We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ursula Valencia a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Ursula, thanks for joining us today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?
Owning a business is hard but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ve worked for several different companies in my life and I always felt like I was building someone else’s dream with no time to build my own. Now that I own The Posh Unicorn, every bit of my time, energy, blood, sweat and tears goes directly toward building my own dream and that is so satisfying!
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
My name is Ursula Valencia and I’ve always loved Unicorns! I collected them when I was little, pretended every horse I ever rode was a unicorn and finally got my own horses, eh hmm, unicorns as an adult! I love all things mystical and magical, I love photography, I love setting up parties and I love creating environments where people can ‘escape’ to a happy place! For a long time, I tried to figure out how I could turn that into a career path. I thought about it for a while and eventually I was inspired by a few things that prompted me to create The Posh Unicorn. A mini horse, luxury picnics and my Mom! Let me elaborate. One day I was at the barn where I board my horses and a little white mini horse came to visit. I knew instantly I had to have one and would make her into a Unicorn that would fulfill every unicorn lovers’ dream…..but how could that be a business? Around the same time, I was seeing Luxury Picnics or “Boho” picnics pop up all over the parks and beaches I frequent. I thought, wow, what if I create a company where people could meet a unicorn, party with a unicorn and take magical pictures with a unicorn in a beautiful bohemian setting? My amazing Mom was a collector, an interior designer and an antique dealer in the 80’s & 90’s. She has all kinds of beautiful flower vases and dishes, goblets and embroidered linens and so much more. I watched her create so many beautiful settings over the years and thought, I could model after her vintage style with attention to every detail and create something unique and enchanting…with a unicorn. I started collecting her lace tablecloths, beautiful pillows & glassware, built some low tables and visualized beautiful luxury picnics and photoshoots in the Unicorn Forest! I bought my white mini horse, Willow, a few weeks later, ordered the cutest little pink saddle, bought and also made several unicorn horns and got to work on a website! I decided I would offer Unicorn Pony Parties, Magical Photoshoots and Luxury Picnics. I am most proud of how it all came together from my vision. I had to work hard to train Willow to be safe and sweet around kids and cooperative in front of a camera while developing a brand and a website. I had to find amazing photographers and do a lot of testing and promotional photoshoots to show what I was offering. I think the hardest part in the beginning was telling people, “I am opening a unicorn business”, and hoping they would take me seriously! Not only did I have to explain myself, I had to prove myself and prove that there was a demand for what I was offering. It wasn’t easy but I am now proud and confident when people ask me what I do and I can say, I own a unicorn pony party and luxury picnic company!
Can you open up about a time when you had a really close call with the business?
I started The Posh Unicorn in October 2021. I started to plan & organzie, build my website and social platforms, book photoshoots and Mommy & Me mini sessions with the unicorn, we did a rainbow pony party and a few sparkle pony parties, I was designing & executing luxury picnics, planning events for the holidays and it was going great! I was busy and thriving…..and then…..I almost died! In March 2022 I went to the ER with a severe stomach ache. I ended up with an emergency surgery, was in a coma for 2 days, spent 12 days in the hospital and came home with 9” of addominal staples and drainage tubes coming out of my belly. 50% of my colon had died and they didn’t know why but they had to remove it. It was a near death moment for me, but also for The Posh Unicorn! I couldn’t go to the barn to take care of my horses and my little unicorn. I couldn’t promote the business. I couldn’t even pay my bills or do my accounting for a few weeks. What saved the business was my wonderful barn family & my husband! The moment I got sick, my friends at the barn took over caring for my horses and didn’t stop until I got better! My husband and my friends were in constant communication with each other and they made sure all was taken care of! It’s important to surround yourself with good people who truly care and want the best for you. This near death experience proved that and I feel so blessed to have had that in place when I got sick! They weren’t going to let me fail and for that I am beyond grateful! Even when I started to recover, I was not allowed to lift anything over 15 lbs. That meant I couldn’t carry my 50lb supplement bags for the horse or load my suv & set up for a picnic. My husband and barn family stepped right in and helped me with all I needed until I was able to do it on my own. It took me several months but I eventually got there and I could not have done it without the help and compassion I received from them!
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
At first, the best source of new clients for The Posh Unicorn was friends and family, with a little help from social media. That, however, typically won’t sustain a business forever. I knew that, and I knew I had to get the general public to know who I was and know what I had to offer. I had a website, but, like many businesses just starting out, it wasn’t getting much traffic. Then I turned to an SEO expert who helped me start to rank on Google. That has been such a game-changer! Now, when someone types in Unicorn Pony Party, Unicorn Photoshoots in San Diego or Luxury Picnics in San Diego, my company comes up in their search! I have worked really hard to design my website properly (with the help of some great people) so I get the right kind of traffic. I can now proudly say that Google is my best source of new clients for The Posh Unicorn.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://theposhunicorn.com/
- Instagram: @the_posh_unicorn
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/poshunicorn
- Other: info@theposhunicorn Text or Call to book 619-846-5349
Image Credits
Brooke Carver, Melanie Monroe