Nono Events is a name on many people's lips, includingA-list celebrities. It seems the brand is a force to be reckoned with in the events and décor industry. However, the brains behind this company Maureen"Nono' Skosana says it all started by chance.
SIDE HUSTLE TO MAJOR COMPANY
"It was meant to be a side hustle but ended up being my main hustle,' she shares with a laugh. She says having a full-time job as head of legal and compliance in one of the big financial institutions was getting hard to keep up with. "I couldn't handle both at the same time,' she confesses.
The Vosloorus-born entrepreneur was a practising attorney until she discovered her passion in events. She reveals that never in her life did she think she would be an events planner until 2012 when her love of beautiful things attracted her to it.
She tells Zimoja growing up all she wanted to be was to be asocial worker. However, as life would have it, things didn't go as she planned.She went on to study law and later became an attorney.
This is when she started helping people with organising their events while practising. She did a few small events for close friends and family, and then her events company gained momentum. Many people asked her to help them with their events and that was when she was faced with the hard decision of leaving her comfy corporate job with all its perks, including job security, and start her own. Today she's her own boss with about 30 staff working under her.
REACHING FOR THE STARS
Her business has become such a success that even celebrities have her number on speed dial when they want a perfect event. She boasts quite a range of clients from ordinary people to A-list celebrities and television productions. She was responsible for the Somizi and Mohale wedding, singer Kelly Khumalo's daughter Thingo's birthday, actress Simphiwe Ngema's baby shower, Mafikizolo's Theo Kgosinkwe and Vourne's wedding, just to name a few.
"I guess the work sells itself. Most of my clients see my work on social media and most importantly word of mouth from previous happy clients,' she says.
Nono might have celebrities as part of her clientele, but she says that doesn't mean they're treated any better than any other client.Not matter how big or small the event she's planning, they all get the same professional touch. "They're all important to us and the pressure to impress is the same,' she clarifies.
IT'S NOT ALL SUNSHINE AND ROSES
But she admits it's not been smooth sailing as she didn't even have a mentor to hold her hand and show her robes of the business. This is when she made some mistakes like most people who start in this industry. Nono says one the biggest mistakes was spending money on new equipment that is not used. "You must only buy on demand,' she advises.
Having a long list of clients and becoming a household name meant the business was growing in leaps and bounds. That is when she realised that she must be self-reliant. "We had to get our own trucks to make sure that we are not disappointed by suppliers,' she says. Nono Events caters for people all around the country and neighbouring countries.
She says anyone who wants to start their own business must do it out of love. "Go this route because you love the events space because itneeds a lot of love and dedication,' she advises. As for Nono Events …the sky is the limit.
