Garine: Hello! My name is Garine, I am the social media manager and marketing manager at Chair Decor. I wanted to first start by asking you a couple basic questions. What is your name, and the name of your company?
Jess: My name is Jessica Pompeo, and my company is JSP and Co.
Garine: How long have you been in the industry?
Jess: We have had the pleasure of working in events on many different levels and industry types (coordinating, catering, décor, non for profit, PR, fashion, dance and more) for 14+ years.
Garine: That is incredible! It is amazing to see a planner with such an extensive resume. What are your experiences with Chair Decor?
Jess: Chair Décor & The Whole Team have a very special place in our hearts. We have watched the team grow much alongside JSP and Co. for a few years now. The Crew is always so flexible, easy going and quick to help! Every year we have experienced the growth from new products, ideas and the team members being brought on board. They love to collaborate on new ideas, ways to utilize product and offer the best quality!
Garine: We feel the same way about you Jess! You have always been such a delight to work alongside. What do think the long term impact of COVID will have on the wedding/event industry? what does this mean for the future of the event industry?
Jess:
COVID has turned 2020 into the virtual year, which we feel will continue in years to come. We have been quite busy at learning new ways, tactics to navigate with different restrictions and allowances and work even quicker than ever on our feet! We gained a ton of knowledge as planners and clients to ask even more questions and details outlined to ensure all aspects of potential situations are covered and ensure the experience is what clients hoped for. We amongst many have been able to take advantage of all the virtual and online tools in the advanced technology available to us and connect in different ways. The truth of the event is also become very present, the reason we are here is to celebrate something. The industry is and will continue to involve in a way we probably never expected and will allow new opportunities in different types of events and connect with so many more individuals even quicker than an in person level. We have seen some truly memorable experiences evolve overnight this year in some of the smallest celebrations. It has provided us with a level of hope/experience to utilize as a positive tool for future clients and ourselves moving forward. Such community growth has really become present, where collaborations and support within vendors is allowing us multiple outlets to support each other in business and bring even more to offer to clients. We have seen and know that in the years to come the industry has become very open minded and focused back on the narrative of memorable experiences of celebration.
Garine: I completely agree, we have personally seen a lot of community growth/collaborations as well as a lot more of an open minded approach; Are there any exciting new projects you’d like to share?
Jess: We all had a little bit of “extra” time here and there in 2020 to exercise some new ideas or projects. We officially launched our #GiftedCelebrations program. The Focus is for our team to be your personal gift & celebration specialist. Curating the most memorable personalized experience for a gift recipient! By building an online platform and questionnaire for clients to fill out in 5minutes with as much detail as possible about the individual they are gifting, establishing a budget, we then put together the most thought out gift/celebration for that individual to keep and enjoy also while donating to some great non-profit local charities. The packages are built on utilizing our experience and knowledge with design, personal touches and local suppliers to support as many small businesses continual growth and to Celebrate! We have built small sympathy packages to full on mini for two wedding experiences no idea is too small or big as everything is custom built! Our objective was to create a celebratory experience within your own home, safe, with keepsake useful gifts as memories of celebrations! It is like an event in a gift!
Garine: This is absolutely exciting, you always have the most brilliant ideas! Thank you for sharing about your experiences with us, JSP and Co. as well as during this pandemic. We wish you the best of luck and are excited for our future endeavors.
