Interview with | Michaela Vivona

What is it REALLY like running a princess and character entertainment company behind the scenes? 👑✨

In this episode of the Party Princess Podcast, Lelah Clifford sits down with Michaela Vivona, owner of A Dream Is A Wish Parties LLC in New York, for a fun, honest, and sometimes spicy conversation about the character entertainment industry.

Whether you’re a performer, business owner, cosplayer, parent, or someone who loves the magic behind the scenes, this episode gives a real look into the world of character entertainment from two experienced company owners.

🎧 Listen now and join the conversation!

#PartyPrincessPodcast #CharacterEntertainment #PrincessParties #SmallBusinessPodcast #EntertainmentIndustry #PrincessCompany #WomenInBusiness #PartyPrincess #PodcastEpisode

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey everyone, and welcome back to the Party Princess Podcast. I'm your host, Leela Clifford, owner of the Party Palace based in Alabama, and today's episode is one I've been really excited about. One of my favorite things about this industry is getting to connect to the other company owners from all over the country and hearing how differently or even how similarly we all experience this crazy magical world of character entertainment. So today we're doing something a little special. I've reached out to another amazing company owner and asked her a mix of fun, business, and even a few spicy industry questions. And she's sent in her answers for us to feature right here on the podcast. Today's guest is Michaela Vivana, owner of A Dream is a Witch Parties LLC, based in New York. We're talking all about how she got started, what it's really like running a character company behind the scenes, industry challenges, copycats, pricing, professionalism, social media, and so much more. So whether you're a performer, company owner, cosplayer, parent, or just somebody fascinated by the magic industry, this episode is going to be such a fun lesson. Alright, let's jump in. First off, introduce yourself and your company. Where are you located and how long have you been in business?

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Hi, my name is Mikaela Vavona, and I am the owner of a Dream is a Wish Parties. We are located in New York, specifically on Long Island, and I have a venue called Everland, which is in Nassau County area, if anyone knows Long Island. And we are going into our 12th year. We'll be celebrating 12 years in December. And then I'm also the owner of your business Big Sis, where I coach Princess Party company owners and character entertainment party company owners one-on-one and courses, all that kind of stuff. And I just adore it. I love business and specifically business related to this industry. I just think there's something so special about it. So I'm so excited to be here and thank you so much for having me. I've been loving the podcast so far.

SPEAKER_01 1:56

Okay, so here is my next couple of questions. How did you get started in the character entertainment industry? Was it something you always dreamed about or something you kind of just fell into?

SPEAKER_00 2:07

So growing up, I always wanted to be a business owner. I would literally play business owner. Um, and I also loved performing. So my parents were Broadway performers, and then after that, after they retired from performing, they owned a few different businesses. Um, and I just loved it. I thought it was so cool. I would literally pretend to run a birthday party in my living room, or I would like start a company like selling bracelets or like rocks. I was randomly into like rocks and gems for a little while, and I would like pretend to set up a museum and like all that stuff. I just adored business, and my favorite part was the behind the scenes of it. Like I would have a whole binder of my clients and do client phone calls and like just seriously adored the business side of it. I loved it. I grew up watching Shark Tank and just like thought it was so fun. Um, I just adored it. And I also loved performing. I grew up performing in musicals. Um, I loved the princesses, and I thought they were really inspiring and empowering, and I loved how they were the leads in their story. You know, they were the leaders of these kingdoms and these stories, and I just thought it was so special. Um, and so this kind of just put it all together. When I went to Disney World with my friend at like age 15, um, I had been to Disney World before, but I went with my friend and I was just seeing it was the the frozen, you know, crazy frozen time. Um, and I just saw these little girls looking at the princesses and just being so inspired and so excited after they met them, but realized that they only got to meet them for like a minute. And so I was like, well, how special would it be if, you know, we could actually let them go to their birthday party and stuff. So I I didn't know about the industry then, so I definitely thought that like I had this brilliant idea. Obviously, the industry existed way before I thought of it at all. Um, but then I was so excited to see this industry existed and that it was something I could do, and I was so excited. So um I literally started planning my business on the ferry ride over to Magic Kingdom um one of the days, and I just couldn't get it out of my head. And so I started it um my junior year of high school, and then it's kind of just been going since then. So that's how I started. Um, I did go to college for musical theater, and then at school I was able to take a class outside of my major, and I took a business course, and I just fell in love with it, and I just adored business, and um that's really when I decided that that's what I wanted to do full-time was focus on my business and business coaching um and just being an entrepreneur instead of a professional performer. So, and I love how this industry, it's so creative, like being the business owner is so creative and creating the events and the scripts and coming up with these experiences, and I just it it just so fits all the things that I love. So I'm so grateful to have found this path every single day.

