Today we’d like to introduce you to Nikki Candito.
Nikki, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My story has been anything but linear, but every chapter has led me here.
I spent more than two decades building a career in marketing, eventually becoming a vice president and leading high-performing teams, shaping brands and driving business growth. From the outside, I had built a successful career. But behind the scenes, I was also navigating divorce, single motherhood, health challenges and the slow realization that the life I had worked so hard to create no longer fully fit the woman I was becoming.
When I was laid off in 2025, I could have immediately pursued another executive role. Instead, I gave myself permission to pause and ask a different question: What do I actually want to build now?
That question became the beginning of The Enclave Collective.
Throughout my career, I had seen how often ambitious women are expected to separate the different parts of themselves. We go to one place for business strategy, another for wellness and somewhere else to talk honestly about the identity shifts happening underneath it all. I wanted to create a space where women wouldn’t have to compartmentalize—where they could build their businesses, care for themselves, have meaningful conversations and be supported through whatever their next chapter looks like.
The Enclave brings together the three things I believe women need to grow sustainably: business, identity and wellness. It is a collaborative community and workspace, but it is also deeply personal. Members aren’t simply getting a desk or attending networking events. They are gaining access to honest support, curated connections, strategic guidance and a community of women who understand that success is about more than what you accomplish—it is also about who you become along the way.
In many ways, The Enclave is the culmination of everything I have lived and learned: 23 years of business experience, my own reinvention and my belief that speaking honestly about what we are carrying can transform our lives. I’m building the space I wish I had during every major transition of my own life—and the one I believe so many women are looking for now.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Gosh, smooth isn’t what I would call it, but it hasn’t been “rough”. It has been winding and some paths I took, I quickly turned around and came back to center. When I first started creating the Enclave, there was a heavy emphasis on marketing services. I launched with those in the fall of 2025 and quickly got clients. What I realized 6 months later was that marketing services were not what the Enclave was, nor was it what I was anymore. Despite my absolute ability to support businesses in that way, my gut told me that what I wanted to do and was capable of was much deeper. So I paused and asked myself and others around me what would really differentiate The Enclave. This is when my three pillars, business, identity and wellness, really took shape. I had some starts and stops, and finding the physical location took much longer than expected, but I am appreciative for all of it. Because where I am today is exactly where I, and the Enclave, should be.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
At my core, I am a builder—of brands, businesses, teams and communities. Big brands I have supported are Eaton, Red Hat and IBM.
I spent 23 years in integrated marketing, ultimately serving as a vice president and leading across brand, digital demand, content, web, marketing operations and account-based marketing. I became known for seeing the full picture: connecting business strategy to brand, translating complex ideas into clear and compelling stories, and then building the systems and teams needed to bring those ideas to life.
There are many highlights of my career that are tied to revenue and ensuring marketing was recognized in the organization as a change agent. I was the strategic brain behind IBM’s global marketing automation platform. But the biggest highlight of my career was the team I built in my last role. Those individuals are some of the most talented, genuine, empathetic marketers I have had the pleasure of working with. What we had was special and I will forever hold that team close to my heart. Although we were all laid off over a year ago, we are still very close friends and cheer each other on.
That same emotion is at the heart of The Enclave Collective. The Enclave combines growth, identity and wellness because I believe those parts of our lives cannot be separated. Female entrepreneurs need clarity, connection, support and space to become the person capable of building what comes next.
What sets me apart is the combination of strategic experience and lived experience. I can help someone strengthen her positioning, refine her business model or connect her with personal support—but I can also recognize when the real obstacle is confidence, identity or the fear that naturally accompanies change. I’m willing to have the honest conversation underneath the business conversation.
I’m most proud that everything I’m building now allows me to use both sides of who I am: the experienced executive who understands how to create measurable growth, and the woman who has rebuilt her own life and knows how powerful it is to be truly seen and supported while doing it.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Gosh, there are so many things I love about Raleigh. If I had to pick ONE thing, it would be the people. We are blessed with incredibly intelligent, talented and generous individuals! I love to meet new people and the ones I have met on this journey fill my heart with happiness and hope. No one is in it alone if they live in Raleigh.
What I like least…I wish we were closer to the ocean 🙂
Pricing:
- Community Membership – $150/month – Designed for women who want to be part of The Enclave ecosystem without the need for full-time workspace access✓ Community events + networking experiences ✓ Select workshops + wellness programming ✓ Curated introductions + collaboration opportunities ✓ 4 co-working passes each month
- Collective Membership – $350/month – Designed for women actively building and ready for more structure, momentum, and support in their day-to-day work.✓ Daily co-working access ✓ Conference room + workspace amenities ✓ Strategy sessions + working tables ✓ Founder conversations + community programming ✓ Wellness room access + wellness experiences ✓ Access to content and creative studio spaces
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.enclave-collective.com
- Instagram: @the_enclave_collective
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikkicandito/
