Knockout Lettering
Image Credits
Theo Nash Photography
Jenny B Photography
Photography by Keri
Magda and Simon
Tiffany Lantz Photography
Tyler Normal Photography
Emerlin Photography