Meet Kasie Maple | Kasie Said, Serial Entrepreneur / MSW Student

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

Hi Kasie, what’s the most important lesson your business/career has taught you?
One of the most important lessons my business has taught me is simply one of my favorite scriptures James 2:17 “Faith without works is dead” meaning I had to have faith my business choices would work. You have to understand that I have been putting in work to get to where I am today since the age of 18 years old. I looked up to a popular influencer younger than me who goes by Jayda Wayda. I remember Jayda was in high school grinding and started an empire. I said man if Jayda can do it and she’s younger than me why can’t I?! I was inspired by her so I started looking into acquiring hair bundles to what I call “flip or hustle” with if you will. I am from a small town of Shreveport, Louisiana so I didn’t know anyone publicly doing that in my area back in 2006. So I begin to put in research and came across wholesale vendors looking for hair bundles. In the process I came across everything I loved, women accessories! I knew some women in Atlanta was pushing hair bundles heavy like “Belle of Bree” and some others that were at the top of their game. I got intimidated and shied away from selling hair. It wasn’t until 2017 after working for several years in various management and team lead positions I realized why not put that same exact energy into my own business. If McDonald’s worried about Burger King and vice versa we wouldn’t have variety. I said to myself it’s time in fact I’m overdue! So I tapped into my passion of accessories and formed my business Jovahni B from there! The rest was history.

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.
If I could sum up what I do it’s honestly hard to say because I do it all. I first would say I have an online boutique called Jovahni B. The name Jovahni B was to honor my late dad John Kinchen. My middle name is Jovahn so I added the I on the end to make it ritzy. The B stands for boutique. I would describe it as a mini corporation because you can buy a host of items on my website JovahniB.com. I have since converted Jovahni B into Jovahni B Beautique which is a beauty bar / boutique located in Arlington, TX. What people don’t know is I don’t have a team for anything I do. I do all my own websites, logos, come up with my own ideas whether it’s inspired or not. I have a creative mind given by God. I also started my own podcast, Hers the podcast. The meaning behind it is I developed it with the idea of having a male co-host who unfortunately left the show but I would joke with him and say nobody coming to see you they only coming to see me. I invited him to my podcast because we had comedic chemistry together. So when people would ask him what inspired him on the show he would say it’s HERS in a respectful manner. I have since had to go on continuing the show solo but I can see it one day if the good Lord willing becoming its own TV talk show. I am also a mentor for adults and children. I do online mentorship via Zoom for little to nothing to inspire others if I can do it you can too! We don’t have to be product of our environments and we can break generational curses. I was the middle child of my mother and first born of my father and pushed myself to graduate college with 2 children out of wedlock and as a new wife to Ashten. I wanted to show my children and inspire them that it’s never too late to finish what you start. I finished school in 2018 with my degree from the prestigious HBCU,Wiley College concentrating in management. It wasn’t until I had my now 3 year old son Dynver I almost lost my life to pre-eclampsia a medical condition that cause fluid and swelling to the brain and body. The doctor had to choose to save both our lives. We are still here today by the grace of God. However I suffer from hypertension and anxiety because of it. I realized through seeking therapy from the trauma of that and secrets of my childhood past that I fell in love with the benefits of therapy! I was also baptized at 11 years old so I knew God since I was a little girl. My mom being a single mom use to take me to my late Aunt Shirley house and my Uncle Reverend Sam who would babysit me and my big brother Shu after school. They took me to church faithfully looked like 8 days a week when it’s only 7! lol. I knew then God had a plan for me. God then came back to me about 2 years ago and I accepted the call. I knew then I would work for the Lord first before I could be the ultimate business woman. As I sought to find myself in Bible college (too) as well as therapy from the medical conditions from my pregnancy I realized God was molding me to become a Christian therapist as well as family therapist. I can’t lie the battle had just begun because so many people thought I was mentally crazy because God showed me I had been honored with 12 spiritual gifts. In therapy it can be mis-identified as mental illness when you KNOW GOD. Not everyone knows God intimately like that. It is very hard as a woman to become a female pastor because I grew up Baptist and it was not talked about / condemned. However God stayed and still is pressing on me to work for him. I had my private revelation with God that I would then become a Christian therapist so I would be able to touch the lives of many. After all a Prophetess is a counselor and a healer. I now go by the social media name “Kasie Said”. I say Kasie said because people would give me credit for saying stuff God was showing me as visionary. I would say it’s Kasie SAID meaning I said it out my mouth but it was God said, God led, and God fed! The moral of the story is if God wants you to have something it’s no one on this earth that can tell you what you can’t be! Since then I have gone on to do a stage podcast with my comedian friend Triple P and my husband Ashten Maple “The Triple P” show airs on Wednesday nights live streamed on YouTube from his Dallas set. I am naturally funny so I get that from my dad and charismatic. I met Triple P at Arlington Improv simply sharing my entrepreneurial mind in the lobby. I didn’t know Triple P at all. I was going to support a friend of mine who was becoming a rising comedian, Vanity the comedian. I don’t call it circumstance I call it a blessing but I met Triple P and he invited me and my husband to come out to his podcast after the show. I thought we were coming to simply support him as well because that’s the type of people me and my husband are (supportive). But instead he said no you guys are the main guest on the show! I want to interview you guys because I see you Kasie as the boss lady and I love the way your husband support you as the boss man! I was shocked because I thought we would be sitting in a audience but instead we became recurring guest on the show still to this day. I looked at that as another sign from God because I had already been working on my podcast Hers the podcast on Facebook. I then got inspired to bring my own show to the set as well. On my show it was the opposite of Triple P show. Triple P show I’m still grateful for because it’s more of a comedic inspiration show so I have been offered to do comedic stand up which I’m still thinking about doing. However my show Hers the podcast is more of a talk show that I use my gift for gab, inspiring stories, and love/passion to help others either cope with their past or raise money for those in need. I started a non-profit KSM ministries which stood for Kasie said ministries. I had actually registered that to be my own church. I however realized I was not supported as male pastors are so I walked away from it. Going back to what I said earlier when God want you to have something you will have it regardless I turned that to just taking my own money to help those in need. I could not get all but 3 donations from friends and family. But I refused to be discouraged because the entire time I wanted to impact the lives of others I put that on my back and said it would not stop me from still giving. My husband and I went through our own struggles and still face some because he has had 2 car accidents of no fault of his own as a Federal postal carrier. We had times where we did not know where our own help would come from other than giving it over to God and I still gave my last dollars to people in need. I always was like that since I was a little girl because I knew that we all go through things in this life. No one is above a struggle I don’t care if you make a million dollars or zero dollars. I never switched up or lost my faith. Instead I turned to God. God was able to expand my business from a online boutique to a physical Beautique (beauty bar) location in Hurst, TX when I fell ill I had to close my shop back in 2021. I was doing laser lipo, teeth whitening, butt and breast vacuuming and more. I had expanded the shop prior to closing it so I could give friends and family a workspace as well. I had let a lady work with me which also did not work out on top of my husband work accident which all led to making me the best financial decision for my family by closing the shop. I was devastated, hurt, and embarrassed but even then I said okay God what’s next?! I know you didn’t give me this shop to only have me walk away from it. Now today I have a new shop centrally located in Arlington, TX with my own podcast studio in it so I won’t have to rent space for my podcast like I initially planned. I stand today as a fighter, beating all odds. I got inspired by great women like Oprah and on the other spectrum like the ultimate boss lady Kandi Burress. That if these Queens could defy the odds of being told they are done or not good enough to HAVE this and that so could I! What made me any different?! Now don’t get me wrong I’m still a graduate college student to become a clinical licensed social worker which is a “therapist” so I don’t have no where near the money these ladies do. In fact I’m simply hungry for greatness. When you want to be great and GOD told you your GREAT you have no choice but to be GREAT! Although I’m now considered a rising content creator for Tiktok, IG, Facebook, Youtube and considered a rising Boss Lady I am gaining the respect of MANY. I have a story to tell that goes deeper than this one! I plan to write books and share more details later. I just want people to know in closing that it is not how you start but how you finish! I also believe and in fact know God not finish with me yet! That when one door closes you have the same opportunities as “celebrities” as a regular person you just have to put the work in. Faith without works is dead… follow your heart / passions in life and the money will eventually come when you do what you LOVE!

