We recently connected with Letosha Daniels and have shared our conversation below.
Letosha, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?
The love of celebrating my birthday and special occasions have always been important to me; whether a holiday, graduation, wedding, anniversary, or any festive event. I soon began to realize that I had an eye for the big picture and embraced it. It was all about the “look in the moment”, the presentation, the color scheme, the clean lines, and the overall WOW FACTOR that sets the tone. It was in 2010 that I began to seriously internalize that I wanted to make this reoccurring vision a reality. I began searching and jotting down names to call my business. I ultimately got the name from my now husband who is 6”7 in height and likes to refer to me as 5”3, hence Five Three Moments was born. I actively started working to build a platform where I could profit from my passion. While parenting a 9-year-old, planning my wedding, maneuvering in a doctoral program, and working a full-time job; I somehow found the time to start writing my business plan. Not long after that, I began taking small jobs for friends which soon led to referrals and just like that FiveThreeMoments Events (FTM Events) was not only born but in full effect, alive and kicking! It is said that the “journey of a thousand begins with one step”. I took that step! Being hands on and a very visual individual, the concept of Instagram as a place to share pictures and tell visual stories was appealing. I started telling the story of my business by simply posting pictures of different items that showcased my eye for talent. Maybe an item I created for a table setting or decorative arrangement that caught my eye. Soon after, I started asking friends for referrals of web designers, print shops and for other resources so that I could start looking at how I could get my name out there other than Instagram and Facebook now fast forward and we are on Tiktok! This process alone was stressful with high prices, having meetings and folks not seeing your vision. When I decided to pay for a web design service, I still had to learn how to maintain the website or commit to pay maintenance service fees which was a monthly expense. I finally began to get inquiries, which led to FiveThreeMoments Events planning moments like house warmings, baby showers, a Pop-up Wedding, birthday parties, a graduation ceremony. These opportunities led to more referrals that lead to a consistent cliental my business was in full swing.
Letosha, 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?
I am a native of Atlanta, Georgia. I am a creative, a planner who exhibits foresight when focusing on an event. I used to struggle with belief in myself as a little girl. I learned early that when the enemy knows what opportunities are ahead for your life, it will try to keep you bound and broken to the point where you sleep on the brilliance and boldness that’s on the inside of you. I went back and forth in the beginning with the direction I was going to take with the visions I was clearly having. I thought maybe not right now, I have too much other pressing things in life going on, a career, family school. Maybe it is just not the right time. Would my vision be received? People talk and love to voice their opinions about what you have going on. Sometimes the ones that were the closest to me, saying may you should do this or that instead. That got so ingrained in me that I started to believe maybe not now for my vision. I began to shrink my significance. I also had a fear of success. I knew that if I really got serious about my goals and stayed committed to them on a consistent basis, I would be successful. Consistency is the formula to anything you want and want to do in life. But I also knew that it was going to take much sacrifice, hard work, and determination to accomplish my goals. However, I felt really overwhelmed with being a new mother for the second time. I often used my motherly and wife duties as an excuse that I could not somehow “be about my business.”
Fast-forward to today, I cannot see myself without all of it at one time, my beautiful family, my career, my business, and all that comes with it. It is truly a labor of love. It is my endless drive, demonstrated planning ability and exceptional attention to detail that allows me to bring my clients vision to life and exceed their expectations. I have a passion for event planning; however, my fulfillment is seeing my client’s satisfaction.
FIVEthreeMoments is a full-service event planning company servicing Atlanta and surrounding areas. FTM Events unique approach to event planning will make your Moment one that you and your guest talk about for years to come. We offer a wide range of “Moments” that will meet your needs, capture your vision, and exceed your expectations. Birthday’s, Baby Shower’s, Weddings, Housewarming’s, Corporate Events, Open Houses, Product Launches, and Social Event and more. Your pleasures are our desires, just tell us what you want to do, see, eat, and experience we will deliver your special Moment. Let us take the stress out of planning all the small details for your moment. With ten years of professional experience in special event planning, there is not a moment that is to quant or too grand to celebrate.
Our team is devoted to making “your moment” a smooth and uniquely enjoyable transition of unforgettable memories seamed together and entangled in your heart.
– Weddings
– Baby Showers/Sip & See
– Birthday Celebrations (Adult & Children)
– Dinner Parties
– Corporate Events
– Business Launch
– Housewarming
– Open House
– Social Event planning
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
One more item to share is that I had the opportunity to co-author and electronic book that speaks about me becoming an entrepreneur who is also a mother of two exceptional children. I talk in detail about my journey to becoming what we like to call Momtrepreneur and how we as woman can do both. I would like to expand of the electronic book making it a book to sell on Amazon. Being a Momtrepreneur is a part of the Five Three Moments Events, LLC brand.
The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is presenting your ideas in multiple ways. When you are thinking about or even are in the beginning stages of starting your own business, it can be tough to maintain boundaries or the right balance between your personal time and your workspace. Navigating the life of a mom, wife and student was already overwhelming without adding my own business into the equation. My most important and influential role is that of a mother and at the beginning of starting this business, my then 9-year-old daughter was getting her feet wet with soccer games and was heavily involved in many school actives. I vowed that I would not miss any of her milestones and that I would be present for every step in her life. I joined PTA, cheered for her at soccer games, made cookies and brownies for the bake sales; I planned to be there. Two children later 10 years apart, I am maintaining that balance for my son as well, it takes a village, and I am blessed to have a village that supports my family dynamics.
Choosing to start a business at this impressionable age did not seem like the best idea. I spent a great bit of time in the beginning just trying to create a work-life balance as a Mompreneur. However, no matter how tough things got and how our regular family routine changed, I stuck with my vision and found creative ways to integrate both and pushed FiveThreeMoments Events forward as people like when you share a bit of your person life. There is a connection with being personable.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
During the start of the pandemic is when I realized I could not effectively proceed with business as usual. Events planning is an in-person togetherness that we typically think must be face to face. However, when the pandemic was upon us and the first rule of thumb was to stay in, isolate, do not socialize and if so, be sure to do so with caution. I thought, oh no, this cannot be the end of my small business. During this crucial time slow to no business, I began to brainstorm. I’ve always wanted to sale merchandise and thought this could be the time to do so. I began a partnership with a small local print shop for our t-shirt and hoodie ideas, we updated our website to add shopping capabilities and all types of ideas start to flow so that we can still be a business even in a pandemic. We wanted to proceed in a way that we could have a positive social impact and still bring beauty to the world. We created a t-shirt line to speak to what was and still is happening in the world today. We have Black Live Matter, Social Distance and Sparkle, King in Training, It’s the Vice-President, Ring Finger and our top seller, Busy Making our Ancestors Proud t-shirt line. It was and still is a labor of love birth from a pandemic that took us by surprise.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.ftmevents.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eventsftm/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fivethreemomentsevents/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tosha-d-a50595183
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/FTMEvents53
Image Credits
Deodrick Jackson Andrew Fellers