Empowered by Faith

The journey of a purpose-driven business.

If someone had asked Jenice Stallings in her early 20s whether she would consider working in the event design industry, her answer would have been a resounding, “Absolutely not.” Entrepreneurship was never on her radar, let alone being a mastermind behind memorable events.

“If you want to know the truth, I thought of myself as someone who killed flowers, not someone who was a designer,” says Stallings. But as fate would have it, life had a different plan for her.

While Stallings was a student at Florida A&M University, she and her boyfriend Rodney, now her husband, consistently engaged in entrepreneurial activities without realizing it—one of those ventures involved selling Cds. Stallings had invested in a program that taught her how to design the CD covers while her husband would develop the playlist of songs. Little did she know that this would begin her path to designing events.

After moving back to South Florida, Stallings began working in higher education and became passionate about home decorating in her free time. She and a co-worker frequently visited home furnishing stores during their lunch breaks. During this time, people started requesting her services for small events, such as baby showers. However, when she was asked to plan a wedding, her vision began to take shape.

“It was almost like the path I was on got a little shaken because I couldn’t believe I had fallen in love with something I had never thought I’d enjoy or that I was good enough to do,” she vividly recalls. Three years after pursuing her passion on the side, Stallings realized she needed to make a change. Experiences of anxiety and panic attacks at her day job drove her to make the difficult decision to quit.

“That was probably one of the toughest decisions because, in my culture and my family, you don’t quit a job,” says Stallings. In 2013, she began working full-time as an event designer and earned an Accredited Event Designer certificate. Soon thereafter, she invested in floral and business classes. After helping out with the company on the side, her husband joined full-time in 2019, and the duo haven’t looked back since.

A woman of faith, Stallings credits much of her business success to her humble beginnings as an usher, which she took on after quitting her job. “In that role, I truly learned how to serve people from all walks of life and to do so for someone else’s purpose instead of my own,” she says.

Today, Styles By Stallings is renowned for its expertise in planning, decorating, and creating beautiful floral arrangements for weddings and themed events with a unique touch. The company is committed to creating memorable and elegant events with a personalized approach.

“You’re not just another number to us. We like to develop long-standing relationships with our clients,” says Stallings, who has made significant strides in the industry and aims to enter more corporate spaces. Additionally, the company’s focus will be on expanding educational offerings in high-end event design and draping while exploring digital products to reach a wider audience. Stallings wants to provide accessible information to help individuals succeed with pricing strategies. By working with newcomers, she emphasizes proper pricing and is developing resources to help them find their market and demonstrate their value.

The Stallings celebrate their 24th anniversary in March, joined by their children, Sabrea and Rodney Jr. As Styles By Stallings continues to grow and evolve, one thing remains clear: faith will always be at the heart of everything they do.