We recently connected with Kendra Lewis and have shared our conversation below.

Kendra, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of the toughest things about entrepreneurship is that there is almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

When I started my business in 2020, I founded it as an artist, not a business owner. I have a real passion for marketing and creating beauty in this world to combat negativity and inspire creativity and innovation in our daily lives. A well-designed brand flagships a well designed business.

I wanted to bring high quality work to new business owners with limited funding and create a step-and-repeat style premier branding package for new businesses and support them through contracting, coaching and consulting.

Perfecting my product offering, leaning into my role in educating small business owners and learning the ins and outs of running a profitable business were all learned on-the-go.

This might sound contradictory, but during this time I learned not to chase every client lead, stick to your target demographic and core product offering. You lose money chasing clients and opportunities that aren’t the right fit. I found this to be especially true when working with non-profits. My heart desires to work with non-profits but my skills are better served with small and medium sized for profit businesses.

I didn’t expect wanting to help everyone and not wanting to say no to become two of my greatest obstacles to overcome but once I did, I realized I perfecting myself, my business model, my skill sets and offerings is more important than landing every client. I learned that artistic integrity, honesty and customer service is a dance that you perfect for each client relationship. It is the relationship that will vary, the offering will stay consistent for your chose primary product offering.

After a year of learning these lessons on the go and struggling to get into the black I hired a Business Coach which is by far the best choice I’ve ever made. Accountability, efficiency and collaboration with a business coach takes a general “knowing” of business to functioning in your knowing. Treating my business like a project getting P&Ls, making myself a business canvas and business plan, building out an operational handbook…these were exercises I didn’t value enough until I sat with my coach and realized that it takes your work from a scramble to an automated and organized business that is actually scalable and can exist into the future past your own sweat equity,

I wish I’d hired a business coach year one.

Kendra, 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?

I started my career in 2012 after graduating college and dreaming of being a rich & famous philosopher or writer but I found my passion in a much more practical major – Marketing & Advertising. Best of both worlds, I figured, since I love the creative/artsy side of marketing as well as the study of people & behaviors but I had no interest in the “starving” part of starving artist. The convergence of science, art & business. That was the logic that brought me to a career in marketing. I wasn’t wrong, I love it.

After 10 years in Corporate America as a marketing swiss-army knife, as we like to call ourselves (the rare ones who can see from a bird’s eye/ c-suite view or crank out a graphic design piece in a crunch) I realized I have a gift for making a brand their best self. So I started a Marketing Agency: Honest Hive, LLC. to build & grow new businesses through progressive branding and marketing practices.

My core product offering right now is a starter kit for branding, coaching, consulting & contracting marketing services. I work with black owned businesses to develop professional, elite brands that elevate the black business, marketing and customer service experience.

Many of my clients are working to have businesses that they can build, grow and extend beyond themselves that take marketing vision, strategy and thought at the foundational level when building that most small business owners cannot afford. I offer this service as efficiently as possible to create a lasting brand that is a true reflection of your dream brought into existence with the intrinsic navigation of art & business.

Honest Hive® Marketing is built to connect brand strategist & artist as well as technical & creative marketers to create the business infrastructure that will last through your businesses lifestyle with our agile approach.

If you are a small to medium sized business looking to hire on your first marketing professional or an organization outsourcing your entire marketing department we can build customized programs and connect you to some of the most gifted creatives who will deliver you engaging/captivating brand and revenue-generating marketing campaigns.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I had to learn to take my craft, the business experience from corporate America and separate it from the trauma-response, greed, scarcity mindset that led me to have such issues socially in the workplace.

Working in corporate America is an abusive relationship for myself and a lot of the black women that I’ve come into community with because jealousy and competition between women with the added layer of racial discrimination and unequal distribution of power often leaves us as prey for anyone with a malice agenda.

I had a co-worker who was a white female, mother of 2 boys and well respected manager in the company i worked for harass, pretend to write me up, parade any black people she could in front of me and spread salacious rumors that undermined my work. She harassed me for 2 years, when she pretended to write me up I went to HR as I had before to ask for assistance and was fired two days later after she yelled and stormed out of a meeting meant to bring resolve.

When things like this happen it is more easy that you would imagine to become the thing we are fighting. To seek power to protect us instead of healing. I realized you can’t assume culture and it isn’t simply marketing project. Activism, anti-exploitation, anti-racism and harmony have to be strategically built into your company through both lived example, education and cultural standards being not only expressly written in the Company Code of Conduct but a system to resolve any miscommunication, misunderstandings or disagreements. Once that base is built and maintained people FEEL the difference and desire to maintain that harmonious work atmosphere.

How’d you meet your business partner?

When I started my business I knew I wanted to build in eduction and activism into the root of what I do. My first hire was Bayle Brooks, she is my marketing assistant and I pour into her as my each-one-teach-one model for her to during her high school career develop key business, marketing and social skills to thrive in the world post-graduation should she choose immediate workforce entry or continuing education.

Contact Info:

• Website: honesthivemarketing.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/honesthive/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/honesthive
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/68139754/admin/feed/posts/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Honest_Hive
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@honesthive4716
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/honest-hive-houston
• Other: Podcast: The Hive Voice: https://www.soundcloud.com/user-336108557 https://www.instagram.com/thehivevoice/