Founder Interviews: Kristen Rocco, Love Notery

Startup Atlanta sits down to interview Kristen Rocco, Founder of Love Notery.

The wedding, it’s expected. Months and perhaps years have been put into planning this special day, but what about the back story? How did these two souls among billions meet? And what more, how did they fall in love? It’s a simple premise that can easily lose itself in the pomp and circumstance of a wedding ceremony.

Yet it is this element of a couple’s love story — its foundation — where Love Notery finds its niche.

Launched in August 2015 by Kristen Rocco, Love Notery captures the intangible by creating a written record of a couple’s love story and framing it.

Kristen was inspired to start Love Notery after seeing a newspaper article that documented the love story of her grandparents. She had shared the idea for her startup company with her mother, who subsequently shared the newspaper clipping with her.

Through Love Notery, Kristen hopes to create personalized mementos to preserve throughout generations, just as her grandparents’ love story was through the newspaper clipping.

What need does Love Notery fill?

Love Notery provides a meaningful and intimate gift in a marketplace where gifts lack the human touch that a person instinctively connects to.

A startup that speaks to the human need to connect— we like it.

Listen to the full interview below to see how Kristen Rocco and Love Notery help turn love stories into love legacies.

Interview Recap:

Tell us more about yourself and your business.

My name is Kristen Rocco and my company is Love Notery — a professional love story telling company that helps capture the beauty of couples’ love stories.

The reason I founded my company was that I realized there was a gap in the marketplace, specifically in the wedding and love marketplace, where people were capturing wedding stories and taking wedding photos but nobody was really focusing on the love story — which is what brings these couples together in the first place.

How did you know that “now” was the right time to start your business?

I was going through a transition in my life where my husband and I were living in New York but getting ready to move back to Atlanta. I started working on the idea behind the scenes there, and when we moved it just felt like the right time.

The perfectionist part of you wants to wait until you’re really, really ready, but I don’t feel like you’re ever going to be 100% ready. At some point you just have to do it and I thought, “What better time than now when I’m already quitting my job and moving to a different place!”

Entrepreneurship is a journey filled with challenges and obstacles, could you give us a specific example of a roadblock that you faced and how you overcame it?

“You don’t know what you don’t know.”

When I first started out, I had an idea that I wanted to write the story but I also wanted to produce it into a product, and I had no idea on how to get to the product. I had to do a lot of research to find that out.

One of the biggest challenges that I’m still overcoming is knowing exactly who my ideal client is and focusing in on their needs, wants, and desires… but I think I’m doing a good job of getting closer to that.

In addition to Startup Atlanta, what other resources do you recommend that people who are starting up in Atlanta take advantage of?

I’m a big believer in continuous education. I love General Assembly, and I’ve taken some classes in New York and here in Atlanta.

Something I’m involved in is called the Ellevate Network which is a professional networking group for women, and I just listen to a ton of podcasts like Amy Porterfield, Tim Ferris, and EOFire.

As far as mentors, I developed a relationship with Katharine Mobley over Twitter when I was living back in New York, and then we met in real life when I moved to Atlanta. Katharine is the Founder of WeCareCard and is also an Executive Council Member of the Ellevate Network and she has been super helpful in giving me ideas on bringing Love Notery more into the world.

What advice would you give to someone who is just starting up in the city of Atlanta?

Have patience.

Have your mind set on the long game rather than the short game.

A lot of people are just so hopeful that it’s going to be an instant success but in reality it’s just about patience.

Give the Ultimate Gift of Love

At less than one year old, Love Notery is young, even for a startup. Yet in its ten months of existence, it has learned to walk and take on challenges head-on.

Add to that its Founder’s desire to seek out ways to continuously learn and educate herself whether through networking groups such as the Ellevate Network or mastery of new skills through General Assembly courses, and it becomes clear that this young startup is on the right track.

Startup Atlanta looks forward to seeing what year two holds for Love Notery.

Are you an Atlanta-based entrepreneur interested in being featured on our next “Founder Interviews” series?

Drop us a line and let us know!

With ❤ for ATL Startups,

Startup Atlanta, Content Committee Lead