Lessons from Flowers: 2020 Edition

July 19th, 2021

2020 started out so hopeful. I attended the Team Flower conference in Pasadena. The next week I took Amy Nicole’s Bouquet Bootcamp. I love education and I loved getting it in right at the beginning of what was sure to be a busy year. A profitable year. The MOST profitable year yet. (ha ha ha)

Photo: Rebekah Lemire Workshop: The Floral Coach

We did two beautiful weddings, a few brand activations, and one AMAZING celeb event (NDA be damned). We did our final design meetings for our spring weddings…

Photo: Brooke Allison Photo Planner: Events by Emily Kay

Photo: Miki and Sonja Photography Planner: Moxie Bright Events

And then the world shut down.

Our studio building, aka The Original LA Flower Market, shut down, and I had a couple hours to take everything “valuable” out of my studio. To watch my vendors throw their product/profit in the garbage. Talk about a surreal and heartbreaking day. What IS valuable in your business/workspace/life when you have to choose what to take with you?

After a month at home without flowers, I tentatively dipped my toe back in, and started figuring out how I could safely get flowers (both locally and from my wholesaler). There was a veeeery strange period of picking up flowers 100% no contact- checking out my pull from a parking lot, and then putting it in my car before dousing myself in sanitizer lest any covid nasties were hitching a ride.

I arranged flowers in my backyard and turned my tv/guest room into a temporary cooler by cranking our AC.

I advertised my new delivery biz solely via instagram AND the response was overwhelming.

Clients, old and new, embraced flowers in a way that felt absolutely sacred. The joy I witnessed when I delivered flowers from a grandchild to their grandmother, who was isolated at home alone, was beautiful and heartbreaking and so very meaningful.

Photo: The Hendrys Planning: Opus Events Co.

Photo: The Hendrys

Photo: Heirlume Photography Planning: P.S. & Associates Event Planning

Photo: Michael Gomez Photo

Photo: Faye Casaje

There were elopement blooms too- in national parks, backyards, hotels, and homes.

2020 was an excellent reminder for me about just what I love about flowers.
An opportunity to come back to my WHY again and again, one bouquet at a time.

Flowers are magic and they have the power to transform spaces, people, and bad days alike. Flowers are a powerful reminder to be present, and they teach us to cultivate a more mindful relationship with ourselves and the world around us.

They remind us that joy is now.

This is one of the lessons I’ll be taking into 2021, and the busy season ahead.
How about you? What did you learn or relearn about your business in 2020?

Photography:
All photography by Winston & Main, except where credited otherwise.

Rebekah Lemire / The Floral Coach / Brooke Allison Photo / Events by Emily Kay / Miki and Sonja Photography / Moxie Bright Events / The Hendrys / Heirlume Photography / Michael Gomez Photo / Faye Casaje

5 Ways to Build your Biz while Social Distancing

March 12th, 2020

Hi friends!

If you work in the event industry (or let’s be honest, live in our COVID-19 world) you are likely a little bit scared right now.

Scared of the unknown- getting sick, cancelled events, lost bookings, running out of toilet paper. We ALL feel ya on that last one, right?

So wash your damn hands. Educate yourself.
And stop hoarding the TP.

Also, don’t panic.

I am a big believer that action alleviates anxiety, so here are 5 things you can do while bookings are slow and we’re all engaging in social distancing. AKA working without pants.

It’s something you likely excel at if you’re an entrepreneur, small biz owner, or freelancer, so you’re already winning. Give yourself a pat on the back with those super clean paws and get on with it already. 🙂

Okay, all jokes aside- here are 5 things you can do right now to work ON your business and not IN it, so that you’re in a great place when those bookings start rolling in. And they will. Trust.

