Mandy Krickhahn

MEET MANDY

Mandy Krickhahn is the founder and CEO of The Collective Group, LLC and The Collective Events, Inc., two organizations rooted in small business, community, and creating more opportunities for people across Northwest Indiana.

After graduating from Ball State University with a degree in marketing, Mandy spent several years as a stay-at-home-mom focusing on raising her son, Mark, while always knowing she eventually wanted to build something of her own. Once Mark was in school full time, she decided it was time to make her dream a reality. In 2017, with a $1,000 loan from family and absolutely no idea how far it would go, she launched her first business, The SpOiled Housewife, an artisan skincare company she ran out of her kitchen.

She built it from the ground up, learning firsthand what it means to start small, stretch every dollar, wear every hat, and keep going while learning most things the hard way. While selling at markets, Mandy quickly realized that what she loved most wasn’t just running her own business. It was connecting with other entrepreneurs, sharing resources, creating opportunities, and finding ways for small businesses to have a bigger impact together.

That idea became The Collective Group, LLC in 2019.

What started as a way to bring small business owners together has grown into a much larger organization focused on supporting entrepreneurs, strengthening local communities, and building programs and events that connect the two. Since 2019, The Collective has helped raise and give back more than $55,000 to nonprofits and causes throughout the area.

As The Collective’s events and community work continued to grow, Mandy founded The Collective Events, Inc. in 2024, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to creating purpose-driven events and programs that support small businesses, nonprofits, local food systems, and the communities they serve.

Today, Mandy leads both organizations full time, working across entrepreneurship, consulting, community programming, food access, events, and economic development. Her approach is simple, listen to what people need, bring the right people into the room, and figure out how to turn good ideas into something real.

She cares deeply about creating opportunities for people who are often overlooked, making resources more accessible, and building relationships that go beyond a transaction. She also believes small businesses are a huge part of what makes communities feel connected, interesting, and worth investing in.

Mandy is still building right alongside the entrepreneurs she supports. She knows the uncertainty, the pivots, the late nights, and the pressure that can come with trying to turn an idea into something sustainable. That firsthand experience shapes the way she leads The Collective and works across the region.

Outside of work, Mandy spends as much time as she can with Mark, friends and family, and her Wheaten Terrier, Hank. She loves local restaurants, cooking, traveling when she gets the chance, singing much louder than her actual ability warrants, and dancing with even less skill. She also has a tendency to take on too many ideas at once and somehow convince other people that they should come along for the ride.

At the heart of it all, Mandy has built her career around bringing people together, creating opportunities where they didn’t exist before, and building things that make a real difference without losing the human part along the way.