2015 Future Alumni Essay Contest
First Place Winner
TTC Student, Lacey LeSuer
With my husband deployed and a baby on
the way, I realized I needed to carpe
diem and fully invest in my dream to be an independent business owner.
Traveling home for the support of my family during this new and challenging
experience brought me great clarity and reflection. Looking over my life and
the choices that brought me to where I am today helped me narrow down the
details of my career needs: I needed a business with a flexible schedule for
motherhood, mobility due to our transient military life, a low risk investment,
creative outlet, continued growth opportunities, and a service I could market
to those directly around me. These considerations lead me to the art and
business of floral design and the Trident Technical College's Floral Design
Program.
Being raised by blue-collar
entrepreneurs I was encouraged from a young age to find my “niche” and let it
shine to the world. I have spent my life carrying around a mental magnifying
glass always searching out a new and clever business venture wherever I go,
just ask those who know me. Comical and perhaps even embarrassing to my husband
and friends is my constant inquisitiveness at restaurants, markets, or town
events, “What inspired you to get into this business? How did you get started?
What makes your product better than theirs? Can I speak with your store buyer?
What a witty marketing slogan! We need to write a review for this place.
As a freshman at Utah State
University I studied finance, marketing, business, education, and economics
never quite knowing what I should focus on or what major would help me fulfill
my destiny of being a successful business owner. Eventually I graduated from a
technical college with two legal certifications, hours of internship
experience, years of employment on my resume, and extracurricular activities in
abundance but still no business plan down on paper. With these years of
foundational cultivation, a newly acquired direction and passion, and now
assisted by Trident Technical College my dreams are finally becoming a reality.
Being able to attend class in a
working floral shop, being taught by Charleston’s finest floral designers, is
an opportunity I could not have obtained on my own. Not only has this program
helped me acquire the basic tools and skills I need to create a gorgeous floral
arrangement but the entire inside perspective of running a floral business. At
last, a place where my inquisitiveness is not only appreciated but encouraged.
I’ve learned the procedures for ordering wholesale flowers, market prices,
created a portfolio, and networked with other professionals and cliental.
Receiving my education first hand in an operative business means being
surrounded by inspiration and gaining confidence in my qualifications to
graduate and begin my own company.
My plans as a graduate floral designer begin even before I
finish this program. I intend to become,
“Lacey’s Floral and Gift” a limited liability company promptly. My business
will begin in my home and mature into a sizable boutique in the future. Upon
graduating I will focus my efforts on marketing through donating funeral
designs in my church, corsages and boutonnieres to my youth group, and special
occasion bouquets to military events and spouses like the Deployed Spouse
Appreciation Dinner. I will seek a large social media following, become a
vendor at bridal expos, flower festivals, farmer’s markets, and bring samples
around to downtown Charleston hotels and venues.
If there is one thing I have learned through my education
and career pursuits it’s that being motivated by money only goes so far. If you
truly want to find fulfillment you must measure your achievement on the
journey, the progress you have reached, the person you have become, the
difference you have made. That’s why giving back to Trident Technical College
and future students is imperative. I can give back even now by participating in
student organizations like the Women Empowerment Club, sporting school colors
and attire, and attending school events like the upcoming car show and Clemente
Players performances. Upon graduation I will help share my vision by
offering feedback on the program, participating in focus groups, surveys, and
advisory boards to cultivate
new ideas and enhance other’s educational experience. As an alumnus I will
volunteer my time to promote programs to military families and help them get
enrolled. As an experienced florist I will participate in school seminars and
workshops, take on interns from the program, help graduates transition into the
workforce, and advise others on starting up their own business. I can donate
floral arrangements to the Trident Technical College Foundation Banquet. My
husband and I even have the goal of funding a scholarship someday.
With nearly 51 years of educating
the lowcountry, Trident Technical College has played an even more enduring role
in the lives of it’s students. Incalculable is the development I have achieved
and the vast influence it will have upon my growing family and community. An
ancestor of explorers, pioneers, innovators, and of course entrepreneurs my
college degree will be the next stepping
stone for a long line of courage and progress. Trident Technical College will
enable me to become an independent florist, fulfill my potential, and leave my
mark on history!
By Lacey LeSuer
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