We recently connected with Cassie LaMere and have shared our conversation below.
Cassie, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
I keep my creativity alive by immersing myself in one-of-a-kind travel experiences and studying innovators across multiple industries.
During my travels, I intentionally seek out opportunities to experience the best of what a destination has to offer, so that I can continue to evolve my understanding of hospitality. By observing masters of their craft, I am inspired to incorporate into the events we produce new ideas, methods for creating an experience, or setting the scene for a luxury environment. The only way I can deliver that level of experience for our clients and guests is to intimately know how each detail and each step of service is executed.
I spend a lot of time researching and looking outside of our industry for inspiration. I prefer to examine what brands and innovators are putting forward in their respective industries and how we can take those principles and apply them to our work. I am constantly learning and absorbing new concepts, without necessarily knowing where they’ll be implemented. I consider this my archive of ideas that I have on-hand: I’m always filing away ideas, knowing that the right event and opportunity will present itself and I’ll be prepared with the perfect concept to match.
For example, I read an article in a magazine about a classically trained French chef who had an expertise in creating pop-up, roving dinner experiences in exclusive locations around the world. His story and point of view stood out to me, and I remember thinking that I’d love to work with him on an event. Two years later, a client commissioned us to build a fully customized experience in a remote location and right away, I knew exactly who I needed to call. We ended up delivering the most incredible experience at that event and it all began with a story from a magazine that inspired me.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Our mission is to design events for a life well lived. My goal is for our clients to look back on their lives and know that they seized the opportunities to celebrate, gather, inspire, and make memories. It is an absolute privilege to play a role in such important occasions and to set the scene for a gathering that will live on in people’s hearts and minds long after the party ends.
I believe that our memories are rooted in experiences and our team is committed to delivering the ultimate experience for each of our events. It’s a level of dedication to getting the details exactly right that drives our laser-focused approach and takes our events to the next level.
It’s pretty amazing to think of the ephemeral nature of events and how yet, they leave such a lasting impact. Behind the scenes, a massive team of people work for months, even years on an event before it ever even takes place. There’s this magic that happens when something pops-up that never previously existed and then typically, in a matter of hours, it’s gone. Good enough is never the bar and it’s exciting to know that our events will leave an indelible mark on those who had the opportunity to experience the event.
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?
What has been impactful for my journey is I think expansively without limits, which helps us to make the sometimes seemingly impossible happen. A few of the qualities that have gotten me to where I am today are humility, curiosity, and my meticulous nature.
First and foremost, humility is and will remain at the forefront of everything we do. It is an extreme honor to be invited to be a part of these often intimate, personal, or milestone moments for our clients and we will always maintain a mentality of being in service to others. Our role is to make our clients shine and provide them the gift of being able to be present and truly enjoy their event.
Since a young age, I have always had this spark of curiosity that has driven me to seek out new experiences and learn about the “why” in every story. When I have an interest in a particular subject matter, I like to dissect the details and understand how it was created, why it was meaningful, and the challenges it took to get there. This has helped me be well-rounded in various topics and industries, which greatly influences and inspires our work, as well as our ability to build relationships with a diverse group of individuals and companies.
We wouldn’t be where we are today if I didn’t apply a meticulous eye and fanatical attention to detail to everything we do. My nature is to be exacting, to continue to refine and perfect until the project I am working on is exactly right. This approach requires dedicating a much more significant amount of time and resources to an event to achieve this standard. Over my 15 years as an event planner, this quality has become a signature of our events and is common thread throughout our whole team. As a boutique agency, we intentionally only take on a select number of clients and events each year, so that we can give each event the time and attention it deserves. When we’re operating at this level of detail and execution, there’s a particular artistry (and let’s be honest, obsession) that is required to excel.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I guess you could say we’re in our collaboration era! Our job wouldn’t be possible without the collaboration of others, and we are always looking for inspiring and talented individuals or brands to create with. We invest a lot of time in developing relationships with new vendors and partners in various markets. Our clients expect the best and we want to continue to establish a talented roster of vendors, artisans, and team members that we can engage for our events.
Additionally, our company is working on some exciting new endeavors that will offer unique opportunities for collaboration. As experts on events and entertaining, we find that people are interested in how we entertain. For example, we often get asked what gifts we select for occasions, what new decor ideas we are incorporating, or what trends are ahead for events. We are energized by this level of connection and ability to share our expertise, so much so that we are seeking new ways to bring inspiration and our favorite products to our party-loving community.
We encourage anyone to reach out via Instagram or our website to connect!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cassielamereevents.com/
- Instagram: @cassielamereevents
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassielamereevents/
Image Credits
Images Courtesy of Dagnushka and Shannon Skloss
