Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelley Nan Lopez.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My journey started by accident; in the spring of 2015, I started sharing our home’s progress photos on Instagram for friends and family, shortly after we moved in. I only had a handful of followers and didn’t know much about the platform but as I shared, I noticed people I didn’t know started following my account, engaging with my photos, and asking questions. I was a little confused why strangers wanted to see and hear more but was also amused – I wasn’t familiar at that time with how popular following specific niche interests were – from blogs to social media. The more people who found me, the more driven I was to share my ideas.
From styling dinner tables to decorating bedrooms to sharing traditions, tips, shortcuts, and recipes, I decided to extend my content from social media and create an online presence to share more- toward the end of 2015, KelleyNan.com was born. I was still fumbling my way through and at this time, my lifestyle and home passion project was a pure hobby. I was working as the Vice President of Operations for a small consulting firm by day, and on nights and weekends, I was working to engage with the audience I was building and honing skills for my double life. I was first contacted by a major brand at the end of 2015 and it was then that I started to understand the potential and possibility of evolving my passion project into a legitimate business. I hustled hard, pulled all-nighters and was essentially working two full-time jobs before I decided to take a leap of faith and resign from a regular job, my security, in July 2017. It was so out of character for me because I am NOT a natural risk taker. I’m calculated, safe, and responsible; security and regularity make me happy. But, I knew that I would never discover my full potential if I wasn’t able to devote myself to it 100%. It ended up being the best decision I ever made. I work long hours but they don’t feel like work. I love what I do – I never thought I would be able to be a person who LOVED my job. As of today, I’ve organically grown my online and social media presence to around 185k Instagram followers; over 260k pageviews/month on KelleyNan.com; and almost 6M monthly viewers on Pinterest.
Has it been a smooth road?
I was fortunate to connect with other creators and make some wonderful friends and mentor(s) early on. A difficult part of my journey has been in committing to staying true to myself. It is so easy to compare yourself to others and it’s important to remind yourself of your “why” and that no one’s journey or goals are the same. Authenticity is everything. From an outside perspective, there is still a lot of apprehension and confusion around what I do. Because your work is more visible, people seem to be fascinated and ask questions they would likely never ask others – like “how much money do you make?” And, “can I buy you a cup of coffee, so I can pick your brain?” People would never ask an attorney, teacher or plumber to teach them the ins and outs of what they do over a cup of coffee; a lot of people don’t respect it because they don’t understand it. Trying to defend and explain your legitimacy is tough – most people have no idea the work that goes into the most “simple”, seemingly effortless posts. The best way I can describe it is running your own magazine where you are responsible for successfully fulfilling the responsibilities of each department – from concept creation, photography and editing, to writing, publishing, social media management, technology, legal, marketing… literally, every component of a business. For others looking to follow their dreams, keep your head down, create your own path, and be prepared to make sacrifices. When you are in a season of “hustle” and “building”, you won’t always have that “balance” people talk about – that’s ok! Don’t let others make you feel bad about that. Instead, work on surrounding yourself by those who support you in all the right ways.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I am a stylist, hostess, and creator who believes in transforming even the smallest events into memorable experiences. A testament from growing up in the south, I think being polite trumps manners if it comes at the expense of kindness; if you are cooking for two, you should prepare enough for four; and “turning into your mother” is an achievement. I’m not a formally trained designer; I just want to share and illustrate attainable, manageable ideas with others out there – from storing oversized bedding to mixing pillow patterns in the living room – who believe in the importance of investing in your everyday home life.
Visit her lifestyle blog KELLEYNAN.com for tradition with a twist.
Do you think there are structural or other barriers impeding the emergence of more female leaders?
Being afraid to create your own role if there isn’t one “open” in the traditional sense.
Mindy Kaling hit the nail on the head:
“… write your own part. It is the only way I’ve gotten anywhere. It is much harder work, but sometimes you have to take destiny into your own hands. It forces you to think about what your strengths really are, and once you find them, you can showcase them, and no one can stop you.”
Contact Info:
- Website: KelleyNan.com
- Email: kelleynan@kelleynan.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/kelleynan
- Facebook: facebook.com/kelleynan
- Other: pinterest.com/kelleynan
Image Credit:
Kelley Nan
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
