Water is bubbling in a water lily pond, spring flowers are
blooming along cobblestone pathways and there is shady cover under
a Victorian-inspired Gazebo.
Water is bubbling in a water lily pond, spring flowers are blooming along cobblestone pathways and there is shady cover under a Victorian-inspired Gazebo. This is Victoria Magee’s home office. Victoria’s Everlasting Events is a successful business located right in Hollister’s backyard. She started her business in 2002, and business, she said, is blooming.
“What could be better than planning parties for people?” Magee said.
Magee is an event planner, wedding planner and a caterer. Her backyard garden is a beautiful setting for weddings.
“It was my dream to have a Victorian wedding in the garden for my daughter, but she didn’t want to get married in the backyard,” she said. “It has worked out very well; the garden has become a popular venue for weddings in the area.”
Though her business is relatively new, Magee has been in event planning for 20 years. She fell into the profession by accident.
“I was working for a bicycle company in Morgan Hill in sales and marketing, and I started doing trade shows,” she said. “I loved the organization and the pressure. It’s my calling.”
She then worked for a large event company, but when that company lost a large contract a few years ago, she quit her job and started Victoria’s Everlasting Events.
During the last two years, she has added wedding planning and catering to the services she provides.
“It all seemed to mold together, I guess it’s in my blood,” Magee said. “My nana, who is 93, is still sort of catering, and I grew up preparing dinners because my mom and dad were working, even then I was doing up the dinner table in a fancy way.”
Magee is enrolled in the Culinary Arts program at Cabrillo College.
As a wedding planner, Magee will hold the bride’s hand through all the preparations, whether it is securing vendors, organizing the invitations, going dress shopping or picking up the tux. No job is too big or too small, and she will try to give the couple the wedding day they had dreamed about.
“I suggest but it is really their vision and their day,” Magee said. “Every wedding I do is unique. I don’t have a set menu, and I’ll accommodate any requests within reason.”
Magee had to start from scratch when she went out on her own, but she feels part of her success is due to the loyalty of the local people who are her repeat customers and her word of mouth referral system.
“I see some of the same clients first for their wedding shower, then their wedding and then a baby shower.”
What have been her favorite events so far?
“I did a ’50s theme party with poodle skirts and the whole works; that was so much fun,” she said.
The other event she singled out was a surprise dinner she organized for a man to give his girlfriend.
“It was held out here on the gazebo,” she said. “It was so romantic.”
Magee is happy with the success of her business, and she has more plans that just might fit in well. She is planning to put in a gourmet outdoor kitchen and a bride’s room, and she has dreams of opening her own restaurant one day.
“The bottom line is I like to make people happy, I love what I do and I do what I love. It really doesn’t feel like work.”
For more information, call (831) 630-0975 or visit www.victorias.to.
