From lip balm to legacy: How Ohio State alum Rikki Lee Joiner built a successful marketing agency and podcast by age 22

Angela Diaz
Thu, 14 Nov 2024 05:49:13 +0000
Alumni, Arts & Life, Features, Instagram Page, News, agency founder, Black entrepreneurs, Black leadership, brand growth, brand manager, Buckeyes, business coaching, content creation tips, content creator, creative strategy, diverse representation, entrepreneurial journey, faith and grit, influencer success, Jasmine McMoore, Lona Joiner, marketing, marketing agency, nonprofit work, ohio state, Ohio state alum, Ohio State Buckeyes, personal growth, podcast creator, Rikki Lee Joiner, role models, self-discovery [and 5 more]

Rikki Lee Joiner gets photos captured for her brand’s online presence @Rikkilee.co @therikkileeagency @thatgirlradio. Credit: Courtesy of Parisha Johnson

A bright blue Baby Lips lip balm, a sparkly wallet and $2 in cash.?

For girls of all ages, these items are essential.?

But, for Ohio State alum Rikki Lee Joiner, these objects were featured elements in a “what’s in my bag?” video from sixth grade, which sparked a brand that would come to fruition years down the line.?

Since graduating from Ohio State in May 2024 with a degree in business administration, 22-year-old Joiner said she has continued expanding her marketing agency, aptly titled The Rikki Lee Agency. In addition, she started a podcast called “That Girl Radio” and worked as a content creator across platforms like YouTube, TikTok and Instagram — all while working a full-time corporate job.?

Joiner was just 13 years old when she discovered her dream of becoming a content creator, which was born from a love for YouTube vlogging, she said. As a young Black girl, however, Joiner said she struggled to find role models who she could entirely identify with.

“I created a channel because I was so engrossed in the YouTube space, and seeing a lot of content creators grow and scale their own brands through that platform, I never saw anyone that looked like me,” Joiner said. “I never saw anyone that was a representation of my community and my interests. I just really wanted to represent the girls who love fashion, the girls who do care about their grades, the girls who do a little bit of everything and don’t want to feel limited.”?

This fire within Joiner, however, was kindled long before age 13. Her mother, Lona Joiner, said she recognized her daughter’s outgoing nature and ambition when she was only 2 years old.?

“My earliest memory of realizing [Rikki Lee Joiner’s] drive, creativity and determination is when she was around 2,” Lona Joiner said. “She danced and sang very early, not just like any other child; she had rhythm and more talent in those areas than many adults.”?

Lona Joiner said when her daughter started grade school, her passions only grew.?

“She was advanced in every area,” Lona Joiner said. “She loved to read. I would always take her to the library, which later grew into Saturday trips to Barnes & Noble or Joseph-Beth to purchase books for the month. She would always get three and would read them all in record time.”?

At 16 years old, Rikki Lee Joiner said she found her knack for growing a brand by helping her friends grow their nonprofit, Sole Bros Inc. The organization collects and distributes sneakers to children around the world, according to its website.?

“I approached them like, ‘I have all these skills; I know how to work a camera, I know how to edit and you guys are doing great work. Why don’t I work with you guys as your brand manager?’” Rikki Lee Joiner said.

Rikki Lee Joiner said her help allowed the organization to build a network with other nonprofits, ultimately landing the opportunity to travel to Montego Bay and Kingston, Jamaica, to promote its mission and provide sneakers to youth not just in its founding city of Cincinnati, but around the globe.?

“The moment I left Jamaica, I knew that was what I needed to do for a living some way, somehow,” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “Telling the stories of individuals who are doing the work and who are changing lives, whether that be with products, or with services or with nonprofit organizations, I just knew I wanted to be somewhere in the middle, either strategizing or doing creative work.”?

Rikki Lee Joiner said this appetite for success didn’t wane once she got to Ohio State, and if anything, she had even more reasons to prove herself.?

“My biggest goal was just to take up space because, as a young Black girl on a predominantly white institution’s campus, it definitely feels like you’re a really, really small goldfish in a really big pond,” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “Trying to find a sense of identity and purpose while on this really large campus was of utmost importance for me, as well as finding community.”?

