Today we’d like to introduce you to Yasmine Boisson and Sandrine Boisson Francis.
Sandrine, Yasmine, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Sandrine: First off, here’s an honest disclaimer: I am a talker. Way more than Yasmine. Please don’t hold it against me!
If I’m being honest, never in a million years did I ever expect to be working in a creative field, let alone call myself an artist (still get a strange feeling of resistance when I say that out loud). Growing up on a small island in Haiti, with a very tiny fraction of the population being able to afford any type of basic education, a path in arts was reserved for the stereotypical barefoot boho long haired artist who spent their days throwing paint around a canvas and never made any money, living out of their studio, sustained by love and water. We had such a limited knowledge as to how broad the arts were, and the extensive amount of lucrative career paths that were actually out there. If you didn’t become a doctor or a lawyer, you inherited some sort of family business. This was life as we knew it. So, naturally, I started off in the sciences, you know biology physics and chemistry, but somehow ended up getting my Bachelor’s in Political Science from the University of Montreal, which clearly meant I HAD to go into law, right? Got a Paralegal degree from the University of Miami so I could work through my years in Law School, but before enrolling, I went on to obtain a Master’s in International Administration (also from UM), which had me traveling and living in Prague for 4 months taking some International Law courses. Getting back from Prague and graduating, I started to prep for the LSAT, and decided to take an internship at a lifestyle and event Public Relations firm in Miami Beach, with offices in NYC and LA. This is where my journey changed. Although I wasn’t necessarily loving the media side of PR, our event production section had me hooked! We produced several high end and heavily branded events for major companies, such as Grey Goose, and I loved every minute of the craziness.
During my time there I got engaged and started planning my wedding, as well as participating in that of several of my friends and family also getting married around the same time period, and I was instantly drawn into this industry. Everybody associates weddings with some sort of frilly, girly industry, full of unnecessary expenses and ridiculous Barbie like glamour. They literally have no idea the mental, emotion AND physical strength it takes to put an event, no matter how seemingly small, and the amount of attention to every little itty bitty detail that creates an experience for unsuspecting guests who so often take what we do for granted. When I realized I wanted to work the wedding and events industry, I plunged head on, taking every shadowing and assisting job I could get, getting certified, even working back of house at major hotels to get a truly rounded experience. I added national and international workshops to my training, and completed a Masters in Hospitality and Tourism from Florida International University. I started my own company Ambyans Events, taking on my own clients, all the while working freelance to gain experience.
I realized that as much as I loved planning all the details of a wedding or event, planners often get left out of the entire design aspect because very few clients can actually afford the added costs of design services, and I craved the participation, the actual “get your hands dirty” aspect of designing an event. I’ve always admired the work of the amazingly talented floral designers I was blessed to work with through the years of planning and producing events, and never imagined it would ever be something I would be capable of doing, I mean I came from a scientific background, not an art background, who was I kidding. But florals are such a huge aspect of transforming an event into an actual experience, they bring so much raw beauty and personality, and are a focal point often times for choosing the rest of the elements which will play in the overall design. I figured this would be my way of being a part of the overall design process. I knew nothing about flowers, I couldn’t even keep a cactus alive (seriously…), and I was scared out of my wits. But I took the leap anyway, and started taking floral design classes, both on the technical and design side, and eventually enrolled in the Flower School NY to complete their Floral Design Certificate and have been hooked ever since. Fast Forward to summer 2016, my cousin and partner in crime Yasmine decides to leave the Hotel industry behind after over 16 years working Catering and Convention Services. Not only as an accomplished professional with years of industry experience, contacts and history, but also as an incredibly talented creative with impressive calligraphy and hand lettering skills, we realized the next step to elevating ourselves would be to join forces. And so, without even thinking twice, a spark was ignited and Maison Francis Design Co was born.
When I’m not working, you can find me traveling, as far as I can go, for as long as I can go, exploring and discovering. My travels, filled with beautiful sites and delectable food and drinks, inspire everything in my life. There’s nothing quite as magical. And my daughter. Words can’t describe what it means to be Athena’s mama. Never could I have imagined a tiny little human would be my greatest source of joy and sadness, love and pain, and pure unconditional bliss.
