Female Disruptors: Quia Brown of Code BLK On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry
Be a student of your industry — Never stop learning. As an entrepreneur, it is up to you to remain sharp within the industry. Reading up on daily news stories, joining organizations and networking events, and even attending conferences are great ways to stay on top of what’s going on in your field.
As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, we had the pleasure of interviewing Quia Brown, president of communications at Code BLK, a full-service marketing and PR agency based in Houston, Texas. With a concentration in influencer marketing, media relations and content strategy, Quia has been working in this industry for 9 years and has just celebrated year 3 in business with her partner Chynell Lee.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
Excited about this interview! Growing up I always knew I wanted to start my own business. I was super organized, well-spoken, and I learned soon that I wouldn’t be following the 9–5 structure for long. I created and imagined many businesses as a kid, including a soda company with unique flavors and I was always writing and planning. In my freshman year of college, I literally Googled some of the things that I liked to do to see what job would come of it and marketing popped up in the search, so I took a marketing internship at a small agency where the founder told me to look into public relations. I did some research and made it my major soon after.
Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?
My business partner, Chynell Lee, and I started our company in 2020, in the heart of the pandemic and just a few months after the passing of George Floyd. Around this time, brands’ diversity initiatives were in question and their responses to the protests and the overall treatment of people of color in the workplace were under a clear microscope. Being two of just a handful of black women at our previous company, Chynell and I decided to create a diverse agency to help solve some of the challenges brands were having as it related to diversifying their marketing efforts.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Whew, it wasn’t funny at the time, but I remember my first few months working at one of my internships I posted a story on my Instagram on how I didn’t feel like going to work that day. The VP of the company (who followed me) took a screenshot and sent it to my supervisor to which we then had a sit-down talk about it. SUPER EMBARRASSING, but I learned quickly that this industry was very social heavy and that representation matters; for myself and the company I’m with.
We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?
My college professor, Priscilla Tinsley, has been a huge mentor. She’s been practicing PR for more than 20 years and I know that I can go to her if I have any question at all. She selected me to participate in a very monumental internship and the student agency she helped find lead me to my first full-time job working at a marketing and ad agency.
In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?
Being able to identify a shift or a pivot and then showing people a different way of doing something is bold but ultimately it inspires others to think outside the box. The moment when it seems not so positive is simply the response you get for those disinterested in change.
Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.
Be a student of your industry — Never stop learning. As an entrepreneur, it is up to you to remain sharp within the industry. Reading up on daily news stories, joining organizations and networking events, and even attending conferences are great ways to stay on top of what’s going on in your field.
Art is subjective — a lot of the work that we do, creative design, writing, event production, its an art, which means, sometimes, especially the first go round, it’s possible that the client may not like it. It’s important not to take things personally in this field. There will be several rounds of revisions, edits and amendments. The goal is to get to a happy client.
Over communicate — When in doubt, it’s better to be transparent and ask questions when you aren’t sure of something than to take it upon yourself to make decisions without having all the information. Being thorough and detail-oriented is key here.
We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?
We just moved into our first office so still celebrating that as a huge milestone. We have a ton of plans for 2024 including some projects we are working on in the finance, pharmaceutical and even entertainment industries that we can’t wait to share!
In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?
One of the challenges we have faced at Code BLK is being taken seriously. Being a black and woman-owned agency, working with numerous brands that are often male dominated can be tough. It’s easy to think “if I were male would they have made that statement?” but we continue to push through.
Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?
I did a 21-day challenge in early 2020 where I didn’t eat meat, watch tv, get on social media or even listen to music for a full 21 days. During that time, I was reading this book called You Can Read Anyone, sharing how to figure out if someone is being truthful whether in the workplace or within your personal relationships, based on their physical and verbal mannerisms. I finished the book and I feel like it helped me engage with people differently. I had so much confidence, it made me super observant and it boosted the way I engaged with the people around me. It really helped with being a more empathetic person and it was a constant reminder that we are all human.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
I would create a movement that focused on self-care and mental health. Your physical and financial health can both improve if you have a stable mind. The way we move in this world, how we treat each other, all starts with how we treat ourselves. People have got to start working from the inside out. Making themselves a priority.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Don’t take things personally” from book The Four Agreements — When you think about the fact that most people don’t have any real context to who you are and why you do the things you do, it’s refreshing to know that their opinion of you, your brand, your life, doesn’t have very much base.
How can our readers follow you online?
Readers can follow our company on Instagram: @codeblk.co, LinkedIn: Code BLK, and Facebook: Code BLK
You can follow our personal Instagram as well Chynell Lee: @chylyfe and Quia Brown @quiatian
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
