Tomorrow is a milestone. 15 years of owning this beautiful, challenging, impactful, glorious, demanding, rewarding, stretching, inspiring business.
6 days ago was our 15-year quitiversary.
15 years ago last week, Mario and I both quit our jobs at the agency we were working for, because…we believed. We made a loose plan for that day, that didn’t really go as planned, but what it did – was create a trajectory that has led to a 15-year-old company with a purpose to make humans feel valued.
On the day we quit, Mario went first. I followed. Though he always told me he followed me, the truth is, we marched together – just on differently shaped paths – that always intersected. When I spoke individually to our boss after Mario had, I candidly told her we were planning to do something of our own. Mario had gone in to iterate that he was no longer going to be working there, and that our boss should probably talk to me, too. The sometimes-snarky Mario way.
For the amount of things I forget in a day, it’s a wonder I still so clearly remember what she asked me when I told her that we were making the jump on our own. I can still hear her voice, picture what she was snacking on while we were chatting, the tone she had, the body language – all of it. She asked me, “Do you REALLY think you can do better on your own?”
My response: “We can only try.”
With a very different mindset 15 years later, the only thing I would have changed is the amount of confidence I would have put behind that statement, whether a — “We have the opportunity to,” or a “Ya know what? Hell yeah, I know we can.” But still today, I’m pleased with my answer.
Thankfully, Mario and I both gained confidence over the past decade and a half. We learned so much, and now I get to live with his spirit inside of me and continue this gift of a legacy – energizing the community around us, making sure humans know that their stories, their brands, their beings – are known, valued, and heard.
Truth is though – we haven’t done this on our own. We have had different iterations of teams around us and now, I have landed at this 2025 superhero squad that is truly making magic happen, because we believe so deeply in what we are doing. And for that, I’m so grateful.
I remember the handful of clients that gave us our first chance – Kevin Collins and his law firm, Gridiron Heroes and their incredibly impactful non-profit, Colby Callaway and the team at the AT&T Championship. They let us fail, and they watched us grow and find ways to succeed fully for them, as well.
Our families have always been supportive of us. Their names grace our windows on our storefront. In the first month of our business, we bopped back and forth between my sister’s table where she didn’t charge me rent to Mario’s parents’ house where we crafted and created, drew strategies on napkins, paper, and more. Then, we were gifted a beautiful space by Ramiro Zapata – with his amazing architectural team. Moving from there to the greatness of Geekdom, with a lot more learning and growing, and finally, where we sit now to our spot in Southtown with the best neighbors we could ask for.
It takes a village. We have lost clients, gained clients, created relationships, made an impact, made radically large mistakes, found ourselves financially strained, and wildly in the black, as well. The coolest thing about a journey is that it is a roller coaster, and you get to find new humans to sit with you on the ride during different seasons of that journey. And we have had many, many greats.
I sit here grateful. Insanely grateful. Because our village has stood by us, lifted us up, taught us lessons with tough love, rallied around us in the very lowest of lows when we lost our favorite human, and we know – they will be there as we continue to shine our light.
What a gift it is to own a business. The challenges, the absolute trauma, the hardships. They’re worth it. For the wins, the celebrations, the relationships, the love.
We’ve always been about humans first. Because that’s where value is — in the authenticity of their stories, the beauty of their brands, and the genuine goodness in knowing they have an impact they can make. Imperfectly perfect.
Mario, I love you, and I hope I’m making you proud. Super Squad, you rock and you are rocks.
Village, I thank you. All of you whose paths we’ve crossed over the past 15 years. Our business, our impact – would not be what it is without you. Our lives are better because you were and are in them. And I hope we’ve made you feel the same. Cheers to 15 years.
