Today we’d like to introduce you to Jackie Sanders.
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?
I am the owner and principal of Purple Carrot, a boutique health and wellness marketing firm. While the business officially launched in 2014, I pivoted the firm from a health technology start-up to its current focus in 2018. Today, Purple Carrot works with clients from Fortune 50 to high-potential tech start-ups and private foundations focused on defining marketing presence and operations in early-stage organizations and new ventures within well-established corporations.
My journey has been organic, driven by a passion for doing things in new and exciting ways. I love puzzles and to problem solve. I am artistic with a practical bent. In college, I debated between a future as a doctor or as a designer. So, I pursued both in undergrad and ultimately chose to become a graphic designer upon graduation. One thing led to another, and after earning my MBA, I segued my career into the life sciences industry. I first worked at Johnson & Johnson (as a product director for a start-up division of Ethicon). Then I moved into the pharmaceutical world with several top-tier healthcare communications firms.
I decided I could add more value to the industry (and my community) by stepping outside pharma and into the world of healthcare innovation. Healthcare innovation is crazy fascinating! I saw people reinventing how care is delivered, whether that is through digital treatments, protocol development, shifting economics, and more. I wanted to be a part of that crew. So I gave my boss five months’ notice and quit my relatively cushy EVP job at a top NYC agency to launch a start-up with little more than the belief that I could do and be something of more greater value through this new chapter of my career.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I have been very fortunate with my consulting practice. My practice has grown steadily over the past four years.
Incidentally (although not accidentally), in 2018, I became a single mother to two amazing baby girls (identical, no less!). These monumental life changes dramatically shaped the most recent phase in my career. I feel humbled and blessed by my girls and my fortune to have created a career that can provide the flexibility and financial strength to support us all. With that said, it can be challenging with a lot of (self-imposed) pressure to provide well for my clients and my daughters.
I have had enviable clients pursuing interesting problems to solve and have entrusted me to support their ventures in exciting ways. Most engagements start as a single project and then grow to multi-year relationships. With that said, I take absolutely nothing for granted. Engagements end and new ones can slowly get off the ground. The uncertainty can be more than unsettling, and working productively through the discomfort has been a challenge that I must constantly contain.
Additionally, while I have been successful as a consultant, I have dealt with numerous blows throughout my career. Some low points were likely due to inexperience and youthful, misplaced bravado. Others had nothing to do with personal wrongdoing and were the result of issues beyond my control. Nevertheless, these blows provided the most significant learnings to be a good manager, respected leader, and productive partner known for integrity, thoughtful contributions, and quality work.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
As I mentioned earlier, Purple Carrot is a boutique health and wellness marketing firm. While not all clients are solely within the health and wellness space, nearly all engagements relate to either initiatives or business ventures within this domain.
While our work ranges from building marketing departments and processes to building brands, clients universally come to Purple Carrot for thoughtful marketing and business leadership with strong strategic grounding and professional execution. Our work approach is highly flexible to align with client priorities and structures, and we generally become seamlessly embedded within client teams as integrated members of the crew.
A recent client called me this past week to discuss future collaborations. She said, “Jackie, you are sincere, and the presentation of your work has set standards for our company.” I am very proud of this accolade. My clients entrust me to support their businesses, and it is my responsibility to not just complete the scope of work but also to have their back and ensure that the work we do is worth the investment.
Business leaders will often share their challenges with me because I can see very closely how their businesses and teams work, yet I’m still an outsider. And I have similar vistas across several companies. While each client’s situation is unique, their problems are often quite similar. This vantage point gives me a unique perspective to understand the broader landscape and provide individual counsel in a bespoke and valued way.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I had several labels: independent, creative, curious, a decent dancer, and mildly accident-prone (I always hated that one). I was a bit shy and would hide my discomfort behind a book, paintbrush, or some other activity that kept me busy. With that said, if I wanted something, nothing would stop me.
When I was about ten, my religious school announced they were running a speed-reading contest (probably one of the silliest in the history of Sunday schools). Anyway, I really wanted to enter it but was told I was too young. I thought that was dumb. Finally, after a lot of cajoling, they agreed to let me enter the contest. I then won the contest. Hah. That pretty much encapsulates my attitude toward life.
I have never been one to shy away from a challenge, and I am proud of what I have accomplished by doing some research and then just going for it. Of course, sometimes I have totally flopped onto my rear. Still, this approach has led me to study and work abroad, introduce Fijian kids to the wonder of creative storytelling, dive with sharks, run off mountain tops, adopt my pooch, jump both feet first into the crazy world of a tech start-up, and most significantly, make my dream of becoming a mom come true…times two.
Contact Info:
- Website: purplecarrotideafarm.com
