Today we’d like to introduce you to Kassie O’Driscoll.
Hi Kassie, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
In 2019, my family and I relocated to Northern Virginia and I used that opportunity to switch from Family Photography to Wedding Photography. With that came a huge need to build my portfolio. I stumbled my way through my first styled shoot in March of that year and realized that I not only love shooting weddings, but I really love connecting with other Creative Entrepreneurs! That’s when K. Layne Styled was born.
The best part about all of it is that I was able to do with my best friend, Claire! She and I became quite the dynamic duo and loved the opportunity to hang out while building something together! By the end of the year, we’d organized a styled shoot nearly once a month and hosted the first annual Creatively Gathered shoot for over 100 photographers.
When the pandemic hit, we took a pretty big hit. So, we did some pivoting! At the end of the day, our goal remained the same: to help Creative Entrepreneurs through their building stages as they grow and sustain a successful small business!
Now, we’ve expanded to a larger audience under K. Layne Solutions where we help people free up time spent online so that they can get back to doing what they love to do – creating!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Do smooth roads actually exist? Ha! Claire and I are both military spouses so the biggest hurdles are mostly around relocating. Currently, she lives in a different country and I’m freshly planted here in California. Taking our business online was probably the best decision that we could have made.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a photographer first and foremost! I specialize in Wedding and Brand Photography under Kassie Layne Photography. The other side of that coin is K. Layne Solutions a business I built with my best friend, Claire, so that we could help Creative Entrepreneurs navigate through the building stages and get back to doing what they love to do.
We specialize in styled shoots, social media management, and virtual assistance.
I’ve been called your “Business BFF” because I love to dive deep into your hopes and dreams while brainstorming how we will meet those milestones! I’m constantly thinking about our clients, what’s next, and how we’re going to get there. I’m your encourager, pusher, and doer!
As for Claire, she’s my real life and my business bestie! As for all things K. Layne Solutions, she’s the absolute best at simply getting stuff done. She loves the behind the scenes work so, most of the time, you’ll find her loading and unloading props, styling beautiful flat lays, or steaming linens to make sure everything is perfect. One of my favorite things about Claire is her ability to recognize that there’s a problem and finding the solution without sweating all the stuff in the middle.
I like to think that what sets us apart from all of the other businesses like us is our genuine effort to ensure that all vendors, clients, and customers are getting a personalized experience that feeds into their specific goals and desires. Perhaps on paper, we all look the same, but I can assure you that the experience that you’ll feel here will be rare, fruitful, and sincere.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
The industry is forever shifting! It’s hard to say what it will look like in 5 years when it won’t even look the same in 5 months. We are in such an interesting growth period with the shift from still imagery to video marketing that I wouldn’t be surprised to see it all flipped upside down within that time frame.
Someone said to me the other day, “being elegant and refined has become going back to the old world methods,” and while that’s so true as far as sustainable products and methods, I think we are yet to feel that in the Creative Entrepreneurial world.
I’d like to think that in 5-10 years, we’ll be saying the same. Connecting online might be the thing of the past and we’ll be going back to our roots with networking events and socials.
Contact Info:
- Email: kassie@kassielayne.com
- Website: https://kassielayne.com/klaynesolutions
- Instagram: @klaynesolutions
Image Credits
Kassie Layne Photography
