event planner Archives - Canadian Small Business Women

Sep 01 2015

Antoinette Dumuje: CANADIAN SMALL BUSINESS WOMAN OF THE MONTH OF AUGUST 2015

Antoinette Dumuje founder of Heavenz Décor Inc is one of the GTA’s most creative and innovative event producers. Since starting Heavenz Décor Inc. in December 2009, Antoinette has used her creative flare and attention to detail to produce memorable moments. From galas and non- profit events to fairytale weddings & milestones, Antoinette has left her signature on every occasion.

Each event produced reflects her fresh, unique sense of style, and knowledge of the latest industry trends. With a great team and dynamic employees, HDI makes her clients’ dreams a reality.

Heavenz Décor Inc stays abreast with the latest trends while still managing to set their own expectations and creativity with impeccable taste and style. Attention to detail makes them a true asset to the industry.

“ I have a great understanding of the big picture and an extensive knowledge of putting things together with flawless precision.” Antoinette Dumuje has “An inherent passion for planning, with creative flair for visual concept design and culinary compliments.”

Our Q & A with Antoinette

*What inspires you?

I am inspired by much and not limited to anything!

Recently I have taken a deeper look into my lifes journey and realized that my DREAMS are my greatest inspirations, as I been neglecting mines and busy building others to achieve their own. I want to be the best version of me. So I continue to remind myself that it is okay that I am not perfect. I try to learn, read new ideas, and words everyday. What inspires me is todays children and youth as they are our future. I have a deep passion and love for them, as I work on a project(Entrepreneurs On The Rise) to help our youth to become the man/woman they are destined to be. Inspiration comes in many forms that motivate me, strong work ethics, ambition, hard working individuals, positivity, creativeness, and open minded people.

My greatest inspiration is my husband and children they encourage, support, and always motivate me to keep perservering my dreams and passions.

*As a small business owner, what achievements make you most proud?

I am pleased to say that my charisma and love for décor had me ailing to thrive by making nothing into something. Based on my creativity it started to go to another level. Not only was I passionate for Interior Décor, but high upscale events, weddings, and corporate events had me wanting to elevate. Based on my expertise in the industry I started my own business in 2009 Heavenz Décor Inc and went on to receive certification as a wedding planner. Previous to that I had a trucking company and also a truck driver. Since my first business I have birthed 3 more and it was because of the Entrepreneurial spirit. I have a personal drive to excel, persistence, determination and the desire to push beyond measure. I was very passionate about Entrepreneur

ship so I decided to take on the challenge and see it through completion with a strong team. With that being said one of my current projects is Entrepreneurs On The Rise which is a leading platform for bringing the latest information, development concerning

entrepreneurship and start up. We are currently helping entrepreneurs to bring their new and innovative ideas to the marketplace.

*What advice would you give to other aspiring small business owners?

Do what you love. Businesses built around your strengths and talents will have a greater chance of success.

Our Mission statement –

“Dreams and visions get stagnated, never allow the lack of resources to be your obstacle of failure”

*What new things can we look forward to from your business in the upcoming year?

Heavenz Décor Inc will now be an exclusive luxury rental company for all your events needs. It will be our Sister Store Called Toronto Luxury Décor Inc. We will be starting our new line as of October 1, 2015 in the Brampton area. Also look out for this years 2nd annual Entrepreneurs On The Rise as we will be partnering with some great business and companies in the industry. We have an amazing line up of Guests speakers, workshops, and entertainment.

http://heavenzdecor.com

IG: @heavenzdecor

Twitter: @heavenzdecorinc

Jul 01 2015

Cassandra Scully: Canadian Small Business Woman of the Month of June 2015

Cassandra Scully, is the Owner and Event Stylist of Creative Elegance. Creative Elegance is a Toronto based event planning company with a niche for creating custom designs for special events.

In 2003, Cassandra became a Certified Wedding and Event Planner through The Wedding Planners Institute of Canada, but not before becoming a professional Merchandiser at Seneca College in Toronto. It was during her Merchandising course that Cassandra tapped into and became in sync with her creative flare and realized that she has a passion and desire to create beautiful and innovative pieces.

Creative Elegance is renowned for their custom bridal bouquets which meets, and at times, exceeds expectations, visions and within budgets. As an extension to her bridal bouquets Cassandra has added the in-famous toss “Panty Bouquet” which adds a much needed uniqueness to the traditional rose and floral bouquets. Instead of using typical flowers Cassandra takes the time and her creativity to transform undergarments into beautifully shaped roses and arrange them into a Bouquet… the catcher always gets a surprise!

With the growth of her company Cassandra plans, styles, and coordinates all types of special events and weddings, gearing towards all budgets, size and dynamics.

Cassandra didn’t stop there, she became a certified Stager in 2014 – you can now benefit from the luxury of having the Creative Elegance touch inside of your home whether you are buying or selling – moving or staying! Cassandra sets the stage for your sale and designs for your stay.

