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

Davenna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

My mission has always been to encourage people to spend time with their love ones all while making memorable moments. During this time I’ve brought friendships together, showed couples how important romance is, strengthened some marriages and I’ve even helped a few start their own luxury picnic business. All of which surpassed my original goal.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

Hi, My name is Davenna Shannon. I bring you greetings from Columbia, South Carolina. I am a 30 year old solo picnic planner. The term we use in the luxury picnic community is “picnic-preneur”. I graduated from Morris College in 2017 with a Bachelors of Arts degree in Sociology. A few years ago, if someone would have told me that I would have successfully started a business, I wouldn’t believe them. Especially, in the lovely industry of event planning. I never knew I had an eye for such thing. Intimate Occasions Luxury Picnics was started during the Summer of 2021. COVID had made a name for itself and the world as we know it was beginning to change.

I had recently resigned from my full-time position with the state and needed an outlet. Tiktok was becoming very popular. One day I decided to download the app and stroll to see what the app was all about. While strolling, I came across this video of a picnic planner in Cleveland Ohio. At the time, her video was going viral. She was creating a promo video telling the world all about her new business and how excited she was to get started. I had never seen anything so adorable. It was so intimate and clever. I remember saving the video. The next day I found myself scrolling on her page and even went on YouTube to see if I could find more videos on this “picnic stuff”. Little did I know, it was a whole community of picnic planners all over the world. Long story short, after lots of research, including hundreds of YouTube videos later, I launched my business 3 weeks later and got my very first booking a week after launching. The journey has been so rewarding and I’ve learned so much in so little time. Consistency, passion, perseverance and creativity keep me going.

My mission is to encourage all of my guest to spend time with their love ones all while making memorable moments. Quality time is so important. The concept behind Intimate Occasions Luxury Picnics is for our guest to do as little as possible. Not everyone has the time nor the patience to throw together an extravagant spread and that’s where we come in. Taking the stress away! Our guest would simply choose a package of their choice, select any additional add-ons such as our delicious charcutertie board, our donut rack, fruit tray or even our 12×12 bubble tent that is perfect for the cooler months. Each package is customized to your liking. Afterward, all you would need to do is show up and enjoy. I love the versatility of this industry. Perfect for any occasion. Our picnics can be held at your home, hotel room or local parks. Whether you are looking to organize a surprise birthday celebration, celebrate an anniversary and/or propose to the love of your life, Intimate Occasions Luxury picnics will make it happen.

How did you build your audience on social media?

We currently live in an influential world. Social media is everything and it can change your life. You can build your clientele faster and easier just from an app on your phone in seconds. When I had my first viral video, I was booked for 3 months straight. Tiktok changed my life. I had clients who traveled from places like Charlotte, North Carolina just so that I could service them.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been consistency. My goal is to always keep my followers reminded. The picnic industry can be looked at as a seasonal industry but it’s a year round business. People will always have something to celebrate. Special occasions don’t just happen in the summer time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://intimateoccasionslp.as.me/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Intimateoccasionslp/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IntimateOccasionsLuxuryPicnics/
• Other: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZTd9R5FVa/ TikTok: IntimateOccasionsLP