Check Out Alexis Pierce’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Pierce. 

Alexis, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Alexis Pierce, 24 | Originally from Detroit, MI 

I’ve always gravitated to art, music, interior design, or anything of that nature. I have a special love and appreciation for art and beauty. As I am answering this I’m realizing even as a young girl I’ve always liked to dance, draw and create beautiful things from scratch. In Kindergarten… well I can’t think back that far… However, in middle school, I remember taking EXTRA time doing hands-on projects or putting together presentations. Any time I got the chance to design or create something on my own, I was always very passionate about it. 

In 2018, while completing my Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communication at the illustrious Tennessee State University I started creating t-shirts and presentation templates for simple projects in my classes. From there Alex Publicity was born, I started to create resumes for my friends and design flyers for my professors (for free of course because it was just fun and came very natural to me). At this time, I looked at design like a hobby, not realizing I could capitalize on this and actually make a living doing so. 

Fast forward to 2021, I am now 2 years post-grad with a B.S. degree in Mass Communication and a minor in Business Administration. I currently reside in Oakland, California. Yes, I love love love to create and design but, in the meantime, I had to get a J O B because the cost of living in California is. not. cheap. I stated a career in advertising. 

Over the years there have been plenty of times where I wanted to throw in the towel on design and stop completely. But for some reason, anytime I tried to stop designing it always came back to me. If I stopped taking new clients, my old clients would send me new projects to work on or if I stopped taking clients as a whole my close friends and family would ask me to design something for their businesses. 

I say all this to say I had to stop running from what was right in front of me and face the fact that I love to design. 

If I had to offer any advice to someone just starting their business, in their 20’s or just in general it would be to – 

1. Stay in constant communication with God or your higher power.

2. Get to know exactly who you are down to the core (especially when no one is watching)

3. Don’t get caught up in the hype of social media. You have to fully understand how to separate the app from reality and be mindful of what you consume daily. Personally, I get on social media maybe twice a week & the hours I used to spend scrolling/looking at content that wasn’t adding any real value to my life I now feed my mind with things that I want to manifest. I listen to podcasts, audiobooks, interviews, etc. My favorite podcast to date is Jay Shetty (look him up on YouTube and I’ll link the first podcast I ever watched from him https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cz8-Rc6kjo ) 

4. Put one foot in front of the other EVERY DAY and do the work, whether that’s spiritually, emotionally, or physically. You will have to PARENT yourself. 

5. Lastly, hold yourself very accountable on your goals and what you want for your life.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’ve struggled with playing what I call a “corporate game” DISCLAIMER: THERE ARE PLENTY OF SUCCESSFUL BLACK + BROWN WOMEN THAT WORK IN CORPORATE AMERICA. 

However, for me, and in my opinion, corporate America is a dangerous game. 

I’ll try to paint this picture: 

I wasn’t the minority in high school. I went to an HBCU, so I wasn’t a minority there either. So, when I graduated and went straight into corporate America it was like a culture shock. Plus, no one really talks about what’s next after you graduate from college and get a good job with a decent salary. 

From the very first day of working in corporate America, I could FEEL the disconnect. Imagine starting your first real job and being the only brown girl in the boardroom with top executives that were predominantly white men who wouldn’t even THINK to acknowledge you. Yes, I understand people have felt/experienced this same exact thing but no one gave me a heads up or really told me what I was getting myself into. I hope this can help the next young brown girl in some way. 

Being in a cool office with bomb snacks, company perks, paid lunches, brand new Mac books, unlimited PTO is all very nice but it always felt like there was no real seat at the table for me. No amount of diversity/inclusion panels and bias training could make me feel like I had a fair chance compared to the others. Which is also not an excuse, I just knew that this is a game I’m not willing to play for long. I rather work 20x’s harder and spend countless hours to build my own business from the ground up. 

No one talks about how after you spend 4 years of time and money that there could be a possibility you don’t work in the field you actually want. 

No one talks about how much time and energy you actually spend working in your corporate role vs what they pay you. 

No one talks about the thousands of dollars in student loan debt that is waiting at the door to be paid 6 months after you graduate. 

No one talks about the pressure of a fresh college grad and how everyone wants to know what’s next for them. 

No one talks about the fresh college grad who is applying to endless jobs all over the United States and still hearing “I’m sorry we’ve selected another candidate with more experience” 

Another thing I struggled/struggling with is understanding that having ONE off day (when you’re just in a funk, not feeling it/want to be left alone…does not equal to having an off week or an off month or being depressed. Yes, depression is real, but just because you had one off day doesn’t mean you have to beat yourself up for it. Go through those emotions or feelings that you are experiencing for that day and try it again with a fresh attitude tomorrow. Almost everyone experiences some type of anxiety or depression and it’s about learning you and how to pick yourself back up. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in clean and minimalistic brand designs, which include: web development, logos, e-flyers, business cards, etc. My goal is to help my clients elevate their branding to create a timeless brand. Additionally, I aim to help educate my clients on the power of consistent/quality branding. 

I am most known for: 

Logos 

E-flyers (social media flyers, menus, price-lists, invitations, etc) 

Web Development 

Resume Customization 

How can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
If you would like to work with us, I would suggest visiting www.alexpublicity.com and clicking the “contact” tab to submit an inquiry or email us directly info@alexpublicity.com 

Contact Info:

• Email: info@alexpublicity.com
• Website: www.alexpublicity.com
• Instagram: @alexpublicity

Image Credits
@_thetopshot