Today we’d like to introduce you to Aimee Stern.
Hi Aimee, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised in NYC 🌼. My parents had me very late in life (50 yrs old) which help shape my outlook on life. Both of my parents were very kind and family oriented. My father worked on the LEM (lunar landing module) for the Apollo mission in 1969 ( he was an aero space engineer) and he was a US Marine who fought in WW11. My mom worked in radiology for close to 50 years and loved taking care of people. Both of my parents were very giving and always were happy to help others.
From the time I was in middle school I loved working with people and helping give back. I remember taking part in The March Of Dimes Walkathon in NYC where I helped raise a great deal of money with my team for research focusing on premature births, birth defects & infant mortality. I put the team together and we walked over 20 miles. I was honored at an event hosted by the March of Dimes amount other participants with the Battered Boot Award for going above and beyond. This was the start of my community outreach and philanthropic endeavors.
I studied public relations & psychology in college and always was intrigued with helping people promote themselves and or their business. Initially I worked on a talk show as the guest relations coordinator after college. My job was organizing travel, hotels, daily stipends and working with the guests and celebrities appearing on the shows. I loved my job although it entailed working 24hrs a day I loved working with people & listening to their stories. After a few years in the television industry I worked in production and then transitioned to working for a video gaming company in marketing and royalties. I loved learning about all of the aspects of how the business worked from the creation of a concept to the actual development of the game. I worked for an amazing woman who was the VP of marketing and learned a great deal about marketing and publicizing. I knew from then on I wanted to really focus on publicity. My two loves were working and helping people. I continued to participate with a few non for profit events.
I continued working in marketing and publicity and started my own company Poutymouth PR where I initially focused on the fashion industry. After getting married and having my son Dylan we eventually moved to Florida. After focusing most of my time on being a full time mom for several years I remarried and went back to working full time as a publicist. As much as I loved being a wife & mother I felt there was a huge disconnect in my community. People were distant and I felt something needed to be done to bring more people together. I decided to start The Mom’s Club of Wellington Palm Beach County & All Across Florida. My goal was to bring women together and to create a group where people could meet other like minded women and moms. I began hosting events at my home which was open to anyone that wanted to join my Facebook group. At first there were small groups of women that would attend my get togethers and eventually it morphed into large gatherings. From girls nights out to family fun days at local businesses I continued to grow my group and expand my community outreach efforts.
Most events I would host would be subsidized by myself and my husband. One year I had purchased over 100 pumpkins and hosted a pumpkin patch at a local restaurant that I was helping with publicity. Kids came with their parents to pick a pumpkin and bring it inside the restaurant to decorate. Not only was this event helping bring the community together but it was also helping the restaurant gain revenue on a night that normally would have been extremely slow. As the group grew I continued to host day trips to local attractions such as loggerhead marine life center, Busch Wildlife, and several other meet ups which I covered the fees for entry. The goal was to always bring people together and help build community.
As 2020 had swooped in causing major turmoil and isolation I was determined to continue helping bring people together. I hosted a great deal of contests on line to keep members engaged and interacting. Additionally I started an event called the Halloween Crawl. Between not knowing which businesses were open and families being isolated from interacting in public the crawl was my way of helping business owners and families. I posted on various Facebook pages and groups about taking part in trick or treating from the peoples cars. If businesses wanted to take part they just needed to reach out to me and they were added to the list of stops on the Halloween Crawl. Additionally I created an evite for families that wanted to take part. On the day of the crawl. Once the list of businesses and residents was completed anyone that sent a rsvp to the evite was sent the list of stops (which included the name of the business, address, time they would be participating on that day and what they would be giving out as well as the time they would conclude participating). Residents as well as businesses took part as cars would pull up in front of their homes or businesses and people wearing masks and gloves would come to the cars and give out lunch, toys, candy etc. I was also a stop on the crawl and had so much fun being greeted by families that were so happy to have the opportunity to get out of their homes and allow their children to trick or treat in costume from their cars. Some schools went as far as creating a whole experience with staff dressed up in costumes coming up to the cars to interact with families and have them take part in festivities. These events grew into annual traditions. After the crawl I had created the holiday & spring hop which followed the same concept.
Other events such as mother daughter Princess pampering events, holiday family events, and a host of other fun family events were so much fun and helped to bring more people together.
One of the most notable community outreach gatherings was very meaningful to me. A young girl (about 15) was getting out of a golf cart in her community with her friend. The young woman was black and her friend was white. A man approached her and told her she didn’t belong in that neighborhood where she lived simply due to the color of her skin and his ignorance. People in the community had reached out to me and I helped create a car parade to let her know how much she was loved and belonged. Sadly this occurred during the chaotic times in 2020 when there was a great deal of hate and people couldn’t interact face to face. Close to 100 cars showed up that drove by this young woman’s home where drivers stopped to give her and her friend roses and had signs in their car windows with loving sentiments & support. This event ended up being coveted by the national news as well as several other outlets. The community pulled together to make a difference. I couldn’t have been prouder.
Some other traditions that have grown through the mom’s club is the Thanksgiving Food Drive & The Adopt a family Program. Local businesses as well as residents donate food during November to be given to families in need. Over the last few years we have turned our home into a food pantry where families in need came to get groceries for the Thanksgiving Break as well as a gift card for the purchase of a turkey. Families in need also are able to be added to an adopt a family wish list where the families remain anonymous and local residents adopt a family from the list of families in need. As gifts are dropped off at my home they are organized by the last name of the family that will be picking up the gifts in time for the holidays. As an annual tradition I host a That’s A Wrap Party where the community can come over and help wrap gifts for families in need while celebrating the holiday season together.
There are so many community events I have created along side businesses ti bring people together. It is truly gratifying to know that promoting businesses can be most beneficial when collaborating with residents to create a fun family event.
What was once a small group of moms getting together at small gatherings I hosted is now over 19200 members strong
The group has helped so many people from family’s in need of meal trains & support to offering referrals, helping businesses grow and offering love and support to members.
I couldn’t be prouder of the community I have created. What was once an idea has grown into a successful community of amazing women.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Some of the biggest challenges as a publicist is reaching potential customers. These days it takes a great deal more than internet ads and mailings. Business owners need to be willing to think outside the box in order to be able to compete. There are so many of the same type of small businesses opening near each other it’s hard to stand out.
As far as obstacles on The Mom’s Club Group it’s hard to oversee a page with over 19,000 members. So many people have different opinions it can be difficult to keep members from expressing their differences of opinion constructively.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Poutymouth PR ?
I started Poutymouth PR initially in 1998. I always loved the concept of helping business grow and thrive by interacting with their surrounding community using a personal touch! I remember attending a trade show with one of my clients. They supplied findings and crystals to some of the top clothing designers. I brought several dozen roses with me and gave them out to the designers in their booths. They were so taken with someone giving them something as simple as a rose turned into a discussion and in several cases new clients.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I truly believe the best way to promote businesses in the future will be going back to the basics. Interacting with people in the community will help local businesses gain more attention & support. Social media is a great way to help gain publicity. However there are so many similar businesses marketing the same (or similar) products or services businesses will need to focus on hosting more community related events.
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