Today we’d like to introduce you to Angel Dauphine.
Hi Angel, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started as an Event Planner in the corporate world. I planned corporate meetings, holiday parties and then moved into higher education where I planned events on a much larger scale. I planned college alumni events with car shows, poker runs, concerts, dinners along with the company picnic. I also created and planned an event called Technology services which was to introduce Staff and Students to the current and new information technology items implemented on campus. From there, I planned my first wedding for my cousin who was marrying a pro golfer. They were traveling on tour, so I handled all aspects of their wedding, from the venue and all vendors to the china patterns, menu, invitations, toasting flutes, and more. That was almost seventeen years ago. That was my introduction into private events, and it took off by itself. After my cousins’ wedding, her friends contacted me because they were getting married, and then it evolved to baby showers next and then toddler parties. I planned my cousins baby shower, then every one of her two daughters’ parties, and her other parties as well to this date! It’s been an amazing journey. So, I branched out on my own and opened a small wedding and event shop in Nederland, Texas. I also started an ETSY shop selling diy wedding and party accessories. My business and level of events continued to grow. However, I eventually made the decision to return to work full-time. I went back to work in the higher ed industry for the Lamar University football department, where I planned tailgate activities, suite dinners, football banquet and fundraiser, Football Alumni events, travel for the team and team events, and so much more. It was an amazing experience, and I definitely checked a lot of fun events off of my bucket list. After Hurricane Harvey, quite a bit changed. I left my job, sold my house in Nederland, bought an Airstream, and moved to the beach for a while. While in transition, my cousins and I were discussing opening a business together, and we couldn’t quite determine what we wanted to do. Eventually, we all decided we should go into the event industry since I already had so much experience and I had quite a bit of rental inventory that I had held on to. So, I moved to Spring in the Airstream named Georgia. We opened in February of 2018. We did our first bridal show at the Marriott in the Woodlands and literally drove the Airstream inside and displayed it as a traveling Bridal Suite or photo booth. We spent the first year and a half networking, learning our industry, learning who we were as a brand and what we needed to do to be different, and here we are in our sixth year of business in the greater Houston area. I run the business completely on my own now, and every piece of the business has grown and continues to evolve. Covid quarantine was a huge turning point for our business. We stopped working completely and had to immediately determine ways to become relevant and necessary. It took many out-of-the-box thoughts and transitions, and it boosted us quickly into our most successful year. Now the business provides a wide variety of services, including planning, coordinating, bussing, serving, bartending along with many rental options from linens and tables and chairs to china, decorations, backdrops, balloons, and more. Our specialty is offering all-inclusive events, which may include a venue, all vendors, all rentals and decor, sweets, and so much more. We are excited to be growing our corporate clients and contacts working with grand openings, ribbon cuttings, large corporate celebrations, and more. Stages Great Events is proud to be woman-owned.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
We have faced many challenges along the way to building a successful small business. There were many conversations during the first two years about how we would make it and if we wanted to continue to try making it as we kept putting in money with little to no profit. Stepping into a new area in any industry is difficult. First of all, I moved here in an Airstream that I was living in full time. We planned to rent it out for wedding and events, so I was constantly moving it and moving all personal items in and out of it. Though it was an amazing idea it was a bit ahead of the trend, so it didn’t take off the way we hoped it would. We seriously networked forever. We joined the chamber and met so many amazing mentors that helped mold us into the company that we are today. I picked up a part-time job in the food industry to make extra money but also to help gain knowledge on that side of the industry. I learned so much that I was able to implement and use to our advantage in growing and offering new services. My business partner cousin went back to work full-time the struggles through covid, so I ended up with so much more responsibility and juggling the business mainly on my own. Even though our business is successful at this time, it does not come without costs and lots of sacrifice. I put everything on the line and am slowly starting to reap the benefit finally getting paid and having a profitable business. I currently manage 100% of the business myself. I do 90% of the deliveries (loading and unloading, set up, break down) myself with workers as we can find them. I work most events myself though now we have so many that there are a lot of Staff that work events on their own. I am still physically exhausted daily from the heavy rentals, working in the elements, and keeping up with a warehouse that is a hot mess. That in itself is an entire job on its own.
