Unemployable: How Katie Lee Scaled From St. Louis to Target Shelves Nationwide

Katie Lee is the owner of Katie's Pizza & Pasta — a St. Louis food empire spanning four restaurants, a frozen pizza manufacturing facility, and an e-commerce business employing around 500 people. Now she's also a published author.

Her new memoir, *Unemployable: The Katie Lee Story*, traces a turbulent childhood, battles with addiction and sobriety, and the unlikely rise of one of St. Louis's most relentless entrepreneurs. The title comes from a phrase her father, Tom Lee, used to describe them both — and Katie flipped it into a badge of honor.

In this episode, Katie sits down with host Venita Rizvic, special sections editor at the St. Louis Business Journal, to discuss:

- Why she wrote the book as a way to mourn her father and her close friend Rolando

- The tough-love lessons from her father that shaped her entrepreneurial grit

- Writing and self-publishing the memoir in 30 days to meet a Target deadline

- The Target partnership that grew her CPG line from 500 to 7,500 doors in one year

- Balancing single motherhood with a rapidly expanding business

- What's next: a new 50,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, a documentary, and more

*Unemployable* is available now at Target stores nationwide, on Amazon, and at katies.com. Independent bookstore distribution begins November 1st.

The Arch City Report is presented by the St. Louis Business Journal, with supporting sponsors Maryville University and Cass Commercial Bank.