We had the good fortune of connecting with Kristin Kulpa and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kristin, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
My whole life I have been creative, it is actually my favorite quality about myself. I love looking at things in a different light, thinking outside of the box, finding ways to approach things that others may not. It keeps life interesting and exciting. Without creativity and artistic mindsets- life would be dull. When pickling things, there are so many different ways you can do it, or different ingredients you can use. That is why I call myself The Crafty Pickler.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My career has always been in sales of some sort. I love it because I love people. To me, sales is thrilling. It is a unique road from the time you meet someone at a random networking event to gaining their trust. earning the business and then working together and passing referrals back and forth. I always say, “people do business with people they trust”, and I will always stand by that, The past few years I have been working in the craft beer industry which is partly why I named my business The Crafty Pickler. The beer industry is exciting and challenging at times. Like most industries, there are so many different personalities and being able to work along side those personalities and gain trust is what I love to figure out. A good lesson I have learned along the way is to be honest, no grey area when communicating with a customer. People don’t want the runaround when there are issues. It might be awkward but in the end it has always been appreciated. That is what I want the world to know about me- I will always be upfront, honest and someone who will always be supportive to others.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
What a fun question! I grew up in the east valley so my life and what makes me happy is out here. I would tell my friend not to forget your cowboy boots! I love country, dairy farms and wide open spaces. We would have to visit one of my neighborhood bars for drinks to kick off the trip. Divided Vine in Gilbert is a place you can walk into and it is family. They know your name, what you like to drink and it is a great atmosphere. I also love Queen Creek Olive Mill. It is a great spot with awesome outdoor seating and a fun market place where you can sample and purchase locally made olive oils. Across the street is Schnepf Farm. This is a fun experience because it is a working farm where you can pick your own produce, there are farm animals and petting zoo which is great for kids. They have cool events and live music throughout the year as well! Then we would have to go to the rodeo or a country concert because there is never a dull moment at those events in my opinion! All of these places mixed in with visiting local breweries, downtown Gilbert and hanging by the pool would be time well spent.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people who have been my support system in this journey but one person sticks out because he has had my back the entire time and that is my husband, Adam. He is the numbers guy when I get overwhelmed, the honest opinion when the recipe isn’t quite right or I look weird in a picture for social media posts. He supports my wild ideas and lets me be the creative person I am without straying too far off the path for the business.

Website: www.thecraftypickler.com
Instagram: @thecraftypickler
Facebook: The Crafty Pickler