We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kiersten Searles. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kiersten below.

Hi Kiersten, thanks for joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Like most businesses, Searles & Company all started with an idea. I had recently left a workplace that wasn’t benefiting my needs anymore. After a couple of months of reflection, I realized that event planning was the next direction I wanted to go into my career, but because of the post-pandemic economy, finding an event planning job was nearly impossible. That’s when the idea came, “Why don’t I just start my own, at least to get a couple of experiences under my belt.” With that idea came a lot of fear, I had already planned a couple of events for family and friends but not officially under a business, especially for a business that I owned. I took some time to think about it, get advice from family, and most importantly pray about it and then took a leap of faith. I also was sure to learn as much as I could, in the midst of starting a business, I took courses, watched videos, and found a mentor to help e along the way, I was constantly learning about the business world, event planning world, and how I could represent myself well. Four days before my birthday, I officially launched by LLC, and Searles & Company became official.

Kiersten, 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?

My name is Kiersten Searles and I’ve been living in Charleston, SC majority of my life now! I got into the event planning industry by planning events for family and friends. The first event I ever planned was my mom’s 50th birthday party, I fell in love with being able to make her party dreams a reality and with ensuring that she was having a great time.

My mission at Searles & Company, LLC is to ensure that everyone can enjoy every moment of the event, especially the people hosting the event. I want my clients to feel stress-free.

Searles & Company, LLC focuses mostly on social and corporate events, these include birthday and anniversary parties, fundraisers, family reunions, small conferences, and more. All of my clients are supported the way that they prefer whether it’s a “hands-off” approach, “hands-on”, or somewhere in between. Searles. & Company, LLC also provides custom playlists for events that are curated based on age, atmosphere, and overall feel of the event.

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

To be honest, social media was one of the most overwhelming parts of starting a business. After watching all the videos and taking courses, I learned the most important part of being on social media is to be yourself. Yes likes, stories, posts, comments, reels, and interaction is important but if you’re trying to be something you’re not social media will also be difficult and be a burden in your business. The followers will come, the posts will do fine but if it’s between being stressed by trying to be something you’re not or being yourself, always choose the latter.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson that I’m continuously unlearning is how I am “supposed to” book clients. After my website and social media were all set up, I was convinced that the clients would just appear because everything was set up nicely. I was wrong. The majority of my clients have come from making different connections throughout Charleston and South Carolina as a whole. Because of networking, I learned that if I wasn’t willing to talk about Searles & Company any chance I got to anyone I met, who would? As I continue to unlearn, I also continue to put myself in places where I will grow personally and professionally to best serve my clients.

Contact Info:

• Website: searlesco.com
• Instagram: @searles.company
• Linkedin: Searles & Company, LLC
• Other: PartySlate: Searles & Company