Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathy Clabby
Hi Kathy, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I grew up in Atlanta – graduated from Marist High School, then got both my Bachelors and Masters degrees at the University of Georgia. Back then, I had exactly zero plans to be an entrepreneur. Everything was centered around being an academic – I thought (with all my 20-something idealism) that I’d be teaching Renaissance Literature, helping to shape young minds, writing ever-so-erudite papers that would be published in scholarly journals. Except I found that I really, really didn’t like living in the library 80% of the time. Academic I was not.
So, I entered Corporate America. Gosh, looking back at that – I was so green. I had no idea what I was doing. But I learned. I put in the work, grew, moved up, gained seniority, and finally felt like I’d made a place for myself in the world. Honestly, I never expected to leave. I spent 27+ years in a high stress, high pressure environment, building a career in sales, marketing, business strategy, and leadership development – doing everything from training staff to managing operations. For a lot of years, I lived on the road and out of a suitcase, managing teams of people and a packed schedule across multiple time zones.
And then… my body tapped out.
At 52, I had a minor stroke. It was shocking, upsetting, confusing – everything I knew as “my life” came to a very abrupt stop. I couldn’t work, couldn’t even stay awake for more than a few hours at a time. It was so hard. I didn’t recognize myself. I was supposed to be the one who could just push through and get on with it. For months, I kept waiting to get back to my “normal life.” But as I healed, with the support of my family (and a great therapist), I started to realize that the whole thing had been a giant wake-up call. Like, “Hey, maybe working 80+ hour weeks and answering emails at 2 a.m. isn’t actually a sustainable lifestyle?” (Who knew?) That stroke finally had me pause and reevaluate what I actually wanted for my life – not just what I had spent decades building.
I left my career and took the leap into entrepreneurship without a perfect plan – I just knew I couldn’t keep doing what I’d been doing. I had a boatload of business experience and a deep commitment to making a difference… and bills to pay.
Coaching was a natural place to start – I’d worked with over 20,000 people, helping them break through their own limitations, develop their confidence, and actually take action and produce some truly incredible results. So, I started with what I knew. But design? That started as a passion project.
I’d always loved making things look good and work well, but I never thought I’d turn it into a business. At first it was personal, created out of necessity during my own first steps into entrepreneurship and the struggles I faced not knowing how to set up a website or what the heck to do with social media. I figured out all of the what did (and didn’t) work, took the time to learn a lot of different platforms, mastered a few, and discovered I loved designing websites, presentations, graphics – all of it. It felt like taking everything I understood about business strategy and marketing, and applying it visually and digitally.
I started doing work for friends and some of my clients. More people started asking for help. And I soon realized I wasn’t the only entrepreneur who jumped in with amazing skills, but little to no experience creating a powerful, branded, online presence for their business. So, I put together what I wished I’d had when I started as an entrepreneur.
That’s really how Mode27 was born. It’s a design studio with a simple mission: Helping service-based entrepreneurs make branding and website design as beautiful and painless as possible.
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?
Ha! Oh sure, everything has been effortless, and I’ve just been coasting on a wave of success and passive income since day one. (Definitely kidding.) No, my road has been full of twists, turns, and quite a few potholes. It’s been exciting, unnerving, and sometimes made me want to throw up.
The biggest struggle was honestly the mental shift from being in a very senior corporate position to being a solopreneur. In corporate, there was structure, team, resources. But, as an entrepreneur, suddenly I was the CEO, the designer, the tech support, the marketing department, and the cleaning crew. It was a LOT, and at times, overwhelming. Even with all the experience I had, everything I’d spent years developing myself in – I suddenly felt new to the game.
There was some serious imposter syndrome, especially at the beginning. Here I was, 52 years old, starting over in an online world dominated by 20-somethings who seemed to have been born with an Instagram account. I questioned everything: Was I too old? Did I have anything relevant to say? Did I really need to post a picture of my morning smoothie? Would anyone actually pay me??
And then there was the frustration with learning new technology – which, ironically, is now what I help my clients avoid. It’s a big shift going from a corporate environment to the online world. I’m not tech averse at all – but there was still a learning curve with unfamiliar platforms, from social media, to Canva, to website builders. Like a lot of new entrepreneurs, I tried to DIY my first website, and let me tell you – it was quite the journey. A lot of trial, error, late night googling, and a small existential crisis after I accidentally deleted the entire site.
Truthfully, though – I wouldn’t change any of it. Not even the stroke. Getting beyond those challenges had me develop habits that are a whole lot healthier, discover new skills and new ways to express what I’m really good at, and step into a far more expanded and balanced version of myself.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
At my core, I’m a coach and strategist. That part of my work – helping people break through their own limitations and take real, tangible action – has been in my blood for years. I’ve coached thousands of people in my career, and no matter what I’ve done, that guiding, coaching, let’s-figure-this-out-together energy has always been at the heart of it.
So when I started playing around with design, I thought it was just a creative outlet – something fun on the side. I never planned for it to turn into a full-blown business. And then I started seeing the bigger picture. The same strategy and problem-solving skills that made me a great coach applied perfectly to branding and website design. It wasn’t just about making things pretty – it was about making them effective, clear, and confidence-boosting.
Now, I do both – coaching and design – because honestly? They go hand in hand. My clients aren’t just looking for a website or a branding kit. They want clarity. Confidence. A roadmap. Whether it’s through one-on-one coaching, template customization, or full-service design work, I help people take what’s in their head, get unstuck, and bring it to life in a way that actually works for them.
I think what really sets me apart is that blend of strategy, coaching, and design. I don’t just hand over a website or marketing template and say, “Have fun!” I coach my clients through the process, helping them figure out what they actually need, what aligns with their business, and how to build a brand that supports their goals without drowning in tech headaches and decision fatigue.
Any big plans?
Oh wow, there’s so much. So many exciting things are happening right now.
First, I’m officially launching the Mode27 Shop, Design Days, and Custom Work at the end of March. I’ve been doing branding and design work offline for a while, but now I’m making it official – and I’m already booked through April, which is wild (in the best way)! My first set of Showit website templates drops in May – I’m beyond excited about those. The templates are built specifically for service-based entrepreneurs who want a high-end, gorgeous website without the hassle of coding or hiring an expensive designer.
Then, in June, The Design Lab opens – a membership where entrepreneurs can get weekly live support while they’re customizing their websites, graphics – all their marketing materials. Because let’s be honest, even with the best templates, it’s easy to get stuck. My intention is to give people real-time guidance and a space to ask questions, so they don’t have to figure it all out alone.
Beyond that? Coaching is still a huge part of my work. I’m still working with entrepreneurs 1:1, helping them not just with branding and websites, but with the bigger picture – how they’re positioning themselves, what’s holding them back, and how to build a business that actually fits their lives.
It’s an exciting time, and honestly, I feel like I’m just getting started.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kathyclabby.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathyclabby
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kathyclabby.mode27designs
