We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kynna Pinnace. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kynna below.

Kynna, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Keen Athletica’s mission is is to provide stylish and functional clothing that empowers women to embrace their bodies and feel confident and sexy in their own skin at any fitness level. I believe that every woman deserves to feel comfortable and supported while pursuing their fitness goals, and I am committed to delivering high-quality, affordable activewear that fits the bill.

The reason I started on this journey was because I struggling with my self acceptance after becoming a mom. Becoming a parent to my child is literally the greatest thing I’ve ever done. But, no amount of parenting books, blogs, journals, classes, etc. prepares you for actual motherhood. As women, our bodies go through so many changes in such a short period of time, that it’s hard for our brains to catch up.

At first, I tried to jump back in the gym, diet, and restrict myself but that didn’t work. I closed myself off to others because I didn’t think anyone would care about my struggles. I had a learn to give myself grace with my weight, my energy level, eating habits, my parenting, with everything. As much as I wanted to get back to my old self, I had to realize that my old self was gone. Fast forward to me loving myself, giving myself grace, and doing daily self-care tasks.

I decided to treat myself to cute workout gear to help me feel motivated and confident. I wanted activewear that was comfortable and supportive without being restrictive. I’ve seen people wearing shapewear to the gym and I refuse! I didn’t have money for big brand activewear, but the lower brands were lacking in the quality. I started thinking about what I want and what I would do if it were my clothes. This lead me on a new journey of researching how to create a clothing brand.

Kynna, 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?

My name is Kynna Pinnace. I’m a nurse, a mom, a soon-to-be wife, and now a small business owner. My company is Keen Athletica, an activewear brand for women. I created this brand at a time when I was trying to accept my new body and new life. Like most moms, I just wanted my old body back. I wanted to feel strong and confident. I wanted to feel sexy in my clothes without wearing full-on shapewear. I started working out, and after several failed attempts at dieting and workout programs, I made a commitment to myself to stay consistent. and start embracing the small wins and non-scale victories. After talking to other mom friends, I realized that I was not alone. There were other women who felt like me, those who wanted to work out but didn’t know where to start, who wanted to feel sexy but weren’t comfortable with their bodies yet. I started asking myself questions like “what do I like?” “what do I feel most comfortable in?” “do I want to look like a soccer mom or a baddie?” I chose the latter and started doing research on starting a business, building a website, marketing, branding, designing, and thus, my brand was born!

Have you ever had to pivot?

A time when I had to pivot is quite recent, actually. Initially, I applied for my LLC, EIN, created a website, store, etc. through an online service called Tailor Brands. It seemed like a good idea to get everything done in one spot and the process was fairly simple. However, once I got my LLC and got my website up, I was constantly being up-sold to access basic features on the site. You had the option to get “expert” help for a few hundred dollars, but would still need to upgrade to a higher membership tier. After consulting with other business owners I decided to switch my site over to Shopify. I’m still learning the site, but I have access to more features without the extra costs.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I use Shopify for my ecommerce store. There is a monthly membership fee and paid add-ons, but ultimately, I think it’s worth it. My initial webhost with Tailor Brands offered a one stop shop, but there were a lot of upsells in addition to the monthly membership fee. I looked into Etsy, but there are a lot of fees associated with selling on Etsy and on Amazon. Etsy, and Amazon depends on your business model, resources, and goals. I think Shopify is ideal for those who want more control over their brand and customization. Etsy is a good option for artisans and crafters looking for an audience interested in handmade products. Amazon offers access to a large customer base but comes with higher fees and more competition.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.keenathletica.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/keenathletica
• Facebook: Facebook.com/keenathletica
• Other: tiktok.com/keenathletica