Rikki Lee Joiner said she credits organizations such as the Black Advertising Strategic Communications Association, Black Student Association, Society of Black Leaders and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People as integral parts in finding the community she sought.

“After I engrossed myself in [all] of those communities, I feel like I definitely found my people,” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “That was the catapult to so many different things that I started to do while I was there.”

Jasmine McMoore, former friend and classmate of Rikki Lee Joiner, said seeing the amount of success Rikki Lee Joiner achieved during their years at Ohio State was truly an inspiration.?

“Just going to school with her, honestly, was motivating,” McMoore, also a May 2024 graduate, said. “She’s a student doing this, but it’s also motivating to see a woman, a Black woman at that, be so confident herself and be so confident in what she brings to the table.”?

Rikki Lee Joiner also said it was her experience as an intern working for a multitude of brands — including The Beauty Boost, G&S Business Communications, SYLVAIN, SoLo Funds, Curology, Gyro, BLVD and Cincinnati Cares — that ultimately led her to create The Rikki Lee Agency in July 2019.

“In literally 24 hours, I came up with my name, I made a website and I announced that I had a business,” Rikki Lee Joiner said.?

According to Rikki Lee Joiner’s website, the agency now offers clients one-on-one coaching sessions and resources that help content creators design aesthetic workspaces and “binge-worthy” content.?

Though Rikki Lee Joiner has enjoyed great success, she said she has also experienced some tough moments.

“With anything, there’s going to be bumps in the roads, there’s going to be trials and tribulations, and they’re just a test,” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “They’re honestly there to test your faith and to test if you’re gritty enough. I think the greatest thing that I have gained throughout the process of being an entrepreneur is learning how to balance the grit and the grace while being willing to push forward.”

Rikki Lee Joiner said her faith helps her through the most trying times.?

“I always turn to what I cannot see as an explanation for what is happening. I never think, ‘Why is this happening to me?’ I always think, ‘Why is this happening for me?’” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “For the past five months, since graduating, because of all the experiences that I’ve had, I was frustrated with God, as I thought I should have been a lot further than where I was, but it turned out I was right where I was supposed to be.”?

Lona Joiner said her daughter’s faith was present throughout her upbringing.

“Faith was a huge factor in our home,” Lona Joiner said. “We attended church and we were very active in ministry.”

Her trust in God isn’t the only thing that Rikki Lee Joiner inherited from her mother, as she said her mother’s fearlessness in exploring different work industries inspired her.?

“I would definitely say my mom has been my inspiration my entire life,” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “Growing up, I got to see that it is okay to change your mind, it’s okay to pivot, it’s okay to grow, it’s okay to challenge yourself to never have to settle. She’s continuously evolved and reinvented the wheel for herself. Watching her do what she did, I feel like, enabled me to have the confidence to do what I’m doing.”?

After many notable experiences at such a young age, Rikki Lee Joiner said she hopes current students remember to not be overwhelmed about the future.?

“Give yourself grace and do not get caught up looking forward to the future because you don’t know what the future holds,” Rikki Lee Joiner said. “You don’t have to grow the empire overnight, and I think I had that impression when I first started my business. I wanted to be global and a sensation, and it’s just like, ‘Girl relax, you’re 19. You don’t have to build the empire overnight, you just have to get 1% better every day.’”

Although Rikki Lee Joiner said her agency is currently taking a backseat to her corporate job, she has high hopes for the continued success of her brand.?

“I have a nine-to-five now that keeps me sharp, that allows me to work in teams and grow leadership skills, grow training skills, grow so many different things that are going to be absolutely imperative to me being a wonderful CEO in my own company,” Rikki Lee Joiner said.

McMoore said having a role model like Rikki Lee Joiner, a woman of color who has achieved significant success in the marketing industry at a young age, is crucial for inspiring young Black girls.?

“I know sometimes it can be a little cliche, but to know someone that looks like me is now living out all the work that she has done is amazing and it’s a beautiful thing,” McMoore said.?

For more information about Rikki Lee Joiner, including The Rikki Lee Agency, visit her website.