When it comes to building creative enterprises, Katie Hunt ’02 is a force of nature. From her first job as the third employee of the designer eyewear company Warby Parker—a company co-founded by her brother and former RCDS student Andrew—to her current gigs as co-founder of the revolutionary retailer Showfields and The Fund, an innovative early-stage venture fund supporting New York City entrepreneurs, Hunt has repeatedly demonstrated the transformative power of bringing outside-the-box thinking to business.

She confesses to being as surprised as anyone at her journey. “When I imagined my career, I never thought I was going to sit at a desk, and yet here I am,” says the literary and theater arts major with a wry chuckle.

Beginning her career in customer service at Warby Parker proved providential, she continues. “I discovered that I was madly in love with the creative world of start-ups. When you’re working within a new paradigm, there are no answers, only people who can come up with great solutions. When I started, I thought I would be given a to-do list that I would complete and then be told ‘great job.’ But I quickly realized that in a fast-growing company that’s breaking new ground, I had to be a person who asks questions and solves problems.” Hunt says her three years at the company were like business school. “I learned that everything was worth trying as long as you could justify why you were trying it,” she says. “The group at Warby Parker showed me you can make anything possible.”

Today Hunt is helping others discover what’s possible through her work with Showfields, an innovative retail store that’s uniting e-commerce and technology to revolutionize the physical retail experience. Currently operating in New York City, Hunt says the business will be opening in multiple new locations this year.

The Fund is growing, too, expanding to Los Angeles and London. “For start-ups, the two big challenges are access to knowledge and access to funding, and The Fund allows us to provide entrepreneurs with both,” she explains. “I love helping start-ups. For me, it feels like solving a wonderful problem—based on the resources you have, how do you get to the next level?”

Queried as to a personal motto, Hunt says hers is a little twist on Rye Country Day’s Not for self, but for Service. “It’s ‘Not for self, but for community.’ I feel like I can best serve my community by building systems in which people can be successful. My goal is to create a stage on which my communities can thrive, and it’s a privilege.”

Hunt credits RCDS with preparing her to contribute in this way. “I reflect on what I learned there on a daily basis—I had incredible teachers and was part of a generous community that helped me grow,” she enthuses. Among them was stagecraft instructor Dulcie Arnold, one of Hunt’s first teachers at Rye Country Day and a recent visitor to Showfields. “To give a tour to someone I wanted to make proud was so meaningful,” says Hunt. “I continue to feel the support of the RCDS community and I’m so grateful.”