Here at The Portland Masonic, we work with so many wonderful vendors! As you may know, the Maine Wedding Industry is HUGE! We are always meeting new people and creating new relationships. Because we love meeting new people and supporting fellow weddings industry peeps, we wanted to start Meet Vendors Monday (#mvm). We found some of our favorite vendors and asked them questions about their business, what motivates them, and what they do during the off-season. TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOUR COMPANY! My name is Lauren Myers, I’m the owner and creative designer behind Lauren Rachel, custom invitation and day of material design company. I pride myself on the ability to collaborate with couples on unique designs that represent them and their love story. Making one-of- kind designs using my skill sets in illustration, painting and fondness of paper, brings me great joy and pleasure. I believe the first impression for a wedding guest is captured in their mailboxes. Each couple is special, so why would they settle on their wedding stationary to be a template that hundreds of other engaged couples have used? WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO GET INTO THE BUSINESS? I decided to get into the business after having dabbled in wedding invitation design for family and friends for over 3 years. Once I started getting referrals from outside my circle I thought I would give it a go professionally. I also had been laid off from an Advertising Agency (50+ hours a week) which allowed me to dedicate more time to creating a business plan and hitting the ground running with research around local wedding businesses to start networking with. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF YOUR JOB? I love working with people and researching. I enjoy collaborating with other vendors for styled shoots as well as working with planners and couples to really personalize the experience of a one-of- kind design. I’m constantly seeking out new vendors for printing or new resources for paper so I can offer the best quality and most unique options to my couples. Plus PAPER is my jam! WHAT’S SOMETHING YOU LEARNED OVER THE YEARS YOU WOULD PASS ALONG TO OTHERS LOOKING TO START THEIR OWN BUSINESS? For any small business it takes time and there are a lot of ebbs and flows when you are a small team. It will always be hard work. Try to stay connected on a personal level with your network(folks within your industry), get to know the other businesses and demographics well so you have an understanding of where you fit into the puzzle. WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO IN YOUR TIME AWAY FROM WORK? I’m a new mom so I would have to say spending time with my family. Away from my family I am in a “not so serious” book club and I do yoga! WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT IN YOUR BUSINESS? My first client under my business name. The client came in via my websites form, it had been the first one to use my form. I felt an oversized amount of joy and pride since getting a website up in 2 months was crazy for me. After working with the couple, I learned a lot from them but still enjoyed the process as much as I remember before I had all the kinks worked out. WHAT MAKES YOU DIFFERENT FROM OTHERS IN YOUR FIELD?
Every designer is unique, while my design style doesn’t follow the same way as other designers, I specifically work with clients to create something from scratch. My designs are individual and in the spirit and likeness of my couples making the keepsake mementos for their special day. ARE THERE ANY TRENDS THAT YOU ABSOLUTELY LOVE OR WOULD LOVE TO SEE LEFT BEHIND? Trends… not my cup of tea but none the less I do still get a lot of requests for the trendiest stuff from blush and gold palettes to farm style burlap. I prefer to leave the trendy stuff to the cookie cutter invitations online! IF YOU COULD DO ANYTHING ELSE IN THE WORLD, WHAT WOULD YOU DO? Travel all expenses paid with my family! If you want to learn more about Lauren Rachel Custom Invitation Designs follow her on Instagram & Facebook. Don't forget to check out her awesome website! |