Editor’s Note: They are leaders. They are inspirational. They are mentors. They are visionaries. They are, quite frankly, badasses. They are our 2022 REEL WOMEN. During Women’s History Month, you will be able to meet these incredible personalities in Advertising, Entertainment, Media and Production. Get ready, because women like Kit Winter are making “Herstory.
Kit Winter brings a holistic understanding of the needs of brands and artists in the creative music process to provide creative musical solutions for branded content to her role as Executive Producer at Squeak E. Clean Studios.
With over 20 years of experience in the advertising industry across the agency and post-production sides, Winter has returned to her roots in music after previously serving as Executive Producer at Human Music. Kit is known for her strong leadership background and deep understanding of the creative process making her an asset to the team.
Coming from a family with an advertising background, Kit was inspired early on to pursue the industry. Kit studied marketing at the University of Richmond and landed her first gig at BBDO New York where she worked as an Account Supervisor and Manager for top brands including Gillette, Oral-B and Lowe’s. After five years, she stepped into a VP, Account Director role at Arnold New York, managing the agency’s Hershey’s account.
Combining a lifetime passion for music with nearly a decade of experience in advertising, Kit made the move to the music side of the industry as Executive Producer at Human, where she oversaw the planning, development and execution of music in advertising for operations.
Soon she transitioned back to the agency side at Hogarth Worldwide, serving as the Director of Client Services and leading the team of people responsible for managing global productions across key clients such as Nestle, Volvo, Bayer, Galderma, Bank of America, Rolex and Johnson & Johnson.
Let’s meet Kit.
What’s your origin story?
I grew up in Knoxville, TN and studied marketing at the University of Richmond.
How did you get into advertising?
My father worked in advertising, so it was definitely something I grew up around. I landed my first gig in the industry at BBDO New York, where I worked as an Account Supervisor for a number of clients including Gillette, Oral-B and Lowe’s. After five years, I took a role as a VP, Account Director at Arnold New York where I was managing the agency’s Hershey’s account.
I always had a passion for music and I was interested in getting a look at the other side of the industry, so I made the move to the music side as Executive Producer at Human Music, where I oversaw the planning, development and execution of music in advertising across both the New York and Los Angeles offices.
After three years, I went back to the agency side to Hogarth Worldwide as the Director of Client Services, where I led a team of people responsible for managing global productions across key clients like Nestle, Volvo, Bayer, Galderma, Bank of America, Rolex and Johnson & Johnson
Who were your mentors?
My parents have both been major mentors for me. My dad came from the marketing, production and advertising world, so he has been so helpful as I’ve navigated my career in advertising. My mom owns her own chain of used books and vinyl record stores, so she has always been a major role model as an entrepreneur. I’ve always looked to them for guidance and advice.
REELated: See who else is on the Reel Women List
While there will be others, what do you consider your biggest achievement to date?
For me, I’m most proud of the times when I have been able to bring up the people on my team and elevate them, give them a voice, and impact their careers.
I had an experience while working at an agency where I was really able to advocate for a female employee on my team who was making significantly less than she should have been making. When it came time for yearly raises, I put forward a very large one for her, which was questioned by our CFO on how he was supposed to justify something this large to the holding company, as it was way out of the normal parameter.
I told them point-blank “tell them that a minority female is making significantly less than her white male counterpart (and doing a better job)”. And guess what, the raise got approved exactly as I submitted it. It was a major realization for me that by being in a management position, I had the power to advocate for my team when they weren’t able to advocate for themselves and to use my position and voice to really impact someone’s, frankly, life.
Those experiences stand out to me much more than any of the specific campaigns or projects that I’ve worked on.
What drives you to create?
When there is just this natural chemistry with a team (internal or clients) and when you have the same energy and vibe, that is when creativity comes to life for me. That process and the relationships that form are so satisfying to me. I really enjoy being able to put together all the right moving parts to create that kind of creative synergy.
What shows are doing the best job of portraying strong women on TV?
Looking beyond TV, I think that the musical Six, that’s currently playing on Broadway and the West End, is an amazing example of strong women portrayed in entertainment. The musical shows six powerhouse women, in a way that is funny and shows their flaws while still showing how badass they all are.
Coffee, Lunch or Happy Hour. Name a famous woman you would like to attend each function with.
Coffee – Amanda Gorman
Lunch – Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Happy Hour – Princess Diana
What is the biggest challenge to women in your industry?
Balancing being a mom/parent with work is definitely the biggest (but not new!) challenge. You are expected to work like you don’t have kids, and parent like you don’t work and finding any sort of semblance of balance there feels impossible most of the time. I feel hyper-aware of the example I’m setting for women just starting out in the industry and am proud to be the generation that is normalizing the non-sugar-coated realities of being a working mom.
And shout out to the dads that are doing this too. Working moms won’t be fully supported in the workplace until all kinds of parents have the same level of flexibility and understanding that mom’s tend to receive more (but typically not enough) of.
If being a woman is your superpower, what is your kryptonite?
The fact that women have been branded superheroes for doing the ridiculous amount of roles that we take on, rather than being given the support that we need.
Women taking on all of the “expected” home and child responsibilities on top of excelling in their careers is something that has been marketed to us as being of “superhero” capacity, but we need to reframe that and instead of being congratulated for being a superhero, getting the support all parents need to better manage the balancing act.
We shouldn’t normalize that it takes a superhero to have both kids and a career.
When you’re not producing, what do you do in your off time?
As a mom, I really have no off time. But when I do make the time for myself, right now it’s getting back to hear live music. It was soul-crushing to not experience my industry in person over the past two years.
Predict your future! Where are you in 5 years?
I’m really happy with where I am right now, so hopefully doing the same thing. The past two years have certainly given us all clarity and perspective, so really being alive and healthy would be just fine.