SPEAKER_01 5:05

And I think moments like this are what people on the outside don't always understand about this industry. Yes, we wear costumes and wigs and sing songs and do birthday parties, but there's also something really emotional and meaningful about creating memories for families. And speaking of things people may not fully understand, what is something people completely misunderstand about running a princess or a character company?

SPEAKER_00 5:29

So something that I think clients really misunderstand is that we're not just like sitting in a closet in costume ready to go at any time. Um, I love getting the texts that are like, hey, are you available in 30 minutes? I'm like, absolutely not. Um, I can't even drive to your location in 30 minutes, let alone have a princess ready for it. So I always think that that's pretty like entertaining when they I'm just like, how do you think that? So that's always funny to me. You know, we're not just waiting around. It's a very serious and difficult business to run. You know, it's not just a side gig if you're running this as a full company. You know, of course there are people doing it solo or doing it as a side job, absolutely, but it's also completely possible to make a full-time income, to have a full team you're supporting financially, to grow this into something really large, and that's absolutely a viable option. And I think people don't understand that. Um, that all of the little details. Sometimes I try to explain it to my parents, and and it's just like I don't think the people outside of it see, you know, even just anyone outside of the industry sees all the little things we're doing, you know, even just to the point of like we need to go through every single party in the weekend and make sure we have enough materials and we need to, you know, fix the wigs and we need to discuss who's getting where and how they're being driven and send out the schedule and you know, do payroll and like just all of those things that exist outside of the things someone would think of. Um, and then I think people in the industry just getting started kind of misunderstand again that work of running a company, that it really isn't buying a costume and taking a picture and going to a kid's party, but it's about branding and positioning and finances and budgeting um and networking and you know, really building a strong foundation of a company that you can continue to grow, that grows itself um exponentially, and something that isn't just gonna cave in as you start to scale, but that's going to just flourish as you scale. Um, it's definitely a true business, and you need to be interested in business and want to learn about the business side to have a company that can grow and can sustain itself.

SPEAKER_01 7:36

What marketing strategy or opportunity helped your company grow the most?

SPEAKER_00 7:41

So I would say the biggest marketing strategy or opportunity was definitely just doing things myself, like not totally waiting for someone to come to me. Um, I am a big believer in cold calling. I love a cold call to a client that we think would be a good fit, a corporate client. Um, and I got one of my biggest corporate clients from cold calling and just saying, hey, this isn't something you're currently doing. I think that you should. Um, and starting to work with them. And it was at a mall that was pretty, you know, busy in our area. And so we got to meet so many people. We got to really use that as a place to welcome people into a free event, get to experience us, um, get to know about us. And we booked a lot of parties from that, and then uh just kind of kept doing that and getting a lot of new corporate clients um that way. And that really helped us grow and just have more people know our name. Um, and also help those corporate clients offer something they'd never offered before, which is of course exciting as well for the community. Um, but the other thing too is creating my own experiences. So doing my winter ball, which is our biggest event of the year, that we do fully on our own. We, you know, rent the space, fully host the event. Um, and that was really huge because that got a lot of corporate clients calling us, um, saying, you know, we want to do something like that at our space. Um, and also we did it at a at a venue that was that is pretty well known and respected. And I think even though the the rent is so expensive for that event, it was really worth it because the it looks like such a high quality experience because it's at that space. And so they're thinking, you know, if that space is working with them, then we want to work with them, uh, even though we are renting the space. But, you know, it's all about that positioning and branding of it that really, you know, creates that understanding for other corporate spaces, other venues that then want to bring us in and do the same thing. So that was a really, really huge thing. And we have a lot of clients for birthday parties, like private clients, that then come to us stating that they saw us at those spaces or went to our event or know about our event. And so I really think that branding and positioning aspect of it was really, really helpful. Um, I'll also mention knowing Google ads and Facebook ads and when to use them and when not to use them. That was a huge, huge like quick fix help as well.

