Meet Chris Turner of Notion LLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Turner.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
To start at the very beginning, I was born in Memphis, TN, and lived there until I moved to Orlando, FL in 1998. Throughout High School my life was choir and music. College didn’t go great for me. I finally completed my AA Degree, from Valencia College in Orlando, after 3 years in college. Out of college I was fortunate enough to meet a business owner that hired me to be his office manager, while at the same time also working out in the field doing installations. Following that, again quite fortunate, I began working as a commodities broker at a company that my mother owned (Turner Cottonseed Brokerage). Interestingly, I worked in a single office with both my mother and my wife… and everything went well.

Following the birth of our first son in 2003, my wife and I moved to Knoxville, TN to be near my wife’s family. During my time in Knoxville I worked as a loader at FedEx, a graphic designer, an electrician’s apprentice, and an assistant brand manager… and probably some other things I can’t remember. There was a time where I would wake up at 3am, work at Fedex, then head to my full time day job, then go back home after work and do freelance graphic design. Sometimes it is just things we have to do.

Admittedly, that time period was rough financially. We never really “got ahead”. Finally, in 2009 I had a job offer with Sysco Food Service for street sales. We accepted that position and moved to Tallahassee, FL. In 2010 I transferred, with Sysco, to Suwanee, GA where we still are today. Throughout my 13 years with Sysco I was street sales, then a graphic designer, then marketing manager locally, then corporate marketing manager.

Throughout my entire working career I have always been doing freelance work on the side, mostly graphic design and some marketing. In 2021 I picked up a new client managing their trade show and doing some design and marketing work. In early 2022 that client asked if I had any more time to dedicate to the work they needed done… I said no, as I still had a full time job and they were aware of that. A few weeks went by and they asked me the same question, this time it was asked in a way that meant if I didn’t, then they would have to find someone else to do the work.

So, I let them know that if they were willing to go under contract for a certain amount of work each month, and I could get one other client on board with the same type of contract, then I would be able to quick my full-time job and give them all the time they needed. Three days later I had two signed contracts from my two largest clients and put in my notice at Sysco that same week.

I moved into my own full-time business on March 21, 2022. We are well into our fourth year and things are going well. There have been amazing years with great income, and a terrible year with some months having almost no income. Admittedly, that is my fault as I was living with my sister and her husband as my sister was suffering from colon cancer and I moved in with them in April of 2024. She passed away in May 2024, so my focus shifted and our business suffered.

Now, almost through all of 2025, the business has built back up. Not to where it was throughout 2023, but we are getting there. I have also refocused what we do. Originally I marketed Notion LLC as a marketing agency, but what I have learned over the years is there are things that I am ok at, and can get away with doing, but I don’t enjoy it. Things such as social media marketing, website design… basically a lot of the digital marketing things.

I have now refocused our company, it is just my wife and I, and we do 3 things: Marketing Collateral (publications such as magazines and catalogs, design and production of flyers, brochures, booklets, etc.), Promotional Products (anything with a logo on it), and Event Management (trade shows, 5k races, golf tournaments, etc.).

If you all are interested, we would love to have you participate in our Cancer Sucks 5k (November 2, 2025 at Etowah River Park in Canton, GA… www.theshelleyfoundation.org). It is our 2nd year doing it, we raise money to support individuals and families suffering financial due to cancer hardship.

Just last week I completed my first book. It is short, but hopefully helpful to someone. I have had a few purchases so far and it is available on Kindle. Please feel free to check it out: www.agenesisonechristian.com

I am also working on building a company to help men, both personally and professionally. You can check that out at: www.ittakesgrit.coach

I also really love doing live sound reinforcement (live sound engineer) and like to assist churches in training their volunteers. I don’t do any of it professionally, but at some point I would like to.

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?
Ah, I didn’t know this would be a question, I touched on it in the last screen.
No, of course it hasn’t been a smooth road.
During our first 2 years as a full-time company I took on too much work, and too many different types of clients (project types). I hired a social media specialist, a graphic designer, and a content writer. During this time I lost focus on doing things well and began just pumping out projects… and our quality suffered, as did my communication with clients.

Then add my sister suffering with cancer on top of it, and my moving in with them in April 2024, her passing in May 2024, and by October of 2024 having essentially no more projects, and having fired all of our employees… it was difficult and required a refocus. By no means do I blame anyone but myself… it was a difficult time.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Notion LLC?
While I still consider us a marketing company, it is different than what most people think of when they think of marketing. We are a marketing communications company. We delve into the personality of a company, its owner(s), vision, goals, etc. Then we ensure that anything that we do for that company (and it is usually all publicly facing) is represented correctly, and succinctly, to the public in a way that informs and ignites action.

I don’t mean “informs” in a way that shares everything about what a company does. We share enough information to make someone feel they are missing out if they don’t get more information. We care about our clients, and we care about their customers and potential customers. We don’t want to “coerce” any potential customers into opting into a product or service that won’t actually serve their need.

We have few clients, but they are large clients where we have great relationships.

What matters most to you? Why?
The experience of others. Regardless of what a person believes, we get to live here and now once. I want everyone I interact with to have the best life they possibly can, and if there is a way I can assist with that… I want to. Whether it is helping them build a business they envision, or creating an event that resonates with the attendees… it is all about experiences.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.notionmc.net | www.agenesisonechristian.com | www.ittakesgrit.coach | www.theshelleyfoundation.org