We were lucky to catch up with Vanessa Narvios recently and have shared our conversation below.

Vanessa, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear a story from back when you were an intern or apprentice. What’s a memorable story you can share with us?

When people ask me how long I’ve been working in the events industry, my common answer is, “since I was 11 years old,” which usually leaves people with a very perplexed look on their faces. As odd as that may seem, that’s when my journey started, I was just a pre-teen and was part of a women’s youth organization and we constantly had to organize dinners, fundraisers, galas, dances, etc. As my mom was a busy professional and worked long hours, it was up to me to rise to the occasion and make these events come to life alongside my fellow teammates.

This taught me so many valuable lessons, #1 If you’re not going to do it, it’s not going to get done. – Things just don’t magically happen #2 Young people can accomplish great tasks – so experience isn’t necessarily required for things to be successful, you just need to be willing to learn and ask for help when you need it. #3 The more you do, the more you do. – Once people know you’re capable, the more responsibilities you will be given and the higher the steaks will become.

These experiences served me well as I continued my path in the hospitality/events world, where I was able to work for some of my dream companies prior to venturing out to start my own business.

Vanessa, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a multi-passionate entrepreneur that has built both my career and my companies in the hospitality, events, and food and beverage industries. My studies and later my work have taken me all around the world and I have been fortunate enough to have lived in 4 different countries and hosted events in 11!

During college, I lived in Barcelona, Spain, and Querétaro, Mexico while completing my undergraduate degree at Cal State Long Beach. After my undergraduate program, I went on to live in Shanghai, China to complete my Master’s degree in International Business. During my 8 1/2 years there, I opened a consulting company that specialized in events and marketing for the hospitality and food and beverage industries.

I had the opportunity to work with companies like Disney, Macy’s, Sysco, and countless more. After China, I spent a few months living the digital nomad lifestyle in Bali until the shenanigans of 2020 brought me home.

Now, I run Finerr Weddings and Events and 4th Street Garage, Old Town Temecula’s newest restaurant which not only has delicious food, but our guests can enjoy a classic car show every day! It’s a truly unique dining experience and something that my team and I are incredibly proud of!

If you have multiple revenue streams in your business, would you mind opening up about what those streams are and how they fit together?

As someone that has NEVER held only one job at a time, I am a HUGE proponent of multiple revenue streams. For me, it just makes sense not to put all your eggs in one basket. In my current business, I not only plan and coordinate the client’s wedding or event, but I can also support their bartending services, event staffing, rentals, and design. These are things that the majority of events need and it makes it much easier to have one source that can take care of everything versus having a vendor for each.

People always say, “Wow, Vanessa you do it all,” and to that, I always humbly reply with “Ohhhhh no….., there is a lot I don’t do.” I am always honest with my clients and myself about exactly what my capabilities are. I am in no way a photographer, videographer, or florist-those are such specialized skills and need to be handled by the pros… everything else, I got you!

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

One of the proudest sales I’ve ever made was when I got the opportunity to host Macy’s “BIG Meeting” annual conference which brought together for the first time 300 members of both the Hong Kong and China teams for a 3 day retreat in China.

The opportunity came about as I was very active in my university during my Master’s program and a very active Alumni. One of the professors knew the types of events I hosted and the quality of work that I provided and he introduced me to the Head of Marketing for Macy’s Hong Kong. Before I knew it, I was flown to Hong Kong to meet with them and propose my ideas for the conference. They loved it and given the fact that I wasn’t a huge agency or even had any full-time employees at that time, it was incredible to be able to close this deal.

I celebrated, drank champagne, cried, and then pretty much didn’t sleep again until it was over, but WOW was it amazing! Stressful, but amazing!

Not only did everything turn out flawless, but I was also able to pull everything together in just a few short weeks, navigate international banking regulations, holidays, and countless logistics challenges. I also did it all in Chinese! This was truly one of the pivotal moments in life where it shows you what you’re made of.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.finerrweddingsandevents.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/finerrweddingsandevents/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/finerrweddingsandevents
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanessanarvios/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/4th-street-garage-temecula-2