We speak to shadow board member Sophie Evans about her journey in the events industry so far: Sophie has been in the event industry for over 7 years, with her passion beginning at university where she studied Event & Festival Management. Having taken many paths through her events journey from hiring Santas and Elves to completing successful exhibitions in both the UK and abroad. Now finding herself at Performing Artistes and loving every minute! Keen to create an open space for young adults to communicate all things events and production, with an emphasis on mental health awareness, and why its OK to make mistakes!
Sophie continues to enjoy both planning and attending gigs and festivals, whenever time permits!
Tell us about where you are now, and what you love about your job/ course.
I am a Talent Agent here at Performing Artistes. We supply speakers, hosts, bands, and personalities to events. A true divide of serious and fun, I love discovering new talent that I can match up perfectly for our client’s needs. I also can’t complain about the fab famous faces I get to work with too in our studio!
Tell us a bit about your journey to get there.
I started out as many others did, at university. Throughout my three years of Event & Festival Management, I both sought out industry work and created my own event company. Whilst the event company didn’t carry on through the years, all my experience, highs and lows included gave me lots of help! Through either luck or perseverance, I managed to consistently keep industry focused jobs from there on out. It hasn’t been an easy ride, though! Until I started at Performing Artistes nearly 2 years ago, I was struggling with burnout and unsupportive workplaces. I feel very lucky to be with my team now and realise how important mutual respect is in the workplace.
What do you wish you’d know when starting out in the industry? What advice would you give to young people starting out in the industry now?
- Know your worth – you’re here for a reason! Stay confident within yourself.
- Speak up – if something doesn’t sit right with you, or raises concerns, let someone know!
- It’s okay to make mistakes – the only way to get to the top is by falling over a few times. Don’t beat yourself up about it. It’s not life or death! (although it may feel like it at the time)
- You don’t have to go to uni to get into events.
- The more work you do on the job / onsite, the best skills you will acquire – aligning with the above point.
- Jump in the deep end, but make sure you have a supportive network at home and at your workplace.
- Support your peers – if you can help out, the favour will be returned!
- If you have an idea, run with it – what’s the worst that could happen.?
For those readers still considering whether this industry is the right place for them, tell us what you most love about it. What appealed to you about this industry?
Trial and error. I knew that I loved events, but it eventually took 3+ jobs in different parts of the industry to find ‘my place’
Don’t think of the word ‘conference’ as boring! That’s an urban myth 😊
It is not your typical industry. Unless you want to work 9-5 at the same desk every day, then events is for you! Every day, week and month is certainly different. You’ll meet some brilliant people along the way too!
Can you recommend one resource for young people starting in the industry to check out?
Don’t just go on indeed. Try and find niche websites for industry specific jobs
Call call call, get your name out there! They’ll remember you once you make that little bit more of an effort.