We were lucky to catch up with Jes Gordon recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jes thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

many moons ago I was assisting on a huge elegant event, I think I was about 17 years old. The event was at The Plaza Hotel in New York and it was filled with celebrities and just everything fabulous. I was working at the time in a flower shop, and we were chosen to do the decor for this event I can’t remember how or why but we felt lucky to be there. We were watching the party; me and this lovely english guy who worked at the Plaza and a spectacular woman walked across the dance floor, dressed impeccably and she discreetly pulled back her hair and quiet vomited into one of the palm trees that was nestled within a dark corner of the room. She wiped her mouth, took a sip of her champagne, applied her lipstick and made her way back across the dance floor to the party. The guy next to me, turned to me and said:” well isn’t she having proper fun.” Three years later I opened my own events company and called it proper fun.

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.

I was an amazing athlete growing up and I was actually training to be a sprinter in the olympics at the age of 14. I had a running accident and shattered both of my knees, it was devastating and my parents were wondering what to do with me and all of my extra energy. I had several surgeries and it was a long recovery, but when I healed I needed to find a new purpose. My mother had a friend who owned a floral shop and she asked if I could work there after school. She said yes, but I was too young to touch the flowers so swept up and delivered flowers etc. I found out many years later that my mother paid for my salary; this is the kind of parent everyone should be blessed to have.

Turns out that after watching designers for a couple of years, and when I was finally allowed to start designing, I was damned good at it, in fact I was a prodigy.

Long story short, news got around and I was sought after in the tri-state area as The Florist to go to. I was so young, and I found myself becoming a florist as my friends were going away for the summers and I was home doing weddings. It was a push and pull for me. I was also a musician, and secretly wanted to become a rock star as well; I still do.

Flowers were the one thing that whatever ADHD I had, (it wasn’t defined back then) that would ground me. I could hyper focus on flowers for hours, days even…. while I would struggle sitting through a class at one of the three colleges I attempted to attend.

This went on for years; in and out of college, majoring in music, dating and finally meeting a special someone that would take me out of my comfort zone who wanted to move to New Mexico. By then I had a flourishing business of my own that I ran out of a rented home outside of the Bard College campus; my final attempt at college. I had to make a decision to go out in the world with the love of my life or stay in business. We hit the road.

Cut to: New Mexico where I did in fact open an art gallery which had a floral sculpture division of course all created by me. A client came in one day and admired my work- this became the moment that led to me moving to New Orleans and working the set of an amazing new movie called Interview with a Vampire.

and yes, me and the love broke up…

It was that exact turning point that led to me broadening my design horizons into designing from the inside out, encompassing full environments through not only flowers but through the five senses; taste, touch, hear, see and smell. My life became bigger than flowers the canvas became huge and I wanted to design the entire world!!!

My career started to really take off as a broad spectrum creative specializing in basically anything aesthetic. I had the honor of working with alexander McQueen building sets for his fashion shows and MET exhibition, I did events for STING, MADONNA and so many others… but for me, it was the art of the moment that captivated me and always has and always will…

I not only wish to evoke a visual response to my work, but more so an emotional one as well.

I like to morph my experience and creativity into who my clients wants to be, not an expression of myself or my ego at their events or installations. I truly become them in order to express who they are.

I harmonize with every sense while designing which in itself is a collaboration every time with every other specialist around me. If there is a chef in the room, I will ensure that my design sing along with their menu and so on.

I tend to set the trends and not follow them. It wonderful growing older in some ways simply because trends are basically reinventions of wheels and I have seen a lot of them!!

I love being eclectic: mixing new with old- vintage meets AI and so on…

I love new technology and keep up with it, but I will never forget my old practices.

I have found that the hardest part of being in business is being an employer, to mentor and to consistently provide inspiration while sometimes struggling to find it for myself.

We as a company, are the most authentic, genuine and creative humans I will ever know.

We enjoy a great telephone conversation.

We love to work. I have personally given my life to my trade. It is the love of my life.

There isn’t a lot we cannot do, but if cannot do something we will tell you.

Our Capabilities are so Vast they are hard to list, but we have done so on our website: jesgordon.com

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

my goal is to never end my creative journey. If you stop learning or growing or evolving as a creative then you should quit. Creativity is our sole responsibility, no one else is responsible for that except for you.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Joe Wickes was my employee over ten years ago. I adored him form the very start we both have an insane amount of energy. He was the ying to my yang, a logistical thinker that kept me within the limits on a very loose string. He had to move away due to his husband wanting to re locate and I was devastated to lose him… We both went on our journeys separately for ten years and during COVID we made a conscious decision that we wanted to build my company back up together. Joe became my official parter in 2021.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jesgordon.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jesgordon/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=jes%20gordon
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesgordon/
• Other: Tik Tok- @properfun

Image Credits
Anee Atelier Banga Studios