We recently connected with Jenny Smorzewski and have shared our conversation below.

Jenny, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So, what do you think about family businesses? Would you want your children or other family members to one day join your business?

In all honestly I hadn’t given much thought on a family business until just very recently. I kinda regarded family businesses as something that was forced upon generations.  But now I am starting to look at this concept so differently when I begin to think about the many years and numerous steps it has taken to build the strong foundation of a business. I love the idea that I could save my daughters from a huge learning curve I had to overcome and also give them an opportunity to experience the freedom and flexibility of being their own boss. I especially love the idea that there is a possibility that my daughters could take over continuing the growth of a this business one day in a way they wanted and also IF they wanted to that is. My oldest daughter Adele recently has shown interest in some of the design that goes into the events that my team plans. Her interest happened so organically especially when I think back to her first artworks as a little toddler and the fact that she has been so steady in creating beautiful artworks to this very day. She is so creative and has the best insight on colors and the elements that go into structuring tablescape and backdrops. Her take is confident, fresh, on point and just the kinda of wow that a client would appreciate and delight in. I am excited at the hopes of showing my daughter all that I know and have learned over the years of event planning. Maybe she’ll be part of the business or perhaps she will not. Only time can tell that, but regardless, I know there are some powerful lessons in exposing her to her mom’s business and valuable skills she can apply for her whole life to come !

Jenny, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I feel like I tell and retell this story often, but here it goes. . .  I started my business in 2015 officially, but my experience goes back to 2004. Before I worked in events and hospitality I worked in Human Resources Management . I didn’t love the desk and some of the administrative stuff of Human Resources, but I loved organizing the processes of a team and I loved the people part and I especially loved identifying the dynamics that drive performance of an organization. Today I have a team of 3 and together we work with a whole lot of other teams also known as vendors or creative partners. We are also very fortunate to partner with the Carlsbad Flower Fields as one of our favorite venues and feel that the team at the fields is also an extension of our own team. We love working within an industry that functions within the same high standards and goals that we set for ourselves in providing a smooth effortless event for our clients. We pride ourselves in some of the relationships that we have formed and continue to strengthen in the years that we operate. We learn so much from our friends and try to contribute to their successes as well. We also love meeting other teams and exploring what services and experiences can be even further offered to our clients.

Do you have any stories of times when you almost missed payroll or any other near death experiences for your business?

Probably some of the scariest moments I have ever experienced in operating my own business is learning the importance of event insurance. So often a client will never ever need a policy for coverage, so it has felt like I lead them to waste their monies since I could never provide an example of a time one was useful. Believe me, accidents can happen. I’ll never forget the time where a caterer was quietly attempting to set up a buffet during a speech and tripped with a giant sauce container. Fortunately in a corner where the event would go mostly unnoticed the incident occurred, but unfortunately a very well dressed man in a designer suit was completely covered to the point of no return. A insurance claim was filed and the cost of his suit was reimbursed to him. Insurance coverage isn’t very expensive for what is covered. In this case- a $150 dollar policy replaced a $7k suit. It really makes great sense to purchase insurance and some venues will even require this.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Actually yes ! At the moment, I am early in a creative journey of exploring offering floral to our clients. We obviously have a natural pond of clients to offer and think it would be such a wonderful experience to be able to do this for clients we are already working with. We work with so many talented and creative floral artists and have felt inspired at each event we’ve worked closely with a floral team over the years. A florist’s patience and understanding of a tough segment of this market that still has the ability to create something beautiful and magical is so impressive. There is so much more that goes into floral design that many clients can ever understand and sometimes as a planner I am caught in the middle of the floral and client discussions. I am aware of many of the challenges that florists face when it comes to design, profiting , sourcing, handling, and the time sensitive and intensive labor that goes into installation of a floral pieces. And there is still so much to learn in the early phases of diving in ourselves. We are welcoming all the support in this endeavor! Stay tuned.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.eventsbyjennysmorzewski.com
• Instagram: jennysmorzewski.events
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EventsbyJennyS/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-smorzewski-0045536/

Image Credits
family photo is by TOP SHELF PHOTO