June 18, 2020
As Albert Einstein said, “Creativity is contagious, pass it on” which is exactly what mother and daughter duo Kelly and CJ Gorham are doing.
Kelly and CJ share more than their middle name. Artistry and creativity is in their blood, literally, as Kelly’s mom was an artist. During homeschooling breaks in March, CJ wanted to make stickers for her friends and family as an arts and crafts project. Kelly was able to relieve some stress drawing as well, and was happy to pick-up the hobby again since she’d stopped drawing when her mother passed. Since the passion was reignited for Kelly, she and CJ kept producing designs and they started to think, we should share these with more than our family and friends and spread the love; and that's how KC Jean LLC happened.
“I was really excited to get started and I didn’t know that the stickers would get to be on the news and the radio,” said CJ. “It’s been really cool to have people be able to know about our company.” Kelly worked with her sisters to get the business underway. The idea for stickers was partly inspired by the ski slopes. Kelly and CJ noticed the stickers adhered to helmets and water bottles and were hopeful they’d soon see their creations on the slopes. CJ designed the United States and lobster stickers, adorned with the crusher claw to “crush COVID” and Kelly designed the State of Maine and Love stickers, which you’ll notice pay homage to the trails at Shawnee Peak.
They ordered 50,000 stickers and stored them in their garage. Kelly and CJ travelled out to realtors, police departments, high schools and restaurants and gave their stickers out in hopes of more exposure. Not soon after their visits, business took off, and the mother and daughter team just recently hit the halfway mark to their sales goal! CJ and Kelly are hopeful by September they’ll be able to reach their other goal which is to give back to the community.
The bond between Kelly and CJ has grown since starting their business. They have enjoyed getting creative together, while learning about operations and running a company. “It’s brought us a lot closer,” CJ said, “and it’s going to be really cool to see our stickers on helmets and water bottles at the mountain this year. I think it’ll be really cool to see people wearing them!”
If you’d like to learn more about Kelly and CJ’s company, please click here: http://www.kcjeancreations.com/
