Today we’d like to introduce you to Mia Bui and Kimberly Brooks. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Our story started seven years ago, where Kim and I met at a previous job. I think we knew pretty early on that we were going to become besties; we just had no idea that it would lead us to starting our own agency. Our synergy helped us both thrive in our positions, and in tandem lead us to taking on leadership roles within the organization. For me, what started as an accounting and sales position grew into spearheading the operations, e-commerce, and business development department(s). I eventually parted ways as the Director of Operations & Sr Manager of Business Development. While very proud of my tenure there, I’ve always been a go-getter, and for me cultivating my own path and position early on in a new field and at that company felt right. By doing so, it led me to my passion and dream business – Haus of KIMIA.
With an education in Interior Design and prior careers in Marketing and Women’s Leadership, Kim had a similar journey at the same company Mia worked at- she took on a seemingly simple 8-5 Executive Assistant role, which at the time, she thought was going to be a short stepping stone as she was simultaneously pursuing another passion. If you know Kim, there is nothing simple about her devotion to her career. She’s multi-passionate, incredibly creative, and a hustler, so naturally the role quickly grew for her as well. She integrated her design and marketing background into her role; developing innovative packaging and products, managed the R&D, curated dynamic content and photography, and created impressionable branding, leaving the company as the Creative Director.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Not at all! I think every entrepreneur can agree that it’s never a smooth road. It’s a challenging one, a learning one, an inspiring one, but moreover a fulfilling one. Those challenges are where you learn and grow the most and we’re incredibly grateful for not just the great milestones but those really tough ones too that taught us a lot!
Some of the personal struggles we shared was learning how to juggle it all – when we first started Haus of KIMIA, we both had a full-time job- pulling 50-60 hours a week sometimes more during busy seasons. We devoted hours away from our family, sneaking in hours at night and on weekends to make our dreams come true. Fact is, it wasn’t sustainable long term, and we found ourself burnt out and uninspired while working more for someone else’s dream rather than our own.
In the first year, we had two clients and the occasional side project- it was more of a side hustle more than anything. By the end of that first year, we soon realized if we wanted to grow and build KIMIA into our dream agency, we needed to invest more time into our own business. So, we set some clear goals and objectives, created a plan of action, cut back at our 8-5, and once we did, our business grew substantially. We’ve had to pivot often, and we’ve had to learn new skill sets to support our business internally, we’ve also had to fail at times, but we’ve grown each and every day and that’s something we’re really proud of. And, we now have a team of talented individuals that help support our brands, and are so excited for what the future holds for Haus of KIMIA.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We positioned Haus of KIMIA to be a 360-brand building Haus, because honestly, who wants to hire multiple agencies to build their business. Now, what does that mean exactly? Well, short answer everything. From branding you, developing product, building out your website, managing your social media marketing and influencer campaigns, creating infrastructure for your business, or helping you with your sales strategy- we do it all not just because we can, but because of our combined experience. We have firm understanding on how eat facet of a successful e-commerce and service based business supports and affects one another. I’d say that’s one of our standout attributes as an agency, however, I think what makes us stand out the most is our passion for our clients and their business. Both Kim and I, are extremely passionate about what we do and it really shows when you work with us.
Most agencies specialize in one field; either they only can brand you, build your website, or run your ads and have no idea how each of those pieces may affect long-term growth like retail partnerships, sales strategy, or logistics. Understanding how each piece of a business is synergistically connected is one of our biggest strengths and why you want Haus of Kimia on your team. We structured our business, to be a boutique style agency; we aim to tailor your business needs to perfection, filling in the gaps, and making your business whole but with long term growth in the back of our mind- we always want to set up our clients for success. Whether we’re developing a brand, product, packaging, copywriting, or strategizing for an e-commerce website, we balance creativity and innovation with functionality and logistics. Our goal is to help our clients grow to their fullest potential, funnel their ideas into streamlined processes, build upon sales strategy, and ultimately help create a viable, successful business.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Mia: I don’t have one childhood memory that stands out but, I would say performing and playing sports throughout my childhood has been influential in my success today. I loved the spotlight as a kid. Any chance I got to perform, I jumped right up. I thrived in competitive settings and was a social butterfly. I loved making new friends! I wasn’t ever afraid to speak up or be myself, and I think most would have considered me a natural born leader- or bossy might be the term they used back then. Many of which still holds true today, and I attribute much of that to the days I was rehearsing for hours in my bedroom singing or at the dance studio or practicing with my teammates. Those are the memories I cherish the most. The biggest take away for me was the confidence and poise I had to embody on stage, lessons of teamwork and resilience, and learning how to be a leader. Those passions were a great foundation for me to chase after my dreams, pitch new ideas, step out of my comfort zone, and pave my own path.
Kim: I also don’t have one particular pivotal memory, but I always reminisce and often times revert back to my innocent free spirit. I was never reckless, but my curiosity was hungry for adventure, which pushed me to try so many experiential things; from frequently flying solo at 9 years old, singing acapella on a cruise ship at the age of 15, to being on a MTV dance show, to taking a college semester in Hawaii. As you get older, you tend to get in your head more, responsibilities take over, and the wide-eyed fearlessness starts to fade. So anytime I feel bored, I ask my soul, “what would Lil’ Kim do”- she usually has the answer.
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@hausofkimia.com
- Website: www.hausofkimia.com
- Instagram: @hausofkimia
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hausofkimia
Image Credits:
All images were taken or created by our company. We included a few lifestyle shots of the owners. For the branded images we’d love to showcase some of our brands:
Santa Barbara Trapeze Co. https://shopflysb.com/ https://www.instagram.com/santabarbaratrapezeco/
Achieve & Co. https://achieveandco.com/ https://www.instagram.com/achieveandco/
Modern Man Lifestyles https://www.modernmanlifestyles.com https://www.instagram.com/modernmanlifestyles/