SPEAKER_01 10:10

What advice would you give someone who wants to start their own character entertainment company?

SPEAKER_00 10:16

Start strong and start small. So, what that means is invest in the behind the scenes, in the branding, in the systems and operations, even if you don't think that it's necessary right now, um, it will be down the line. Invest in that education, invest in the high quality costumes and wigs that are gonna serve you over time. You can have less offers, you can have less team members, less princesses that you offer, but just make sure that you are doing everything in the strongest way possible. I like to say that it's like building a house, right? You're building the foundation right now. And if you're just building a quick foundation, you might not notice the cracks or the mistakes or where, you know, you didn't make the strongest foundation when you're just building that first story. But as you start growing and growing and trying to build a skyscraper, you're gonna notice those cracks and you can grow a lot faster, a lot better if you are able to just keep going up instead of having to fully take everything apart and restart the foundation and grow from scratch because you didn't take that time. So I'm a big believer in create that strong foundation. Make sure that you are creating a strong business that you can build upon over time. Um, and then also don't be a yes man. You know, you you don't want to just say yes to everything to get the booking, right? So what I mean by that is start strong, start small, right? Stay with just a few characters and offerings that you can do really, really well. And if somebody calls for a princess you don't offer, don't just throw them together to get that booking. You'd rather keep your date open to get a booking for something you've already put the time and effort in to do really, really well, get that booking. Otherwise, let's say you, you know, you you're not offering Ariel right now and they call and you say, Yeah, I can do it, and you're buying a cheap costume, you've never done it before, so you don't know enough about the character. Now you're not putting your best foot forward, and you didn't really make money off of that party because you just put money into a costume that you're just gonna want to upgrade anyway. And now it's not the best experience. So it's just not worth it, even if in the moment it feels exciting to get that party. Um, but also at the same time, don't be a yes man, but do everything you can. When you are starting, you are able to take those bookings that maybe other people can't. When all the established companies in the area are booked and somebody's coming to you last minute, be that company that can book the party day of or the next day, or be the person that's answering at 7 a.m. to book that party for the character that you already have. Go that extra mile because the other companies are already booked, right? They're established. So you are able to take that last minute booking where they can't. But then that company, that that client will fall in love with your company, will become a forever client. And that's really how you can build up that following by being able to do those things. But don't be a yes man. Do everything you can, start strong, start small.

SPEAKER_01 13:06

All right, everybody. Now it's time for the spicy section of the episode. Because if you're in this industry, you know there are conversations people think about, but don't always say out loud. So we're going there today. Do you think this industry needs higher standards of professionalism? And if so, what would that look like?