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?
As a resident of the DFW area of Texas I have a host of restaurants I enjoy. Some of my favorite spots would have to be Cake Daddy’s, Eddie V’s, Kitchen & Kocktails by Kevin Kelly, Southern Gourmet Kitchen in Plano, Gloria’s Mexican cuisine in Fort Worth, Cafe Nubia in Dallas, and a host of other restaurants. Being from the South you have to appreciate a good Waffle House as well. I actually love to cook myself it’s one of my love languages being in the kitchen and I cater as well. I am also a lady that loves a good food truck as well. One of my favorite places is a food truck called “Chef Taco.” They serve the best shrimp tacos I have ever had! If I could take someone to places of enjoyment it would be any of our shopping malls we have great malls here. I also enjoy outlet malls like Tanger Outlet I am all about sales! I am a nature girl as well so I have two favorite parks to go to one is Klyde Warren Park located in Dallas and the other is Dream Park located in Fort Worth. I have a Tom-boy side to me too so you can catch me cheering on my favorite football team the Dallas Cowboys, my baseball team the Texas Rangers, and my basketball team Golden State. I also love to dance, one of my favorite places is Lava Cantina in the Colony. I enjoy a good movie in my spare time and one of my favorite movie spots will always be Studio Movie Grill. I enjoy doing comedy as well so I love going to comedy shows at the Arlington Improv. Being from Louisiana I can appreciate a nice daiquiri shop so I have two favorites Who Dat Daiquiri in Arlington and Southern Gourmet Daiquiri Factory in Fort Worth. I also love spending time with my family and close friends it doesn’t matter the location to me as long as we are spending time together.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First I have to give honor to God because without God my talent would not be possible nor my blessings. God is the head of my life. I would also like to shout out my grandmother on my maternal side, Rachel Locke who definitely deserves her flowers. My grandmother is almost 80 years old and still works! My loving husband Ashten Maple because without him I could not do half of what I do without his love and support. I also get my strong work ethic from my parents Sharon Locke and the late John Kinchen. I come from a family of hard workers in general. My mother was a single mom for majority of my adolescence and she never skipped a beat in providing for me. My 3 children are a major part of me and my motivation daily to do my best Daylon (15), Paris (8), and Dynver (3). Another motivation of mine are my siblings whom I love dearly Shu, John Gary, Kourtney, and Keyaira. My siblings are all talented bosses in their own right. I have to also acknowledge my entire family on both sides (maternal/paternal) the Locke’s and Kinchen’s because they all inspire me to be a better business woman they are all GREAT! I can honestly say I came from a bloodline of bosses!!!

Website: https://linktr.ee/JovahniB

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itskasiesaid?igsh=NzBsMGJmYmVubnZv&utm_source=qr

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/oX1WiCdLBYmjqz48/?mibextid=LQQJ4d

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@kasiesaid

Other: Boutique Website: Jovahni B – www.JovahniB.com My TikTok: @KasieSaid My Staffing Company; (AK staffing) https://www.facebook.com/share/7gHSkRSwwuw8CcWK/?mibextid=LQQJ4d