We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ashley St John. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ashley below.
Ashley , we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
I have always considered myself confident. When it came my physical appearance, I never felt like I needed any enhancements or never felt uncomfortable in my skin. When I started doing balloons is when I discovered that I wasn’t as confident as I had always thought I was. I would do mock setups and when it came time to post them, I would send the pictures to my mom or my sister and ask them for their opinion and ask them if they thought it was good enough to post and every time they would say yes. I would still think that it didn’t look good, and my mom would tell me “Post it and stop letting your anxiety win.” I would post it and then get like 75 shares and act shocked every time. I had to have pep talks with myself or with my mom and sister for about 9 months before I finally believed that my work was good. Now, when I hype myself up, I’m like “Girl, you did that!!!!” I’m still my biggest critic but I don’t pick myself apart like before, instead I look for areas of improvement while I admire it. I had to believe in myself like everyone else did and now my confidence shows through my work.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
My name is Ashley, I am the owner and operator of Pop Up Parties by Ashley. I have been in business for three years. I mostly offer balloon decorating services, but I also offer luxury picnics, decorated hotel services, and I customize and design items such as vinyl backdrops or anything else that can be used to make a theme for an event one of a kind. I absolutely love designing and creating themes that cannot be found in the stores. I guarantee that when you book with me, you will not find your design replicated anywhere else. Providing top-notch customer service is also important to me. This year I am focusing on building a team and increasing my brand awareness through marketing. I am currently enrolled at St. Petersburg College for business administration. I decided to take the entrepreneurial route in the middle of the pandemic with zero business skills and it has been a journey to say the least but here I am after three years and Pop Up Parties is continuing to grow. I am currently rebranding, and I am excited for all the things that I am releasing this year.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
I’m going to go with the three qualities that were and still are the most impactful in my journey. Perseverance, adaptability and integrity. For anyone that is just starting out I would say don’t give up!!! When something doesn’t work out as planned it does NOT that mean you failed, it just means you need to adjust your plan and keep going.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
I am currently looking for someone who makes treats to collab with and I would love to collab with some event planners that are looking for someone to do balloons and who I can refer my clients that request full events. I want to surround myself with other people in the industry so we can learn from each other. You can find me on Facebook and Instagram at Pop Up Parties by Ashley. Message me so we can create together!!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.xpresspartypopup.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pop_up_parties_by_ashley/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pop.up.parties.xpress/