As you know, we’re big fans of Stages Great Events. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
Stages Great Events is a wedding and event planning, rental, and staffing company located in Spring. We service the entire greater Houston area traveling further East towards Beaumont and North towards Brenham, Bryan, and College Station. We are located in a Warehouse off of 99 and 45 in Spring. We have a wide variety of rentals in stock that can be rented individually or can be included in an event package. The rentals range from tables and chairs, linens and decor, to large carts, backdrops, full decorations, margarita machine, uplighting, and much more. We plan and assist with events on all levels: Weddings, baby showers, birthday parties (for all ages), dinners, prom or high school banquets, graduation parties, corporate picnics, holiday parties, ribbon cuttings, grand openings, mixers, and more. We work in all areas at any venue, community location, or backyard. We offer Staff services which include bartending, set up, and breakdown of decor along with decorating, table bussing, buffet servers, wait staff, valet services, and planning or coordinating. We specialize in all-inclusive events, which may be a birthday party that includes a venue, all vendors, all decor, food, sweets, favors, games, etc. This allows our client to get everything they want while only working with one client who manages all aspects. It also allows them to make one payment vs. paying all different vendors for different services and rentals. We research vendors and options constantly, so this allows us to provide the best options for our clients. We also love being able to work with other vendors in this industry. We have a wide variety of rentals and services that we offer, which some coordinators, party planners do not have, so we gladly offer a discount to vendors who book us for their clients. If a coordinator has a client looking for rentals that they don’t carry we love to open our inventory options to them to work together as a team. It gives us all a wider spectrum to provide, which in turn benefits us all. There are so many planners, coordinators, and rental companies in our area, and what makes us different is the ability to always think outside of the box. If there is a demand, then I try to find a way to fulfill it. That is how we started providing Staff services which is a huge portion of our business. I also like to tell Vendors while networking that we can provide everything because if you make what you provide available to us then we can bundle it and provide it too. So, building solid relationships with vendors is crucial for us all. Our slogan is Creating great events for all stages of your life, and that is what our goal always is. We want to make the process easier for our clients, no matter who our client is. Another part that makes us unique is that we are woman-owned. We are a small business, and most of the time when we show up to deliver or work events it is mostly females. People tend to ask where the guys are as we pull in with the trailer in tow, unload all the heavy items, whip out the power tools to construct something onsite, and we just smile with pride. Now don’t get me wrong at all. We do have some male workers, and they are a great asset. We are proud of our team as a whole, and we hope to share what we can with the event industry one great event at a time.
What matters most to you?
This is a hard question simply because it isn’t always the focus. A lot of times, I work hard and am exhausted to get through the work week or weekend. I work many hours and miss a lot of fun times, days off, and events that I would have loved to attend. I lived on a very strict budget for many many years with so much sacrifice simply trying to get a business off the ground that could grow, become profitable, and help people along the way. In business, what matters most is doing things correctly. It is so important to me to be known as a dependable, hard-working, and honest company. We work so hard and give everything to make sure we do our best and to provide what our client wants and needs. It goes far beyond the actual physical work. It starts with communicating and building a relationship with clients and vendors, which rewards us with clients that continue to return event after event, year after year. It matters so much that people like the quality of product that we provide, the level of customer service that they receive, and that people want to work with us. We have built so many amazing relationships with vendors and clients that always use us for their events or their clients’ events, and they continuously refer us. It speaks volumes about what we have built and hopefully keeps us headed in the direction that we can continue in. On the flip side of that, it is so important to me to have time to spend with my Grandson while he is off for holiday breaks or summer, and this business allows a flexible schedule, at times, where he can work with me, or we can spend the weekdays together since most of my physical events are on weekends. It is so much work but so rewarding at the same time.
Pricing:
- Coordinating 600-1200
- Planning 1600-2400
- Tables 12
- Chairs 2.50
- Staff $25-45
Contact Info:
- Website: www.stages-greatevents.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/stagesgreatevents
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/stagesgreatevents
- Other: www.tiktok.com/stagesgreatevents
