Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Andrea Campero. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Andrea thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

The COVID-19 pandemic back in 2020 made me reflect on where my work and life was headed. Although I was successful as a Human Capital Senior Consultant, I struggled working long hours that kept me away from the people and activities I loved the most. I needed to make a change and push myself to prioritize my mental and physical health. I knew I wanted my next step to be something that would allow me to be active, creative, independent and around nature and other people. I wanted my work to have meaning and deep impact in the community.

In 2021, I was planning my wedding, when I came across a luxury picnic on Pinterest. Luxury picnics are very popular in California, but I had never seen them in the DC area. This idea seemed to fit perfectly with my goals. Therefore, after doing some deep research, understanding what it would take to launch this type of small business, and having the support of my now husband and close family, I quit my corporate job and took that leap of faith by launching my business in July 2021. I booked my first few picnics in August and September. My elevated picnics included 2 hours of a relaxing experience paired with a charcuterie board, water, and fresh flowers that people could take home, which at the time no one else was offering. I wanted to distinguish myself by providing experiences that hit all senses while providing the highest level of luxury and quality.

Some of my customers have become friends after sharing their happiest times with their loved ones thanks to our services. It is truly unique to see people cry tears of joy or be speechless with what they are seeing or feeling when being surprised with a luxury picnic or event. I believe that when someone is passionate about what they are doing like me, it reflects in the quality of work. People can see it and start to book services. I am now at a point where we have expanded our services to not only plan for luxury picnics, but all types of social events. I am excited to see that I am finally living life by my values while delivering powerful experiences for people.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

When people ask me about myself, I cannot help but think back to my childhood growing up in Bolivia. My fondest memories are being around my family, eating meals together, exploring nature, and being outdoors. Bolivians have a deep love for “Pachamama”, which is a Quechua word that translates to “Mother Earth”. Ever since I was little, I have always been creative and a nature lover. Now, as a luxury picnic and event planning business owner in the DC, MD, and VA area, I deeply care about delivering experiences that bring the same emotions of joy I felt as a child, while having them connect with Pachamama. I want my customers to be able to enjoy and unwind.

My company, Picnic & Unwind, offers event planning services and luxury picnics for all types of special occasions or just because! I design, plan and execute customized, unique and Instagram-worthy experiences that help my customers in making their event of their dreams a reality. But, I could not have done a lot of these events without the help of my small, but mighty team. I feel proud of having them as staff that likes to work collaboratively, deeply cares about the experience, and focus on quality, details, and execution.

As a business woman of color, I care about supporting other minority-owned and women-owned small businesses in the area, as well as representing my customers’ diversity in everything my company offers. For the past few years, I have been working hard in establishing relationships with small business owners and minority leaders/influencers in the community, so that we can thrive together and build each other up. Therefore, when customers are finding my services, they can rely on also supporting quality small business owners in my network.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

During the first few months after launching the business, I was booking picnics almost every weekend I was excited about the momentum until mid-November came and I had no more bookings. It was then I realized that picnics are not perceived to be a Winter activity. I knew I had to do something to create excitement around picnics during the Winter or I would not see income for a while. I attempted to create more awareness around indoor picnics, which works well for those rainy days. But time was passing and by January I was not seeing any bookings yet. There was a point when I started to question whether I had made the right decision of leaving the job that provided me with the comfort of a steady paycheck. However, I had to remind myself of all the struggles I had gone through that had led me to find something else that fulfilled me. It was then that I decided to take another leap of faith and buy a tent and some heaters to try to create a very cozy backyard experience for those wanting to do something different during the Winter without having to even leave their homes. By end of January, I had finally booked a few bubble tent picnic experiences, which got me through the Winter times. Even though times seemed dark, I learned that being able to adapt quickly is key for an entrepreneur.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

I have learned that pulling beautiful work is not enough to maintain brand loyalty. I know we will have a client for life when we are able to bring emotions out and foster sincere relationships. Authenticity matters and people get attracted to it. I care about our clients having a great experience since early on in the process. I collaborate with those clients who like to bring in ideas or want to be more involved in the design process. When clients hire our services, they know they are gaining a partner, who will advocate for their needs when interacting with other vendors and guide them through the process. I am their partner, who constantly makes sure everything is on track and will continue to communicate ways to problem solve any potential challenges. I get to know them and continue to engage with them through social media. Up to date, most of our former clients who have social media follow our business constantly and have been repeat customers. I am a trusted partner and a go-to person when they need referrals to other small business vendors. I also try to send a bi-monthly newsletter to keep my loyal customers up to date with all our deals. It is just one more way to reward them by learning about the deals before anyone else.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.picnicandunwind.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/picnic.and.unwind/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/picnicandunwind
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreacampero
• Other: https://goo.gl/maps/DvMxfdWXrrs3AdNH6

Image Credits
Picture “4S4A9120.jpg” taken by Igda Warner Photography Picture “Fall Picnic.jpg” customers; Karen Kassem (right) and Michael Kassem (left) Picture “East Potomac Park.jpg” customer: Alessandra Gonzalez Picture “Valentine’s Day Picnic.jpg” customers: Zerin Tasnim (left) Abir Khan (right)