Today we’d like to introduce you to Kela Thomas.
Hi Kela, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
For as long as I could remember, I have been interested in some part of business. When I was a little girl, I remember helping my dad roll newspapers and riding around with him half asleep delivering them. Him and I would constantly sit around trying to come up with new invention ideas to submit to companies. In elementary school, I was the ultimate opportunist. If there was a problem, I had a solution. At our bookstore, we had these smiley face figurines that everyone had. I started a daycare center in my desk to keep them, charging a dime or penny a day. I even had a check-in and check-out list to keep track of them. My favorite venture was making a stain remover because for a hot minute stains in clothes was a consistent problem in 3rd grade. I happened to run across the “stain removing power” of hand sanitizer one day, added a little bit of water and BAM had a $.25 solution. Even at home as I got more interested in baking, I would sit and mock-up cake designs and restaurant ideas for my own place one day.
I was blessed to see my parents work as hard as they did to get to where they are today. They influenced me more than they probably know honestly. But I always wished I could help out more. Creativity in the business sense was always encouraged, little did I know, as my life progressed, my love for it would become more solidified.
I fell in love with photography through yearbook in middle school and continued until I graduated high school as the chief editor. I absolutely loved interviewing people and getting to design my individual pages and eventually getting to pick the layout of the entire book. If I could figure out a way to continue that feeling beyond high school, I needed to be doing that. It was after I took AP Psychology and we reviewed advertising that I knew I had to go into the industry. I fell in love with the psychology of colors, the placement of products on shelves, and simply why people buy things. I’ve always been fascinated of classic brands and characters like Coca-Cola and Mickey Mouse, and learning that it could be an actual job was perfect. So I applied for the #1 Advertising program in the country at UT Austin and got in. Hook ‘em!
Once at UT, I started thinking, okay now that I’m here getting this degree what do I want to do with it? I had visited New York on a college trip and fell in love with the hustle and bustle of the city. Everyone seemed to have a purpose. There were so many office buildings I needed to be in one. Well, after an internship in an office I quickly realized that wasn’t for me. The next question became, how can I do what I love, help others, and pursue consumer psychology? Throughout my classes one semester, a consistent theme of under representation of diversity in advertisements kept popping up. It was then that I decided I wanted to focus on helping businesses; small businesses for now because I love the relationships that get built, and later on in my career possibly corporations with bettering their businesses. Although my undergrad and currently pursuing Master’s degree are both in advertising, I am able to curate my degree plan to learn about different aspects of business and marketing. I’ve been educated on the basics of business, along with deep dives into consumer psychology, branding, entrepreneurship, ethics & laws, social media, and even technologies like 360 video production/VR.
My time at UT has been amazing, learning from professors and professionals of their caliber. I have taken my learnings and carried them into my communities looking to help small business owners. I have been privileged to work with amazing people and companies in my spare time like Straight Edge Landscaping, ZayD productions, Veronica Robertson, The Outsiders Movement, Klubi Gifts and more! I do plan on launching my services on wider scale later this year. I am also in the process of writing a thesis on entrepreneurs, so I am looking forward to meeting more in the Austin-Dallas-Houston Area and learning their stories and pain points to better cater to them down the line. Currently, my main job outside of school is assisting Amazon third-party sellers in their business needs, one happens to be my dad. So at the end of the day, it came back full circle to me finally being able to help out in a meaningful way.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I would say yes, it’s been a smooth road, only because there’s a rainbow after the storm. Even when the going gets hard, there’s a lesson in every mistake, and the best learnings happen when you are frustrated and challenged. One of the biggest struggles I’ve had is imposter syndrome. I for the longest time denied it but couldn’t figure out what would stop me from going after opportunities in the industry or helping out a business owner. Ultimately, I was holding myself back because I didn’t believe in myself as knowledgeable in the field. I still struggle with this today, but I’ve had to realize that I am capable and extremely knowledgeable about what I do.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Currently, I help Amazon sellers in their businesses, along with helping small businesses with needs like social media, website building, and branding. I have been blessed to be able to pitch full advertising campaigns to big companies like Kendra Scott and HEB. I love working with creatives and am moving into the space more to be able to better connect creatives with each other. I am proud of all of the work I get to do and even more proud of my want to continue to get educated and become an expert through instruction and field experience. What sets me apart from others is I truly care about my clients and their businesses. I want to make sure that they are properly cared for and freed up to pursue the parts of the business that they love to do.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I always viewed myself as shy. But recently reflecting, I was quite the social butterfly around those I was comfortable with. I’ve always loved being around others and helping them out. I loved cooking, baking, and arts & crafts, all still true today. New adventures were terrifying to me, but I always pushed through them until they became exciting. I grew up playing sports, so very competitive and team-oriented. One thing I’ve always been is a dreamer. Nothing was impossible or too big of a dream.
Contact Info:
- Email: kelathomasbiz@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kelat.xo
Image Credits
Personal Photo – Tino Instagram @chapterxiv
