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

Hi Kaitlin, thanks for joining us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

If you were to ask me this a year or two ago, my answer may have been dramatically different, but I wouldn’t change a single thing about the timing of my business! I started back in 2018 after working in the industry for a couple of years. I’m incredibly grateful to have started when I did, because it means I got a solid year and a half to familiarize myself with entrepreneurship before Covid hit and the chaos ensued! While I would never want to go through 2020 again, I now have it to thank for a lot of positive changes in my business. Because of Covid, I ended up with a team, something I never envisioned having! Fast forward and we’re expanding into corporate, social, and fundraising events because the post-Covid event world continues to surprise us! Because of the adversity of the last few years, I’ve learned invaluable knowledge, gained incredible teammembers, and have experienced new opportunities that I wouldn’t trade for anything.

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

Kaitlin Shea Weddings & Events is a coordination and design company in Colorado and beyond! We have simple packages that make customization easy for any client, and we pride ourselves on bringing customers’ visions to life rather than sticking with one particular “style!”

Owner and founder Kaitlin began back in 2018 with a degree in art history and a hunger for a creative career! Before graduation, Kaitlin began working in the wedding and event industry, continuing her love of the position after school. A couple of short years later, Kaitlin Shea Weddings & Events was born.

Over the years, we’ve had the pleasure of taking part in countless wedding and elopement celebrations, vendor workshops, baby showers and personal parties, fashion shows, you name it! We are a core team of 4 and we work closely together to ensure the success of every event. From choosing your vendors, to designing the look, to execution day of, we have your back.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My biggest advice when starting out on social media is to DIVE IN! I wasn’t someone who was super active on Instagram or other platforms before owning a business, so there was definitely a bit of a learning curve, but as someone who loves creative outlets I found the process to be primarily fun! As social media has changed, and video has come to the forefront, the learning curve has returned!

I spent some time re-learning and now have a TON of fun posting silly and fun content in addition to more serious inspiration. I can’t tell you how many vendors have commented on our videos now, asking where we get our ideas and how they’re made. They’re always a little disappointed when I tell them it’s just what I do when I don’t want to be answering emails! ;)

Instead of overthinking and putting too much pressure on yourself, simply pull from what you’re doing day to day! We try to be our authentic selves on social media, and we’ve found that clients love that, even when WE feel like we’re being embarrassing! <3

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Managing a team is no easy task, but the right people can make owning your business a million times easier (& more fun)! As someone who worked in the industry before starting my own business, I know how challenging any position in the world of events can be, and how demanding of an industry it is. With this in mind, I’ve tried to do a few things to keep my team as enthusiastic, secure, and supportive of one another as possible!

1. Monthly meetings – we see each other constantly when working on the day to day, but we’ve set aside a full morning or afternoon each month to work together, ask questions, pose challenges, etc!
2. Group systems – we have worked as a team to put together the most streamlined systems (based on our personalities) for client documents, scheduling, and info organization! Being able to voice concerns and give opinions freely and without judgement has made it so that we have a very open and collaborative environment.
3. Valuing employees before yourself – this isn’t to say you need to be a martyr because we all know that owning your business is DRAINING! What I mean is, you have to think of your business from their perspective! I know what it can feel like to be nickel and dimed, or to feel like the extra work you have put it went unnoticed. As the owner, I can pick and choose where to put my extra time, but if my employees are putting in work, they’re getting paid whether I am or not!

Contact Info:

• Website: kaitlinsheaweddings.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/kaitlinsheaweddings
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaitlinsheaweddings
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaitlin-amanatullah-89b599ba/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2j8R6j7p4NlC2J7mp9vbPw

Image Credits
Kari Geha Photography Shelly Anderson Photography Our Love is Loud Rachel Schrepel Diana Coulter Photography Bri Bond Photography Christina Kiffney Weddings Walnut Street Photography Allison Dike Photography Kimberly Crist