Here at the Home Office, we wake up every day so amazed at the incredible women we’re surrounded by, both around the world with our cabi Stylists and in our office. To help you get to know the smart, gracious, and generous women who make up our Home Office Team, we’ve created our “Meet the Team” series. First up? Our Chief Marketing Officer, Katie Malone! Not only is Katie a fearless, polished, inspiring executive, she’s also an incredible mentor and friend. As you get to know her better, we guarantee you’ll love her even more!

Juniper: Katie, we thought it would be fun for our cabi fans to get to know some of the team here at cabi. So, tell us a little bit about what you do.
Katie: My name is Katie Malone, and I am the Chief Marketing Officer. And I’ve been with cabi for almost six years now. I can’t even believe it. Time flies when you’re having fun, and I oversee all things marketing, events, and leadership. And so that includes things like all creative branding, digital marketing, PR, video, and all the fabulous events that we do.

Juniper:  You have two beautiful daughters, right?
Katie: Yes, my husband, Mike, and I have a four-year-old and an almost one-year-old. The four-year-old’s name is Addison, and my one-year-old is McKinley, but we call her Quinny. Because when she was in my tummy, Addie could not pronounce McKinley, and it came out Quinny and it just sort of stuck, so we’re using Quinny. I’m not even sure she knows that her real name is McKinley, so Quinny is her name. And they are just precious, spicy, and sassy little girls full of personality and attitude, and we love them so much.

Juniper: What’s your favorite Fall 2018 piece? That’s an easy one, right?
Katie:  Well, I have two actually, one of which I’m wearing, the Thrive Top. Because I never thought I could pull off yellow, but I actually really like yellow on me right now. And then I love the Back in Black Jacket because of the gold detailing and the zipper, and it kind of has this faux leather look to it. It just kind of has an attitude to it that I like. So, those are my two favorite pieces.

Juniper: What ice cream flavor do you always order?
Katie: My favorite ice cream is Talenti chocolate peanut butter cup. When I was pregnant, I could easily consume a pint of that by myself.

Juniper: Would you rather lay out on the beach or cozy up to the fire?
Katie: Beach. 100%.

Juniper: Would you rather be able to teleport or be able to read minds?
Katie: Oh, I think I would rather be able to teleport. I don’t know if I would want to read people’s minds. I often wonder what’s going on, but I feel like you would lose a lot of things in life if you just knew what everyone was thinking.

Juniper: What’s your go-to karaoke song? I know you have one.
Katie: B-52’s “Love Shack.” I had a Karaoke Party for my 10-year-old birthday party and my parents set up a stage in my house with spotlights and strobe lights. And all of my ten-year-old girlfriends had to come with a karaoke song in full costume to perform it, and my parents videotaped every performance. And my song was B-52’s “Love Shack.”

Juniper: What movie makes you laugh or cry every time you watch it?
Katie: Oh, well, my favorite move in the whole world is Shawshank Redemption. But I don’t know if it does either of those things. It’s just a fabulous movie. The one movie that really makes me laugh is Bridesmaids.

Juniper: But it’s the movie that you watch every time it’s on maybe?
Katie: Yes. I’ll tell you the movie that makes me laugh is Bridesmaids. Did I say that right?

Juniper: What’s your must-have beauty product?
Katie: My latest is EltaMD sunscreen. Foundation sunscreen, which I wear underneath all of my makeup because my father recently was diagnosed with melanoma on his face. And I never used to be a sunscreen wearer on my face until recently. And now I put that on every day in the morning. It’s SPF 46.

Juniper: What’s your favorite workout?
Katie: I go to a gym that’s sort of that group fitness interval training. It’s a lot of weight lifting and body resistance exercises, with a little bit of cardio as well.

Juniper: If you could travel anywhere right now, you could teleport there, where would it be and why?
Katie: So, first on my bucket list is to go to Africa with my husband. I’ve been once before. I went there during my MBA program for a class, and I got to do a little bit of touring at the end, but I didn’t get to do a safari. And I’ve always said that I want to go back with him and do a safari. So, that’s where I would go next.

Juniper: What’s one thing you can’t live without?
Katie: Softlips Chapstick—and I have at least 12 of them somewhere in all of my belongings at all times.

Juniper: What one is your favorite decades? I guess I can guess from your favorite karaoke song. But what’s your favorite decade, and what’s the favorite trend from that decade?
Katie: My favorite decade would be the ’80s, and there’s certainly a lot of style elements from the ’80s I probably wouldn’t embrace today. But one thing I’m totally embracing are high waisted jeans and leggings. Not leggings with neon colors, but I would probably live in a legging every day if I could.

Juniper: What was your first job?
Katie: I worked at Abercrombie & Fitch. I’m not sure I will ever be able to get the smell of their cologne and perfume that permeates their store out of my nose.

Juniper: If this wasn’t your job, what would you be doing?
Katie: Oh, geez, that’s a tough one. I always of being a broadcaster. I wanted to be Katie Couric or Kelly Ripa one day. So much so that I went to New York for my 16th birthday, stood outside the Today Show and waited to meet Katie Couric with a sign that said, “Katie, I want to be you one day. And my name is even Katie.” And I got a picture with her. And then I always wanted to be on Live with Kelly and Regis.   Sometimes they bring guest hosts on their show,  so when I was younger, I went and auditioned to be a guest host. I did not make it, sadly.