Cassandra prides herself on staying on top of current trends in all facets of the wedding, events and staging industry.
Cassandra will always give you an exclusive and custom Creative Elegance experience

Our Q & A with Cassandra:

*What inspires you?
My kids. I always try my hardest to lead by example. I want to show my girls how to be a strong women and show my son that its never too late to chase your dreams and that if you work hard enough you can achieve anything.

*As a small business owner, what achievements make you most proud?
My proudest moment is definitely seeing my client’s reactions after I set up their vision. Seeing how happy they are that their special day is complete is the most rewarding feeling. I think that anyone with a business, big or small, can most certainly relate.

*What advice would you give to other aspiring small business owners?

The advice I would give to an upcoming individual with that creative flair is to be true to themselves, and to live their truth. Let your individuality shine through and do not comprise yourself to “fit in” for being a creative individual because you were born to stand out.

*What new things can we look forward to from your business in the upcoming year?
My brand is expanding, and we are now offering new products and services, some of which are; custom/bridal TuTu Skirts, printed Bridal Tanks & Tees and gum ball necklaces/bracelets for kids events. As well, my brand is now venturing into the staging industry both residential and commercial. One other thing you can look out for this is my collaboration with two other amazing event planners in Toronto (Heavenz Décor & Ki-Events), together we have formed an organization called CAKEvents. CAKEvents is an organization that focuses on the youths and brides on a budget as well giving back to our community

Connect with Cassandra

info@creativeelegance.ca
www.creativeelegance.ca
www.facebook.com/creativeelegance
Follow us on Twitter @creativelegance

May 01 2015

Keisha Pinto: Canadian Small Business Woman of the Month of April

Keisha Pinto, Owner/Event Planner-Stylist-Coordinator of Ki-Events, a full-service event planning boutique specializing in lifestyle events. Since the launch of her business in September 2014, Keisha has been building her network and business by connecting with the most influential, established and game changing individuals in Toronto. Keisha keeps on top of the trends to plan, style and coordinate breath-taking signature looks that wow her client’s expectations every time! Keisha Plans and styles each one of her events from conception to execution without missing any of the fine details. Growing up Keisha has always been a very coordinated person, with a keen eye for details…”everything had to match”. Her passion for event planning ignited once she entered into the corporate field in 2001. She became more involved in the planning and execution of the social and networking events for her organization, which really sparked her interest even more. To educate herself in becoming a certified Event Planner, Keisha enrolled part-time at George Brown College in Toronto where she completed the Event Meeting and Management Program. During the course of the program, Keisha received extensive training, teachings and gained experience from some of Toronto’s best special events, meeting and conference planners. Keisha’s passion for event planning is evident in every event she creates.

You can find and view her work at www.kievents.ca You can also find Ki-Events on the following social media handles:

Instagram: kievents

Twitter: @_ki_events

Facebook: KeishaPinto kievents.

Pinterest: kievents

Our ! & A with Keisha

*What inspires you?
I love what I do! My passion for Event Planning inspires me..it is that simple! Every event is different and brings a different type of inspiration, my passion for loving what I do is evident in every event I create.

*As a small business owner, what achievements make you most proud?
As a small business owner, the achievements that makes me the most proud is that I am able to balance life, being a mother , supportive partner and small business owner while holding down a 9-5, this makes me the most proud, knowing that with all that life throws at you I am still standing and standing strong. As we all know life can get crazy and they are days when you want to throw in the towel…and then you are reminded of your whys and the passion that you have for loving what you do.

*What advice would you give to other aspiring small business owners?
My advice to aspiring small business owners is to know yourself and know your worth. Do not ever sell yourself short for anyone. One of the worst things an aspiring business owner can do is compromise themselves and don’t stand up for what they believe in.

*What new things can we look forward to from your business in the upcoming year?
2015 Ki-Events will be expanding the business and brand…not only by supporting other businesses and events, but we are offering new services and products, aside from planning-coordinating & styling of events. We are now offering products such paper flowers, which is trending this year, customize Sweet Tables/Candy Buffet packages. Ki-Events is also going be adding a new extension to the brand “Ki-Notes” offering writing of sponsorship request letters, vendor request, events/wedding itineraries, programs/agendas, bios, resumes and social media postings. Most importantly Ki-Events has collaborated with two other amazingly talented wedding/event planners in Toronto Cassandra Scully, owner of Creative Elegance and Antoinette Dumuje, Owner of Heavenz Decor Inc. together we are CAKEvents, an organization formed to give back to the community, youths and brides on a budget, one event at a time. Look out for us!

Nov 01 2013

Gabriella Mammone – Canadian Small Business Woman of the Month of October 2013

“One of the greatest goals I ever achieved was learning how to make myself cry of laughter”, says Gabriella Mammone. Gabriella has faced that awkward moment of laughing hysterically and unable to control her authentic sobbing.

