Today we’d like to introduce you to Oluwaseun ‘Seun’ or ‘Tola’ Olufunwa.
Oluwaseun, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
After receiving my Bachelor’s degree in Urban & Regional Planning from the University of Lagos, in Nigeria; I decided that I wanted to further my education and obtain my Master’s degree. After a phone call with my uncle about these goals, he invited me to visit the United States to look into Masters programs here. To no avail, my dreams of furthering my education came to a quick halt when I realized the cost to attend a graduate program here was astronomical. With graduate programs being so costly, I, unfortunately, changed my mind about obtaining my Master’s degree and set my sights on another path.
Shortly after, I was invited to visit more family in Dallas. When I arrived I thought the city was so lively and beautiful. I soon after decided not to return home just yet but rather to see what kind of journey I might find myself on if I decided to stay for a while. Well, that idea of staying quickly became a burden because all the money I had saved was depleting and quickly. So, I had to find a job and soon. I managed to get a position at a supermarket in their deli kitchen. It didn’t pay much but I lived pretty cheaply at the time so I managed to save most of the money.
One day while I was at work, a customer came in to pick up her catering order. As I was getting her order ready, I made small talk with her and asked if she was planning a party or something. She responded that she was and asked why I wanted to know. At that moment I decided to step out on faith and see where it leads me. So, I told her I wouldn’t mind serving and cleaning up after her event for a couple of extra bucks. To my surprise, she gladly accepted my offer and sent me the details of the event and what time I should be there. And that was the start of me doing this business. That first opportunity was all I needed to get going with my event staffing business.
So, I began doing more events part-time but quickly realized that I wanted to make this a full-time job for myself but; I didn’t quite know how to start doing it as a business. However, just when I thought I was in another situation that I couldn’t see myself out of; God brought my beautiful wife into my life, well at the time, I didn’t know she would be my wife. She just happened to be very knowledgeable in business and had a degree in business management. She also worked for a commercial real estate company on their management side so she was able to offer an abundance of knowledge and help me as I was trying to make the business solid. She and I slowly began learning the industry and all the ins and outs of running a business like this and soon after we had the business registered and fully functioning.
I’ve been successfully running the Event Staffing Team for almost three years. I do owe all of my thanks to God because I believe he has guided me on this journey and brought so many wonderful, willing participants to be resources to me and assist me with making this real. When I think back on where I was yesterday and where I am today, I almost shock myself for taking such a chancy risk with my life and in a different country at that! It is a true blessing and I am so grateful and honored to have the opportunity to be the owner of this awesome business!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
No, it has not! I just want to be honest. But this rough road has provided losses that have led to lessons learned and those learned lessons have led me to successful gains and outstanding growth. There were so many struggles but the ones that were most frustrating were obtaining financing to grow your business and finding/ keeping serious workers that will show up and represent your brand well.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
Event Staffing Team is an elite staffing company that provides the highest quality of service & staffing in Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and surrounding areas.
Our Services Include:
Event Setup & Breakdown
Waitstaff
Bartenders
Event Transport
Rental Service
DJ Service
Security
Errand Deliveries and more…
I am so proud that the business has continued to grow, knowing that it all started from very little. My goal for my business is to keep working harder to expand and offer more services and to create more jobs for residents in the DFW area. I think what sets us apart is making sure our clients have the right services needed to make their events successful. We willingly share our opinions on how clients can improve or coordinate an event so that it runs smoothly and in many cases saves them time, money and embarrassment. We’re not out to just make money. We want to make great experiences and long-lasting impressions. Most of our new clients come to us by way of a former client that believed we went above and beyond for them. Courtesy and the client’s best interest is what sets us apart from our competitors.
What were you like growing up?
As a young child, I was a bit of an introvert. I stayed indoors mostly and played alone. I would just go to school and then straight home. I did spend time with my grandparents as often as I could. I learned many things from them. It’s true that older people have great wisdom. When it was time for me to attend secondary school, I was enrolled in boarding school. That’s very common in my country and many parents send their children to boarding schools. There, I made many friends and I even joined the soccer team. Boarding school was the highlight of my childhood. I think because there were so many other children that I could be friends with.
I was serious with my studies and I enjoyed learning just as much as I enjoyed playing. So, I did make higher grades than most of my peers. But I knew from a young age that I wanted to do something great with my life. I knew I want to go to college and travel one day. And I knew to do those two things I needed to have a great education.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.eventstaffingteam.com
- Phone: (972) 955-9888
- Email: info@eventstaffingteam.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eventstaffingteam/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eventstaffingteam/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/estaffingteam
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