Troubled by Lack of Diversity, Kara Elyse Henderson Founded Her Own Shop

In 2019, while attending grad school at the University of Texas at Austin, Kara Elyse Henderson was modeling on the side for extra income. Hired to be the face of well-known and well-loved local brands, Henderson, who is Black, began to realize a disconnect: The decision-makers on these projects weren't reflective of the diversity she saw every day on campus. Instead, they were almost always white, and mostly men. "Most of the people who were behind the camera, who'd been selected for these opportunities, did not look like me," Henderson said. "Seeing the broad range of diversity—not just in terms of background and ethnicity, but even just talent—I knew that there was ample opportunity to diversify that industry, and I wanted to provide space and opportunity for creators that look like me to be able to enter into, occupy and work with these brands." This Sneaker Brand’s Founder Doesn’t Take ‘No’ for an Answer Later that year, Henderson founded Austin-based Mindful Media with the goal of creating that space. With two of her former university classmates leading photo and video production, the agency aims to bring the spirit of its name to each part of its business, from client selection and partnerships to employees and talent. Going beyond the clichés about diversity, equity and inclusion, Henderson wants the boutique agency's work to champion unique perspectives in every aspect of the business. "DEI is a buzzword," Henderson said. While many brands and agencies offer lip service, "it is ultimately about who they're actually selecting to do this work." Know your strengths Throughout 2020, Henderson and her small staff started to build Mindful Media's portfolio—specializing in digital content creation, production and storytelling for individuals and brands. The team began taking on client work in earnest in 2021 and 2022, and Mindful's roster now includes the City of Austin, the University of Texas at Austin, Ascension Health and Mothers Against Drunk Driving, among others. "We're really ultimately about ensuring evergreen content that's really true to a client's mission [and] vision, that also champions diverse perspectives and narratives," Henderson said. In 2021, Henderson won the Southwest Minority Supplier Development Council's Minority Business Enterprises Idol of the Year competition, a process that helps certified MBEs hone their marketing proposals and receive mentorship and guidance from the judges. The following year, Mindful Media was a finalist for the National Black Business Pitch competition. Find the right mentors Earlier this year, thanks in part to relationships built throughout the SMSDC competition, Mindful Media was selected to be part of a mentorship program with Austin-based Omnicom agency GSD&M. The program, which is sponsored by GSD&M client Capital One, aims to support startup-phase agency founders as they build their businesses. Throughout this year, Henderson has been meeting regularly with GSD&M to identify how best to achieve the goals that Mindful Media was founded on while building the business into a fruitful venture. Henderson, who describes herself as a visionary, said that GSD&M's support in establishing internal procedures and processes at the early stage in Mindful Media's growth has been a game changer. The procedural side of the business she’s now learning is “something that I’ve taken for granted, to an extent,” Henderson said. “There was momentum with the dream and with the hustle [in the beginning], like, ‘We’re going to get this done, and we’re going to do it.’ But as we are being invited to take on these much larger projects, it's imperative to ensure that all of this is taken care of so that the team can really just focus on what we're great at, which is storytelling." Work History Kara Elyse Henderson brings a range of creative experience to her agency, including music, writing, acting and modeling. In 2018 in Atlanta, she opened for an anniversary show of R&B legends including Silk, 112, Raheem DeVaughn and Dru Hill. While she's currently focused exclusively on building Mindful Media, her work in front of the camera continues to inform the way she interacts with talent. Prior to receiving her master's degree in journalism, which she completed in 2020, Henderson worked in tech, with stints at Dell Technologies and Halo Solutions in sales and consulting capacities, respectively. Her writing and photography have been featured in magazines including Ms. and Austin Woman.