Yasmine: Well let me start by saying I was not the girl that dreamt of being a wedding planner, I never really even dreamt of my own Wedding when I was younger. My dream was to be a Fire Fighter! However, after a knee injury, I momentarily derailed from my path of becoming a firefighter with all intentions of going back. That was about 20 years ago. I started my hospitality adventure, at the Mayfair House Hotel in Coconut Grove, without knowing where to being, so I did it all, Front Desk, Human Resources, Sales, Executive Office. Slowly discovering my passion for planning, whether it was internal or external, social or corporate, it called out to my heart. I developed and spread my expertise to the Orange Bowl Committee, then the Westin Beach Resort Fort Lauderdale, followed by the prestigious Fontainebleau Miami Beach, before joining the team that revamped the Trump National Doral, and finally ending my rounds in the hotel world as Regional Director of Events for the Morgans Hotel Group, which included the hip South Beach hot-spots Shore Club and Mondrian.
My heart belongs to my family (near and far), reading, and all things outdoors and indulging in delicious food and beverage (it’s a passion. Some may call it a problem). I have a deep love for the Arts, having been a dancer from age three through college at the University of Miami. GO CANES!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Sandrine: That one I can answer with absolute certainty… never at any point has this entrepreneurial journey been anything close to a smooth road. Even when you think everything is finally going right, some new obstacle you hadn’t even thought of pops its little head and makes you question everything all over again. Whether it be losing momentum and clients, your work affecting your family, home and social life, taking on clients you probably shouldn’t have, feeling burnt out, dealing with the reality that clients and vendors are people, and people come with personalities and quirks which need to be handled with care.
There are so many struggles we face on a daily basis that most outsiders are completely oblivious about. As small business owners we wear every single hat, from janitor to CEO, and everything in between. They rarely realize when they ask us for discounts or get offended at our pricing, that if you were to truly put value where it is deserved, we are actually severely underpaid. That in and of itself is a daily struggle, educating clients or finding the ones who value your art. Putting your energy into proposals only to have clients vanish on you because they are incapable of understanding the pricing behind a creative business. It drains you. But the single biggest obstacle in my opinion is the internal and constant battle with the imposter complex. Feeling like we’re not good enough, doubting our abilities, comparing ourselves with every single person out there regardless of where they may be in their journey, thinking we won’t ever reach success, which is such a fleeting concept. Comparison truly is the thief of joy.
The obstacles are countless and there’s always something at some point that will feel like a complete knock out. But then there are the small victories, like getting to travel on a whim, spending quality time with your family, getting to choose the direction of your life, the look on client’s faces when you deliver a project you’ve been working on sometimes for over a year, or getting the news that your hard work will get featured in some major publication, that feeling of validation and encouragement, which makes the struggles all worth it. Getting to create, putting your heart into something, and watching it come to life right before your eyes is a reward in and of itself. The world can be such an ugly place at times, and blessed are those who get to produce beauty, no matter how small.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Maison Francis Design Co – what should we know?
