Mona Patel helps small businesses sharpen brands through strategy and storytelling

Mona Patel, founder and CEO of Thrive & Elevate in Roswell, Georgia, is building brands for small businesses and entrepreneurs through marketing strategy, storytelling and audience connection. She also founded South Asian Working Moms to support working mothers through community, professional growth and shared experience.

Why it matters: - Small businesses and solo entrepreneurs often struggle to explain what they do in a clear, memorable way. - Mona Patel’s work centers on helping them build stronger brands that can support visibility, trust and long-term growth. - Her community work also extends the impact beyond business, especially for South Asian working mothers.

What happened: - Mona Patel is the founder and CEO of Thrive & Elevate, a marketing and brand strategy studio based in Roswell, Georgia. - Thrive & Elevate focuses on strategy, storytelling and meaningful connections for small businesses and entrepreneurs. - Patel was featured by Influential Women for her leadership in marketing and her advocacy for women and working mothers. - More information is available in Mona Patel’s profile.

The details: - Patel brings more than 20 years of experience in marketing, digital platforms and customer engagement. - Her specialties include brand strategy and positioning, brand storytelling and messaging, and marketing strategy and growth planning. - Before launching Thrive & Elevate, Patel spent nearly four years at Marriott International as Director of Digital Platforms & Strategy for Gaylord Hotels. - At Marriott, she led digital initiatives and strategic marketing efforts. - Prior to Marriott, Patel worked at InterContinental Hotels Group in loyalty products, partnerships, digital marketing and product management. - Earlier in her career, she held roles at AT&T spanning finance, sales operations, analytics and online marketing. - Patel holds an MBA from the Stetson School of Business and Economics at Mercer University. - Patel is certified as a Six Sigma Green Belt. - Patel speaks English and Gujarati. - Outside of work, Patel enjoys traveling, dancing, fitness and time with her family.

Between the lines: - Patel’s background combines enterprise-level marketing experience with an emphasis on clear, personalized brand messaging. - Her message to professionals is that clarity matters as much as capability. - She argues that many leaders assume their audience already understands their value, when that message often is not obvious from the outside. - Patel also frames perfectionism as a barrier to progress, especially for young women entering marketing and branding. - Her own family history shaped that outlook. She grew up watching her parents build a fragrance business and learned perseverance, adaptability and problem-solving. - Her father has been one of her key mentors, and she relies on a personal board of directors made up of six to eight trusted advisors.

What’s next: - Patel says she will keep focusing on helping entrepreneurs clarify who they are, what they stand for and how they communicate their value. - She is also continuing to build South Asian Working Moms, which supports South Asian working mothers through connection, cultural engagement and professional growth. - Patel says her broader goal is to help more women entrepreneurs and community members grow personally and professionally.

The bottom line: - Mona Patel is pairing senior marketing experience with community leadership to help people tell stronger stories, build trust and create opportunity.