After six years leading Kerry’s Style Sessions, Kerry Brownell knows what drives business growth. She’s moved beyond surface-level style advice to build a sustainable company that serves distinct client groups with specific needs. While many focus on perfect branding or polished sales techniques, Kerry takes a different approach. She emphasizes authentic connections, clear market understanding, and practical business strategies.
Drawing from her experience building a thriving styling business, she shares insights that apply across industries and business types.
The Role of Passion in Business Building
For Kerry, sustainable business growth starts with genuine motivation. “Make sure you’ve got your drive and your passion. You really need to know what it is that you’re wanting to do, what you are wanting to create, what service or product it is that you are wanting to offer to the general public,” she says. This foundation proves especially valuable during challenging periods. “When things start to get a bit hard and a bit tough, then you’ll think back to your passion, your purpose and why you’re doing what you are doing.”
Understanding Customer Benefits
Kerry emphasizes knowing exactly how your business helps clients. “Know what pain points, and what benefit your product or service can offer to your clients or your customers. What problem are you solving?” she explains. This clear understanding shapes business communication. “Once you understand this as well, this will come through in all of your messaging, all of your social media, all of your branding.”
Drawing from her own background, Kerry challenges common assumptions about sales expertise. “You don’t need to have any sales experience. I’ve never had any sales experience,” she shares. Instead, she focuses on authenticity: “Being honest, being authentic, and being transparent and being passionate about what I do – that is my sales talk.” Her approach relies on natural enthusiasm rather than practiced techniques.
The Value of Mentorship
Working independently brings specific challenges that Kerry addresses through mentorship. “Get yourself a business mentor if you are a solopreneur and starting off on your own—just like I was,” she advises. She notes the practical benefits: “Have a mentor that’s been there and done that and isn’t trying to reinvent the wheel. They know exactly what will work and what doesn’t work, and that will save you a lot of heartache.”
When it comes to visual identity, Kerry advocates practical efficiency. “If you’re not a creative person and you’re not sure what colors to use for your branding or what your logo should look like, then do not spend hours trying to mess around with this,” she advises. Her experience shows that while branding matters, it shouldn’t consume excessive time: “Once you’ve actually got that developed and that’s all been sorted out, you’ll actually realize, well, I didn’t really need to spend all that time on that.”
Moving Forward
Kerry’s approach combines practical business sense with authentic service delivery. Her experience shows that successful businesses don’t require extensive sales backgrounds or perfect branding from day one. Instead, they need a clear understanding of customer needs, genuine passion, and a willingness to learn from others’ experiences.
Through Kerry’s Style Sessions, Kerry demonstrates how focusing on fundamentals – knowing your market, understanding customer needs, and maintaining authenticity – creates a sustainable business model. Her straightforward advice offers valuable guidance for others building service-based businesses.
Check out Kerry Brownell’s website and LinkedIn profile to learn more about her.
