We recently connected with Leslie Flores and have shared our conversation below.

Leslie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

Legacy is always an interesting subject to me because it means so many different things to everyone, some see their legacy as their children or wealth acquired or the business empire built.

For me the legacy I hope to leave behind is one of joy, service and presence.

One of the main reasons for starting Moments By Design was because I wasn’t very present with my loved ones, I was too busy chasing the next big promotion to really sit and appreciate the amazing people I was surrounded with. I hope that in this new chapter of life the people around me feel I’m there for them and interested in who they are and what they have to say. I want people to know they mean more to me than the ding on my phone or the conference calls I used to take on vacay.

When you’re only living for your career it turns out you’re not really living at all and while there’s definite fun times I wasn’t experiencing my life to the fullest and all the joy that comes with it. So much of that happiness is by creating moments with loved ones, which is how Moments By Design got it’s name (get it, we Design the Moments for you and your loved ones ; ) )! I get to enjoy my life now, there’s still TONS of work owning your own business is 10,000x harder than working for someone else, but I enjoy what I’m doing now, we get to bring smiles and memories to people and that brings a smile to my face!

Service has always been a large part of who I am, you can thank the nuns and the mandatory service hours they made us do, but now with a company I feel empowered to serve others in a much larger way. The largest dream for Moments By Design is that our fulfillment center will have a staff made up of Autistic individuals, their attention to detail and artistic talents will certainly make opening up any of party boxes an added joy! But above all I hope we’re able to offer a space where they can grow in their careers and lives. The impact we/I can have is not just through my own actions anymore but through the communities we serve, the jobs we make, the lives we hopefully bring some joy to!

Leslie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Moments By Design was a giant happy mistake but it’s by far the best mistake I’ve ever made!

My corporate background was in finance (hedge funds and investment banking) and commercial real estate, so lots of numbers and a ton of strategy. I had an amazing time learning and being a part of these fields but they didn’t leave much time for me to really be me – the fun, lively and a tad bit extra party starter!

Moments By Design is my way of trying to solve the problems I had in corporate for everyone else, there’s no time!

Between the long hours at work, travel and trying to fit in a personal life there’s no time to plan a party, find all the right décor and run around buying it all, or at least there’s not if you want to sleep or eat!

That’s where we come in, Moments By Design takes all the time and stress out of party planning with our custom themed party boxes! We’ve got the essentials (cups, plates, napkins) and the INSTA-Worthy items too with our mini pinatas, custom themed banners, and of course balloon garlands!

So we’re on a mission, a mission of spreading FUN and we hope everyone joins in and adds a little more fun & joy to their lives!

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

Moments By Design is PROUD to manufacture our sustainable custom cups and plates in the USA!

I had no background in manufacturing before starting this company so there was a pretty steep learning curve on all of our manufacturing aspects, I mean who knew there was so many types of cardboard?!

My advice for finding manufacturers is they, and you, have to truly understand you’re partners, your business doesn’t happen without the product they make for you.

Respect is tantamount for a great partnership; go visit the sites, meet the teams doing the work, sit down with the leadership team and make sure you’re all headed towards the same goal. I’ve had instances where I gel perfectly with the sales team but other teams weren’t quite understanding the culture we had Moments By Design.

We have AMAZING partners that we’re proud to work with and who manufacture products no other party company has but we’ve also had to cut ties with companies who didn’t share the same values and respect we feel is imperative for our team members. So on the back end don’t be afraid to move away from a manufacturer who isn’t acting in your best interest, as in most aspects of life there are other fish in the sea!

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Reputation is everything, especially when you slate yourself to be a subject matter expert.

For Moments By Design we were incredibly fortunate to have an ecosystem in our community that fosters entrepreneurship. Since the community was already in place we were met with open arms by other business owners who truly wanted to know our story and see how they could help.

Of course proof is in the pudding, so once they saw the custom party boxes by Moments By Design and how easy it was to create memories with loved ones it wasn’t long till they were introducing us to businesses, school districts and most importantly, for us because it showed they truly trusted us, their own friends and family!

My advice, get out there, meet your local community, become the people I was so fortunate to meet and who I try to emulate by being of service to others and I promise the reputation you build will be stellar!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://momentsbydesign.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moments_by_design/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentsByDesignParties/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentsbydesign
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv2qgxwt_fPXVP6n0BlMAAw
• Other: Pinterest – https://www.pinterest.com/moments_by_design/_created/

Image Credits
7 Seconds Media – Madi May