Vanessa Solis

I attribute a lot of my success to relationships. I grew up in a family where we celebrated anything and everything, big or small, so bringing people together has always felt natural to me.

That carried into the way I built Party Vault Eventures. Events are a relationship business. Clients are trusting you with important moments in their lives, vendors are trusting you to communicate clearly and lead well, and your team is trusting you to prepare them to succeed. I don't take any of those relationships lightly.

Some of my greatest business growth has come through repeat clients, referrals and relationships I've built within the event community. To me, that's one of the best measures of success. When someone trusts you enough to invite you back for another milestone or puts your name in front of someone they care about you know you've created something beyond a transaction.

I think my background as an educator contributed to that too. Teaching taught me to listen, communicate, adapt and meet people where they are. Those skills have been just as important to building this business as learning how to create a timeline or manage an event.

The best career advice I've received was to recognize the value I bring to the table.

That sounds simple, but it changed the way I approached my business. Once I truly understood the value of my experience, time and expertise, I became more comfortable setting boundaries, pricing my services appropriately and saying no to opportunities that weren't the right fit. In turn, I started attracting clients who were better aligned with the way I wanted to work.

I'm naturally a people pleaser, so boundaries are something I've had to learn and continue to practice. I've learned that saying yes to everything doesn't allow me to give my best.

Knowing your value isn't about believing you're better than someone else. It's understanding where you do your best work and creating enough space to do it well. That has allowed me to put more energy into the clients, events and partnerships where I know I can make the greatest impact.

Aside from investing in comfortable shoes, I would encourage young women not to be afraid to explore new avenues. I never imagined that event planning would become my career because I had always seen myself as a teacher. Being willing to pivot and jump into something new opened an entirely different path for me. I've had opportunities to work on weddings, mitzvahs, corporate events, festivals, galas and intimate backyard celebrations, and each one has taught me something different. Early on, it can be valuable to explore different types of events and experiences so you can discover where your strengths and interests are. My advice is to take a few risks, try new things, and give yourself permission to explore until you discover what you are truly passionate about.

I'd also encourage young women to learn the operational side of events, not just the beautiful side you see on social media. Learn what makes a successful timeline, contract, budgets, vendor communication, load-in, layout and contingency plan. That's where so much of your value as a professional is built.

I think one of the biggest opportunities in the event industry right now is helping clients move from inspiration to intentionality.

Between Pinterest, Instagram, TikTok and now AI, someone planning an event can find thousands of beautiful concepts in minutes. But more inspiration doesn't necessarily make planning easier. Sometimes it creates even more pressure to do everything, follow every trend or recreate something that may not make sense for their budget, venue or guests.

That's where I believe the role of an experienced event professional is becoming even more valuable. Our job isn't simply to bring an inspiration photo to life. It's to help clients determine what matters, what works logistically, where their budget will have the greatest impact and what they can confidently let go of.

I'm excited to see the industry continue shifting toward more personalized experiences and intentional celebrations. Beautiful design will always matter, but I believe the best events balance aesthetics with logistics, guest experience and meaning.

Technology can help us generate ideas and become more efficient, but it can't replace understanding the people in the room, reading an event as it's unfolding or making the judgment call that keeps a client present instead of pulling them back into the logistics. That's where the human side of event planning continues to matter.

Integrity is at the top of the list for me. I believe in doing what's right even when no one is watching and being honest with people even when the answer isn't necessarily what they hoped to hear.

In events, that can mean telling a client when an idea isn't the best use of their budget, acknowledging when something isn't within my expertise, treating vendors with the same respect I give clients or taking responsibility when something doesn't go according to plan. Trust is incredibly important when someone is handing you responsibility for a milestone they can't recreate.

I also value presence and relationships. Those values are connected for me because so much of life comes down to the people we experience it with.

That's ultimately what I want my work to protect. Yes, I want the timeline to work and the room to look beautiful. But more importantly, I want my clients to look back and remember that they were actually there for it and not managing vendors, answering questions or worrying about what was happening next.

If I've done my job well, they get to be a guest at their own celebration.