We recently connected with Jessica Bagwell and have shared our conversation below.

Jessica, appreciate you joining us today. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today.

This is a great question as I just wrapped up a major rebrand. When I opened my event space 3 years ago I was at the tail end of a career in the freelance hair and makeup industry. I had a super successful 15 years and at the time wanted to find a way to include that into the studio. So I kept my original name La Bella & Co.. However, the studio naturally evolved into a full-time micro event space. The name that served me so well in one industry was not in this new industry. It was time to completely rebrand and revamp my mission. This time around I choose the most important things that I originally put my time and money into before and prioritized things I should have the first time around. Licensing, signage and online footprint took top priority. These are things that will help you lay a solid foundation for growth. Things like decor, business cards and paint color with naturally come. The way I cut cost is doing 95% of this myself. I don’t know everything, but I sure can google/pinterest everything. You don’t have to be tech savvy or the most creative person. You just have to be resourceful. I had people tell me ” you can pay someone “x” to do all of that” and I would respond “but I can figure it out for free”. Is it the easiest way? Not always but if you want to own a business you can’t be scared to do the uncomfortable and when you look back you will know it truly was your blood sweat and tears that got you where you are today. Now I do have a great sign guy and do not even want to attempt his job but if you are really on a tight budget you can go on places like etsy and find a ton of options for that as well.

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.

My name is Jessica and I own The Social Suite. We are a micro event space that caters to events under 75. When I first opened the studio I wanted to create a space that anyone could have a small event without paying a large event venue price but still feel it was just as special. My original thought was people would use it for bridal and baby showers but my community has blown me away with the different ways they have found to use the space. Along with bridal/baby showers we also have been honored to host milestone birthdays, adoption parties, photo/production shoots, art shows, bible studies, womens groups, business meetings, classes, receptions, rehearsals and even our 1st wedding coming up in November.

I was born and raised in Anderson and saw a shift in this industry which caused a gap for smaller events. People are looking to host even smaller things outside of their home and we have an abundance of large wedding venues that are absolutely beautiful but they are not always realistic and cost efficient for a smaller event. Your other option has been conference rooms at local h0tels. These may be great for some things but I wanted to create a beautiful space that was in the heart of downtown and was a step above a conference room but was not as overwhelming as these larger venues. I also offer all inclusive events where I do all of the design, set up and clean up. This option has been super popular for those that are just to busy, feel they aren’t creative or planning from out of town.

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

I think for everyone covid was a huge hump. For me specifically it hit 6 months into this journey. Not the best time for an event space when the whole world is shutting down all events specifically. There was a lot of praying and waiting and honestly I look back years later and can only say “but God”. I have no clue how a new event space made it out thriving something like that. I don’t know if it was resilience or faith but I do know if I am called to it nothing will stop me.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

This entire rebrand from La Bella & Co. to The Social Suite has been a pivot. You can’t be scared to change. It doesn’t make what you were doing a failure. Think of it as refining. What served you in one season doesn’t always serve you in another. If we aren’t willing to pivot when needed we stay stuck and don’t grow. Did I shed a tear changing my LLC? yes! but I am so proud of what I accomplished in that season and I know making this change with The Social Suite will only help me grow in this new season.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.labellaandcompany.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialsuite.events/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesocialsuite.events

Image Credits
Meagan Burriss Photography, LLC