Juniper: What’s the best advice that you’ve ever had or ever been given?
Katie: My old boss used to say as you begin to lead others…it’s just as important to manage down as it is to manage up. So, to constantly be managing those that are working for you and to constantly be managing expectations of those you work for. So, I’ve always taken that very seriously, and that’s helped me a lot.

Juniper: What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received?
Katie: In the past four years the best compliment I’ve received is that I’m a good mom. Because parenting is hard. So, to be told that I’m a good mother is a wonderful compliment.

Juniper: How would your friends describe you?
Katie: They would say I’m responsible and organized. Of my friends, I am definitely the responsible one of the group. Before I had kids and was married and we used to travel together, I was the one that made the itineraries. Most of our group activities involved organized PowerPoints describing what we were going to do. I was the one that would carry the map and get us from point A to point B. So, aside from loving me, they would definitely say that I am organized and responsible. And they call me the mom of the group.

Juniper: What’s a quote that inspires you? I know we’ve seen some inspirational quotes around your office.
Katie: This is a quote that I love and I actually have it printed out on my desk. And it’s by Christopher Reeve. “A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” I love this because I recently lost my mom to cancer, and she battled cancer for 17 years. And in my mind, she was always a hero that overcame and persevered through many, many obstacles. And that’s what gave her a 17-year runway after being diagnosed.

Juniper: What are you reading now, or what was the last book you read?
Katie: So, right now, I’m reading kind of a fun beach read book, because we just went on vacation. So, I’m reading The President is Missing by James Patterson. So, it’s kind of a thriller. And the last book I read was Boundary for Leaders by Henry Cloud…Dr. Henry Cloud.

Juniper: Well, that kind of leads me into my next question, which is what’s one book that all women entrepreneurs should read do you think?
Katie:I would suggest Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek. A great book for female entrepreneurs who need to learn how to lead and inspire others a team.

Juniper: If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be?
Katie: I would want to have dinner with Sheryl Sandberg.  She spoke at my MBA graduation, and I found her fascinating. And this was before she even became as famous as she is today. But I feel like you could talk about so many things with her. First of all, she’s had a loss in her life, which I can relate to having just lost my mom. And I recently just read her book called Option B. Secondly, I’m fascinated by the cultural politics of Facebook, so we could talk a lot about that. She’s a female in business, so we could talk about that. She’s a mom who works full time, so we could talk about that. So, I think we could have a fascinating conversation. So, my answer would be Sheryl Sandberg.

Juniper: What’s a cherished memory you have?
Katie: Well, in light of what I just talked about with my mom, one of my favorite memories and one of my last memories I had with her was my trip to Nashville with her.  She always wanted to go to Nashville as she was an avid fan of the show. For her birthday, I surprised her with a trip. I was going there for cabi for work, and so she joined me. After my work obligations, we were able to get tickets to the Bluebird café which was one of things on her bucket list.  I will forever remember that weekend.

Juniper: What advice would you give your younger self?
Katie: Being that I am known for responsibility and organization, I would probably go back and tell my younger self to loosen up a little bit. Sometimes I think I could have had a little more fun. I was so worried about getting straight A’s and doing everything right and perfectly that I was a little uptight a times.

Juniper: Let’s see. What is the greatest experience you’ve ever had or a great experience?
Katie: Probably giving birth to my two daughters. It’s such a surreal experience. I would say the second time was a little bit better than the first time because you know what to expect. But the first time is so amazing for so many reasons. It’s this moment in which you’re bringing this human that you’ve nurtured inside of you for 40 weeks out into the world. And then all of a sudden, you’re a mom, and you’re taking care of someone else.

Juniper: So, what’s something that most people don’t know about you?
Katie:Well, I played the piano growing up for about 15 years. I was quite good at it. I wish I could play it more, but I don’t have a piano in my home anymore. So, yeah, I’ve got a little bit of musical talent. I cannot sing, but I can play the piano.

Juniper: I think this is my final question. So, if your life was a movie, what would the title be?
Katie: Well, our favorite movie in our house right now is The Greatest Showman. And so I would say that the title of my life could be The Greatest Show because my life is sometimes a little bit like a circus act. Getting out of the house in the morning as a working mom, with a husband that works full time as well, is a little bit like a circus act. There is often multiple negotiations around brushing our teeth, it’s always a challenge getting kids dressed, we are scrambling to pack lunches, and it’s a toss up as to whether or not they’re going to let us comb their hair. And then we get into the car, there’s screaming on the way to school. And then I walk into the office, and its nine hours of meetings, work, and phone calls. And then back to the circus act at home. But it’s beautiful, chaotic, and crazy. There’s so many things I love about it. So, I would call my life movie The Greatest Show.

Juniper: All right, well, you probably are busy!  So, we’re going to let you go. Thanks for sharing your time with us.
Katie: Well, thanks for asking me. Bye.

What would you ask Katie (or another member of our Home Office Team) if you had a chance to sit down one-on-one? No seriously, tell us! Leave your questions in the comments below and we may to include it in a future part of our series. Stay tuned for part two coming soon!