Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Evans
Hi Alyssa, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
The Atlanta Book Club started in November of 2023 out of my personal love for reading, but mainly out of my passion to create spaces for community. I knew early on that I didn’t want this to be just any book club. I wanted it to be more like a social club that felt multifaceted just like how we are as humans. So, this club is for the individual who likes reading (or growing to like it), being in beautiful spaces in Atlanta, but also loves good food, likes volunteering with local organizations, and maybe likes doing a wellness activity here and there.
My love for reading started with my mom. She exposed my three siblings and I early on to the enjoyment of reading. She was a teacher before I was born, and later worked as an education consultant (and still does but now for her own company, Leading LLC) working with librarians and teachers in Atlanta to get the right books for students. Because of this, we always had access to books and naturally had no excuse not to read. So I ended up being a top reader in a lot of my classes and even participated in district & state-wide reading competitions in elementary and middle school. In elementary school, I actually had a book club that my mom and two of my favorite teachers hosted at my house, with about 6 of my friends.
Although college kind of dampened my desire to read for enjoyment, I eventually started to love it again after graduating. Now, fast forward to October of 2023, I’m sitting in my living room when God gave me the vision for this book club after seeing how many people were engaging with my monthly book reviews that I was sharing on my Instagram stories.
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?
We’re now 9 months in, and for the most part it’s been really smooth. In this time, we’ve grown to over 150 members, and have gotten to collaborate with some amazing brands like Original ChopShop and Posman Books. I think the only struggle is trying to get spaces that accommodate for when we have our larger events. Currently, the club is self-funded by me, which means the budget is very minimal, which also means we don’t have the money to afford renting out spaces. However, we have had a few local community groups be so kind and offer their spaces, which has been such a blessing!
As you know, we’re big fans of Grounded Marketing . For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Professionally, I am a marketing strategist. I recently started a marketing consulting company, named Grounded, helping new and already existing companies build or better their branding and marketing strategy so they can stand out and be successful. What stands out about Grounded is that I have experience with building a brand and marketing strategy for myself through the two companies/organizations I’ve founded, Elocin Boutique (an online curated secondhand clothing store”) and of course The Atlanta Book Club. Additionally, I’ve worked for a large beauty brand as a marketing coordinator, so between these, I have experience in pretty much every aspect of marketing, from company name ideation, to branding, to social media, to digital marketing, field marketing, and even in event management.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
For me, it’s kind of two fold; success for me vs success for the club. For me, success began the day the book club was launched, regardless of whether someone showed up or not. Success for me is obedience in what God called me to do. Now, success for the club is measured in impact. The goal of the club is to create meaningful relationships and create a positive impact in the city of Atlanta, so if we are seeing that people are building relationships and that our serving in the community, like through our volunteer work for example, is creating a positive impact, we have reached success. I would love for this club to continue to grow, not for the sake of growth, but for the sake of impact.
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