At Maison Francis, we specialize in the planning and design of an event, whether corporate or social, floral design and custom calligraphy pieces. The word Maison in our name is French for House, meaning we love to think of ourselves as offering a plethora of event services, all related to design, under the same roof. We love challenging projects, clients who think outside the Pinterest box and allow us to build custom installations and pieces of art for their event, like the 20’x10’ wall of tropical living greens we built for WordPress for Miami Fashion Week or a recent wedding who forwent the traditional centerpieces for hanging floral chandeliers and tropical leaf walls. Your event should be a reflection of your personality, and it is our job and our honor to find unique ways to express that (within reason of course, i.e. budget and venue restrictions, I mean we aren’t magicians!). So I guess what sets us apart from others is that we don’t like to settle. When we first meet with clients we ask the most random and ridiculous questions (the list is pretty long) but because we really want to dig deep and find little bits of their story to inspire us. We want to get to know our clients on a level higher than just “what colors do you want for your event”. We love pushing our brides and suggesting unconventional designs, not only because it allows our couples to create unique experiences. We don’t want to just dish out event after event with no genuine connections. When the event is over, we haven’t just gained another client, we’ve gained friends with whom we’ve laughed and said inappropriate jokes with, well, because we are who we are. And we absolutely do not try and hide it from clients, it is a huge part of what sets us apart. Weddings and events in general are stressful enough, and we are not here to add to that stress.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Sandrine: Hands down, my family has been the biggest, bestest (is that a word? It’s a word) supporter anyone could ever ask for. They don’t even live in the country, but would travel to come stay with my baby girl should I have a wedding that weekend that my husband was away for. They’ve even traveled to hang out with her when she was an infant and I had workshops and school to attend in NYC. Seriously, you can’t top that. They’ve given me emotional and physical support like no other, and I am forever grateful for them. My husband, who started his own business at 24 and understands the demands of entrepreneurship but doesn’t understand our creative industry to save his life, has accompanied me to set ups to lend a hand and make sure we were able to deliver on our promises to our clients. My best friend Philippe from early childhood got on a plane to build (with his own two hands) the 20’x10’ massive wall for WordPress we previously mentioned. He was even present during a wedding he was not supposed to be working (he was actually here on vacation!), but ended up doing so when he saw we could use the help, expecting nothing in return, done straight out of love. To say I’ve been blessed is an understatement.
But better yet, in a saturated and highly competitive industry where everyone just wants to play with the popular kids, I was lucky enough to meet an especially supportive group in our Tuesdays Together chapters, both Miami and Fort Lauderdale, and formed amazing friendships which have seen us through our down times, have pushed us beyond our imagination, and never let us quit when times got tough. I’d go through every single one of them but they know who they are, and they know exactly what they mean to me, I make sure of that every day.
I do, however, have to mention two floral designers in particular who have shown unwavering support, Angel Rodriguez of Rodri Studio and Veronica Cicero of Anthology. It’s rare to find people who, despite being your direct competitors, feel no competition or ill will towards you at all. They’ve both invited me in to freelance for them, and are always available should I need them. They share their wealth of knowledge freely, because they know what makes them successful isn’t just their skills, but it’s them, their eye, their talent, their unique way of expressing their art that no one can ever take away from them. They cheer me on and hold my hand, and that feeling of unconditional love and support is unparalleled. They never let me forget that I am talented, and that sharing these talents is a duty we should all abide by. They guide me, mentor me, and keep a smile on my face in a sometimes challenging world. I love you guys!
Among the myriad vendors (too many to name!) who have deeply impacted our lives, from planners to photographers, bakers and everything in between, I think it’s also slightly important to mention one planner in particular, Adriana of The Creatives Loft, who has believed in us wholeheartedly this past year, and pushed us to really believe in ourselves and our craft, and trusted us with her precious clients’ big day, without batting an eye. Time and time again, she vouches for us, and encourages us to test our creative limits, and we are truly grateful for amazing humans like her.
Yasmine: There are so many that have guided me along the way that I don’t think I know where to begin if naming them one by one. Support has been endless and it comes from all directions friends, family, industry guru’s, you name it. My son is one of my biggest cheerleaders, I went from working 10-12 hours every day to having the ability to volunteer at his school, attend all his practices and games. He couldn’t be happier. The driving force behind my ambition and drive is hands down my Mother, without her I would not have had the courage to leave the corporate world behind. Kurtis, my love/sounding board/support system/patient listener to my bad singing, for his endless support in this crazy industry! I believe God has graced my life with opportunities and I have learned to take it all with a gratitude and a grateful heart.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1050 Brickell Ave
Unit 1414 Miami, FL 33131
or
8915 Plam Tree Lane
Pembroke Pines, FL 33024 - Website: www.maisonfrancis.com
- Phone: 786.564.0460 or 954.899.1618
- Email: hello@maisonfrancis.com
- Instagram: @maison_francis and @yasmine_maisonfrancis
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maisonfrancis
- Twitter: @maison_francis
Image Credit:
Perry Vail Photography
Vanessa Velez Photography
Jennifer Michelle Photography
Jillian Tree Photography
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