Exploring Life & Business with Jake Bjorseth of Trndsttrs

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jake Bjorseth.  

Hi Jake, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Born and raised in south KC, I’ve always had an itch for entrepreneurship. Lemonade stands, shoveling snow, lawn care – any chance to make a buck, I was all for. 

In high school, I got involved in the Blue Valley CAPS program and went on the win the Kaufman Foundation’s Diana McBride Entrepreneurship Award. A team I led even won the high school division of Global Hack 6 and went on to kickstart our own software company after. 

But the venture that started it all wasn’t a business at all. Instead, it was a Snapchat profile I ran with several friends called “TrndsttrsKC.” We amassed a large following, and soon local businesses reached out for us to promote their brand on our profile. 

This all led to a meeting with Noodles & Company corporate marketing team in the fall of 2017 while I was a freshman at KU in which I was to advise on all things Snapchat. Minutes into the meeting, I realized that Snapchat, or any social media platform for that matter wasn’t the problem. The real problem was a fundamental misunderstanding of Gen Z from corporate brands. 

The next day I formed Trndsttrs Media as a Gen Z ad agency helping brands understand and reach that demographic. Five years later, we’ve worked with dozens of Fortune 500 brands, have offices in Kansas City, San Diego, and Manila (Philippines). 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The most difficult part of the journey was the start. Choosing to leave school behind, drop out, and go all in on my mission. 

So many young people today struggle in their dynamic with their parents and feel it is impossible to truly do what they want. 

It was this struggle and choice to do things my way that made it all worth it. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
Trndsttrs is a Gen Z ad agency helping brands understand and reach Gen Z. 

We are comprised nearly entirely of young Gen Z creatives, social media marketers, and influencers that work together to execute campaigns for the biggest brands in the world. 

This video describes our mission best: https://vimeo.com/496054790 

What separates us from our competition is our inherent understanding of the demographics that brands want to reach. 

Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
While most would describe me as a risk-taker, those that truly know me would know me as the clear opposite. 

I think about risk in the context of when I am old, worn out, etc… “What decision will I regret making least?” 

I believe this is the case for others too. In the context of your entire life, we rarely truly regret the things we do. We always regret the things we didn’t do. 

In today’s world, there is more security in the unknown than the known. The riskier path was viewed by societal standard is often anything but. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.trndsttrs.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trndsttrs-media