Here are 5 ways to strengthen your business without putting on pants:

1. Update your website copy. Seriously, when was the last time you did this?
2. Refine or Create Systems & Processes. Inquiry, Booking, Onboarding, Budgeting, Ordering, Event Week Execution just to name a few. You should have a rock solid system in place for each of these that you execute EVERY single time to deliver EXCELLENT results EVERY single time. Okay, I’ll stop internet yelling now if you’ll stop reinventing the wheel. Deal?
3. Update your Portfolio & Crank Out those Blog Posts. I know I’m not the only one with a backlog of 20 events that deserve to see the light of day. The SEO isn’t bad either. 🙂
4. Practice Self-Care. Workout. Meditate. Acupuncture. Yoga. Read a book. Take a bath. Try herb vaporizers-here’s what to think about before you choose one. Whatever you need- just start working these things into your routine NOW while you have time, and then continue them when you get busy.
5. Know your Numbers. Are you ready for tax season? Are you feeling good about how your offerings are priced? Are you tracking your numbers (or paying a professional) so that you can look at past booking patterns and see when you’re likely to be busiest as you deal with rescheduling your current clients? I always feel SO much better when I dive into my numbers and I bet your will too!

*Bonus- Do something nice for someone else. Drop off flowers. Go leave 5 reviews for your fellow small biz owners. Call your grandma.

Book Recommendation- The E Myth. Read it. Especially if you have no idea what the difference is between working ON your business and IN your business.

And finally- reach out if you need support in any of these areas, and we can book a germ-free mentoring session to deep dive into your specific biz needs.

*Not a doctor. Not giving medical advice-
Please listen to scientists + experts. 🙂
** As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Welcome to Winston & Main!

April 27th, 2015

Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Preach it, RWE.
Because even though this party design business has been bouncing around in my head for years, and even though I’ve dabbled quite seriously- designing weddings, and parties, and photo shoots since 2010 (gulp), all while maintaining my more than full-time job in the film industry, I didn’t actually decide until last year.

For almost 4 years I was too scared. Scared of being unsuccessful. Scared of being broke.
Scared of doing something frivolous. Scared of walking away from a “glamorous” career I’d invested over a decade in already.

Cue a few cliche lifeistooshort situations, and BOOM.
I was sick of being scared.

And so I decided.
One email and one project and one collaboration at a time.

And BOOM suddenly all the magic confetti in the universe started blowing my direction, dropping requests for wild wedding flowers, and styling, and DIY post writing right on my doorstep. Deciding is powerful magic people.

So hello there, and welcome to the brand spanking new, shiny, sparkly, and spectacular Winston & Main- your one stop shop for amazing party design, awesome styling, and fantastic flowers by yours truly, right here in Downtown Los Angeles! And beyond.
Because you guys know I love me some travel.

I’m really excited to share all my new business adventures with you here on this blog. Plus recipes and DIYS and my favorite DTLA haunts (and nibbles) too.

So thank you for stopping by and thank you for all your nice comments and words of encouragement yesterday when I launched my new site/biz from a giant field of flowers.

And while we’re on the subject of thank you, I owe a few big ones:

*To the best and most supportive partner in crime a lady can have- Gavin, thank you for building such an awesome life with me that supports big scary decisions and also super fun adventures. See also: bagpipes. haggis. you’re real cute.
*Braid Creative. These ladies are genius. All this pretty branding? Check. Tons of amazing business direction, wisdom, and humor? Check. Big big (virtual) hugs and thank yous!
Site + adorable illustrations by Star St. Germain.
*One email at a time? The first one went to my pal Dana, asking if I could do a few DIYs for Broke-Ass Bride. Thank you for letting me dip my toes in the DIY pool again mama!
*Big thanks to my pals at A Practical Wedding for all the rad DIY opportunities of the last few months. I’m so honored that your magic confetti blew my direction, and so grateful for the fantastic and inspiring community of like-minded folks you’ve created over there!
*To the always amazing Kirsten Ellis for the fantastic photographs and balloon wrangling that went into the new site.

Let’s Party!