We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Katy Peres a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Katy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

In 2016, my husband, Flavio, and I had the opportunity to purchase a 3-acre tract of land near our home. Even though we had dreamt of having a Wedding Venue for a while, when we purchased that property, we intended for it to be a location for my husband’s workshop and a place to raise a few livestock. Not long after, I proposed to Flavio how we could probably make it work for both, his workshop up front and a wedding venue in the back. In 2017, we were blessed with the opportunity to buy an additional acre adjacent to our newly acquired 3-acres. We built a pavilion, a rustic and elegant reception barn, a parking lot area, a few barns for our miniature horses and miniature cows, and a Bridal Cottage. When we launched in May of 2022, people asked Flavio what was next and replied, God will give us the 2 acres next door where we will have a house for the Groom to get ready. Three months later, we had the incredible opportunity to purchase that property, fully remodel the house in six short weeks, and have an amazing “Groom’s Man Cave” added to The Backyard Venue.

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 back background and context?

I have been a Realtor in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex for 16 years and my husband, Flavio, and I have owned a landscaping company for over 20 years, that over the years has developed into a remodeling and construction business. We both have an eye for design and he is extremely talented and creative. He grew up in a farm while I was a city girl. In our 22+ years of marriage, I have learned to love the country and fall in love with farmhouse rustic designs. The Backyard Venue was designed and built by my husband and I. We are a family owned and operated business that strives to provide an excellent experience to everyone who comes to our beautiful venue. The Backyard Venue has many unique features such as an antique truck waterfall, two entire houses for brides and grooms to get ready with custom hand-crafted furniture made by Flavio, two outdoor ceremony sites to choose from, a large pavilion for cocktail hour with fire pits, a gorgeous garden area with a pondless waterfall, a stunning heated and air-conditioned reception barn with cedar and white finishes with access to a warming kitchen, and so much more! We even have a hot-rod style golf cart for transporting the bridal party, and a Cadillac Escalade golf cart to offer as a getaway car with a license plate that reads “Just Married”.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

We did not have funds to start to purchase the land, but home interest rates were low, and house values were up, so we took advantage of a home-equity refinancing opportunity to cash out and use the funds to purchase the land cash. That was a great way to purchase another property without paying for high interests charged for investment properties.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Our venue’s address is in McKinney, but it is located in the small rural incorporated town of Lowry Crossing with a population of 1700. The hardest fight we had to endure was to get city approval for an events center in such a small rural town. We had to fight much opposition from the neighbors who were making all kinds of speculations of how an events center would disturb the peace and quiet of their country life. With much prayer and persistence, we were able to show them our intentions were good and make compromises to ease their fears. It was months of back and forth, lots of ups and downs, but after much persistence, we received the approval to open the doors of The Backyard Venue in May of 2022.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.TheBackyardVenueDFW.com
• Instagram: thebackyardvenuedfw
• Facebook: The Backyard Venue