Gabriella is a devoted wife, a loving mother, a serial event planner, a public speaker, a motivational ambassador and an active volunteer. She has a zest for life and appreciates the small things that life has to offer – hot apple cider, an orange gerbera daisy and a warm blanket.

Gabriella lives daily with multiple sclerosis. She experiences extreme lethargy, cognitive issues, numbness, loss of balance, weakness and extensive itching/tingling. She has over 16 lesions in her brain and 2 in her spinal cord. Despite her innumerable daily challenges, she attacks each day with a smile and successfully reached her goal of inspiring others.

As an active volunteer with the MS Society, Gabriella helps with the MS Walks, golf tournaments and other fundraising initiatives. She is also an Ambassador with the MS Society of Canada, advocating on behalf of people living with MS. Annually she visits Queen’s Park to raise awareness with decision makers about select priority issues for people living with chronic conditions and disabilities.

Gabriella is a serial philanthropist and event planner. She is the Event Director of Family Jingle & Mingle, a shared Christmas celebration for companies and families in support of The Children’s Wish Foundation of Canada. www.jingleandmingle.ca

An entrepreneur, Gabriella is the Passionate Owner and Gift Guru of Occasion Giftware, www.occasiongiftware.com, an online gift store catering to weddings, showers, and religious events including baptisms, first holy communions and confirmations.

Gabriella is also the Managing Partner at Senso 3C, www.senso3c.com, an organization that helps companies source, develop and retain their people. Gabriella actively develops their business resources division assisting companies with training, development and the planning of their corporate events. She also provides operational support to the talent division that assists companies find staff for their organizations.

She was featured on CBC’s hit TV show, Dragons’ Den and although she didn’t expect the unfavourable outcome, she quickly bounced back and has become an excellent guest speaker.

Talk about an inspiring woman! Gabriella continues to motivate people and is truly an inspirational presenter and keynote speaker. She believes that volunteering adds to her life. In 2013, she earned a Community Civic Award, presented by Mayor Hazel McCallion and members of council for her positive contributions to the City of Mississauga, ON.

Is she a busy gal? Yes she is. Gabriella’s passion is built on her personal experience of living with MS and finding the humour in her ‘interesting’ life. She is enthusiastic and relentless in her message that success if available to anyone, even for those that have an illness or disease. We will encounter many defeats in our lives, but Gabriella strives to never be defeated. She encourages you to find the humour in your situations and sends you this message: “make yourself cry of laughter”.

Our Q & A with Gabriella Mammone

What inspires you?

There is nothing like positive thinking to get me psyched! I am inspired by my son’s mind – he’s only 5 and yet he is completely logical in his own passions and interests. I am inspired by the progression of people – I very much enjoy spending time with colleagues and seeing them grow as their confidence increases. I am inspired by driven and passionate people – seeing others achieve their goals empowers me. I am inspired by people that have strong ethics and go out of their way to make a positive impact in the lives of others. I am inspired by volunteers that selflessly donate their time and exemplify the spirit of giving back. I respect and honour my inspiration for I am grateful that I am able to make changes, not excuses. Here’s to inspiration!

As a small business owner, what achievements make you most proud?

I remain strong in the face of adversity. I am not afraid of a challenge and have an uncanny ability to bounce back after a setback. I was on the television show Dragon’s Den, for example, and truly felt humiliated by one of the Dragons. Looking back at the video, I felt that I handled the situation with grace and professionalism and didn’t let the comments bring me down. I was grateful for the opportunity and thankful that it opened new doors for me…new doors that I created. I am most proud of the leadership that I provide to the MS Society of Canada and those affected by illnesses.

What advice would you give to other aspiring small business owners?

Make an action plan to achieve your goals. In business, we make action plans for marketing campaigns and projects. Why not create a detailed step-by-step plan for achieving your own personal goals? The steps that you take will help you keep focused on achieving your goals. ‘Action planning’ your goals will help you focus on your ideas and decide what steps you need to take to achieve your milestones. Each step you take is a journey and will create new priorities and keep you organized. As you achieve your personal goals, the passion and success will translate into your business and objectives.

What new things can we look forward to from your business in the upcoming year?

Family Jingle & Mingle 2013 will have an awesome silent auction and fun surprises in store. Next year we will work with another charity to help them raise valuable funds. I personally plan to do more public speaking and motivate those faced with adversity. I am working on a book and am excited to learn more about the publishing process.

Contact Gabriella (aka Gaby) at:

www.gabriellamammone.com

www.jingleandmingle.ca

www.senso3c.com

www.occasiongiftware.com

twitter.com/gabymammone

YouTube: Gabriella Mammone

LinkedIn: Gabriella Mammone