Charizma Co. | Charizma Studio Launch
During my time at Charizma Co., the brand also launched the Charizma Studio space, which included a launch party for its grand opening to the public. This space is used as a private meeting area for events, creative and strategic planning, as well as collaborative work, productivity and a variety of workshops organized with Charizma Studio.
For the grand opening, I offered my expertise in media relations and contacts, as well as writing press releases, reaching out to the media to alert them of the opening and working on a timeline for the event and how to capture an event from start to finish.
Before the space was ready
Before the space was ready to go for the Launch Party, we were there every afternoon. Some days, I had to stay at the office alone (which downtown was no easy feat.), if people would be there to
Planning
Several weeks to one month prior for the event, we sat down as a team with our director, coordinator and myself. We discussed everything from the guest list, the planning stages of what should be included at the event (food, live performances, etc) to the flow of the evening and what each of our roles would be. I reached out to my friend who worked with local government to find out more on how to get the mayor to the event, as well as checking in with local media contacts should we try to open it up more to the community.
Making it happen
Our entire team worked on sending out invitations, whether it was via Instagram or creating a FloDesk account to send out high-quality invitations for those we knew personally. Liz and I hunkered down in the office to send out the invitations, reminders and kept track of those who had RSVP’D.
Adaptability
With any event, no matter how much you’ve planned or prepped, things don’t always go accordingly. There were many things thrown at myself and Liz at the last minute, just minutes before the opening and the time we were called to be there. We picked up water, soda and snacks at Sam’s Club, then event went to our office down the street to carry a desk downstairs and to the party for check in. Aside from that, I thought I might need to put together some graphics to print out from Kinko’s. It didn’t end up happening, after all, but I was eager to help where I could - Putting graphics together, asking questions and staying on top of it if I needed to.
Building connections
Throughout the evening, I mingled and met with people - some I’d known and others I hadn’t met before. Events truly come down to the art of connection. I was essentially a floater, able to wander around and see if anyone needed help, while also capturing digital content on my phone, just to make sure we had plenty of perspectives of the evening and guests attending.
This role and specifically being part of the studio’s grand opening taught me so much about planning and execution, the timing of everything and how important details are.