Local maker Katherine Lea designs minimalist planners for creatives

Do you struggle finding a yearly planner that fits your style? Do you get overwhelmed by all the stickers, bright colors, motivational quotes and to-do lists filling the pages of today’s most popular planners? Meet: Alter Planning Co., a local planner business that makes simple, stylish and intentionally designed planners with artists in mind.

Katherine “scottie.” Lea launched Alter Planning Co. in 2019. She didn’t feel represented by the planners available in stores and wanted to create one that met all of her needs. The 26-year-old pictured a holistic planner that included financial planning, goal setting, business tools, monthly overviews and space to make daily lists. So she made just that.

She began conceptualizing the 12-month planner, The Annual, in 2018. She debuted it in 2019 in hopes she could sell 70 copies. Little did she know the planners would speak to so many others. In the first eight months, she sold 425 planners. By 2020, Alter Planning Co. reached global recognition when it was featured on Beyonce’s website showcasing Black businesses.

“There’s so much freedom whenever you lay out structure and boundaries and set out tangible goals,” Lea says.

The Alter Planning Co. planners are like a blank canvas for all of your planning needs. The pages are monochromatic, with texts and shading in different tones of grey. They are gender neutral and easy to digest for people at any stage of life. They include helpful pages to log down monthly habits, morning and evening routines, money goals and your monthly budget.

“It’s so much easier to accomplish your goals when you can break them down,” Lea says. “It makes it harder to get stagnant.”

Lea also sells The Dailies, 30-day booklets to help plan your monthly overview, daily to-dos, habits and finances. On her website, people can shop downloadable resources like monthly money management forms, routine building workbooks and a daily expense tracking calendar.

Before launching her planner company, the Baton Rouge native was a photographer, brand coach and content strategist. She never imagined how much her graphic design skills would be brought to the forefront after 2019. While she still works with brand development clients, her focus is on expanding Alter Planning Co., launching new planners for different lifestyles and getting The Annual sold in stores.

“I want to change what the planning industry looks like,” Lea says. “It’s time to shake it up.” alterplanningco.com

This article was originally published in the January 2021 issue of 225 magazine.