This week on OWN IT, we’re talking to Katie Irving of The Moonshot Agency. She works mainly in the fashion industry and started her career as a textile designer. That happens to be one of my favorite things, so we could have spent the whole episode talking about that … but we didn’t!
Katie and Christy Hiler explored her journey to ownership, the women who inspired her along the way and the challenges we face in closing that gender gap in agency ownership. This was such a great conversation and the fashion insights she brought to the table expanded what we know.
We're sure you’ll learn something new today.
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The speaker emphasizes the significant impact of having strong female mentors throughout her career in fashion, highlighting how these leaders fostered her growth and leadership skills. She also stresses the importance of "paying that back" by actively mentoring and engaging with students to ensure future generations see women in leadership roles as attainable.
The speaker explains her career transition from textile design to trend forecasting, noting how consumer insights became increasingly crucial due to market fragmentation. She details that understanding the specific customer segment is the foundational first step for brands to effectively forecast trends and connect with their audience.
Starting her own agency, Moonshot, required significant personal growth for the speaker. She notes that stepping outside of her comfort zone for nearly five years has been challenging but ultimately fulfilling, emphasizing that entrepreneurship demands continuous self-development and the ability to trust oneself to handle unexpected situations.
The speaker identifies business development as the biggest learning curve and challenge when starting her agency. Having worked in-house for years with a small, focused network, she had to proactively build new connections, travel, and nurture relationships authentically to establish a client base, highlighting that "getting that engine up and running definitely takes some time."
For aspiring agency owners, the speaker advises a strong focus on identifying a unique problem their agency can solve. This involves understanding personal strengths, conducting market research to find gaps, and developing a clear, compelling point of view that differentiates the agency and allows it to articulate its value to clients.