SPEAKER_00 13:24

So this might actually be an unpopular opinion, but I oftentimes think we are focusing on our standards in the wrong place. And yes, I absolutely think that there needs to be more professionalism in the way that we respect ourselves as business owners and respect our businesses as true businesses and asking that of our clients and of our team, um, and of course, of each other as well in supporting one another and you know, all of that. Um, but I think we need a little bit more transparency and understanding um in the way of what is happening behind the scenes, because I think that it can be really easy to look at a business and just see their gowns are so beautiful and they're doing these huge events and just think, wow, that's what I have to do to have a successful business. And meanwhile, they are making less than a really small business that's two people, um, just because they are not running a profitable business, you know. And I think that that that can be really harmful for the industry because I think it leads to a lot of overspending and debt, and that's just something we're not really talking about or being transparent about. Um, and I absolutely feel like that's something that should be shifted and and talking more about running a healthy business that supports us financially and uh creates a good and healthy mental health as well, you know, and that that's really important. Um, that those are the things that we should focus on for having a successful business. Um, but also I guess the the unpopular opinion side is that I think that we focus our our standards sometimes in the wrong place on, you know, like it must be park accurate, or like Anna and Elsa must be wearing the same dress from the same movie. And while I do agree with those opinions, like personally, that's how I run my business. I I think that the costumers at Disney did a great job. And I I respect their work and you know, I I'm not a costumer, so I I respect it, I like it, I put it together, I think it looks really polished and and there's a reason they look great. Um, but personally, like I care less about like if someone's client wants Anna in her queen gown and Elsa in her blue dress. I'm like, you know, they would have that in their closet, sure. Um, and I care way more that like how they're talking about their cast bodies. I'm talk I care way more about the inclusivity um of their team. I care way more that they are not uh putting themselves in a toxic work environment, or I care way more um that they are, you know, creating a a a business that is gonna sustain them and and not put them in crippling debt. And I care um just way more about all of those things than like those details of like they have to wear the dress from the same film. You know, I just I care way more about the the true like things that make it a safe and successful business than that. And I think that those standards should really be something that we focus on.

SPEAKER_01 16:20

What is something you see other companies doing that you wish they wouldn't?

SPEAKER_00 16:25

Oh my goodness, turning away clients. Oh my goodness, every single conversation is an opportunity, every single one, and you should be so grateful that they are reaching out to you. Any form of communication is huge. And take that and use it, get like get every ounce of like anything out of that. So, what I mean is when I see people posting that they are fully booked for a certain date. Oh my gosh, I hate I hate that because you want them to reach out to you, even if you are fully booked, because you should have a strong system in place for capturing them as a future lead. Even if you can't book with them today, show them your incredible customer service. Show them how it is to talk to you, how it is to work with you. Show them what it is like to have that experience with your business. Get them following you on Instagram, invite them to an event, you know, tell them, oh, we book up, you know, in advance, but I'm gonna put you on our email list and you know, next year we'll reach out and we'd love to book with you. Now they're gonna be thinking of your business, even if they go book with somebody else, they're thinking of you because now they're comparing anything else to your incredible experience. So use that as an opportunity. Even a request for a free visit can turn into a huge contract. Um, you know, I recently had somebody asking for a free visit. It turned into thousands of dollars for a recurring contract every single year, you know, just because instead of just turning them away or getting angry or, you know, obviously it's no fun to be asked to do something for free, and I don't support doing things for free for exposure, but that conversation led to them understanding why they should pay me and paying me a lot of money every single year. So any conversation is an opportunity and take it and get everything you can from it.

SPEAKER_01 18:16

What is a mistake that you may have made early in your business that you would warn newer owners about?

SPEAKER_00 18:22

So when I started my business, like I said, I was 16 and I had no idea what I was doing, none. Um, and even though my parents were business owners as well, they also were like self-taught entrepreneurs and um it it it wasn't like they were telling me what to do financially, and I just had no idea. Um, and I absolutely did so much wrong, and I think that that's why then I just learned everything. Um, when I graduated college and I, you know, I just went full-time my business. I just wanted to learn everything, and I also wanted to be able to help people not make the mistakes that I made. Um, because I owed, I think my biggest mistake was I owed $10,000 to the IRS because of tax mistakes. Um, because I worked with an accountant that made a mistake, and because I didn't know my numbers and I just trusted that they were correct, um, I ended up with the with the burden of the fee, obviously. And I think that that's a big thing that I would want anyone starting out to know that being a business owner is going to include needing to know your finances. There's literally no way around it. You can hire a bookkeeper, you can hire an accountant, um, but you have to know at least the bare minimum of your numbers because they can make mistakes, they can misunderstand things, and then the burden comes down to you at the end of the day. So you should not be only looking at your numbers once a year. You should not only be looking at them for tax timing. You shouldn't just be handing them over to somebody else. You really need to understand them. You should be reviewing them at minimum monthly or at least have a system in place so you can check on your numbers at a glance. Uh, but it's just so, so, so important to learn so that you don't end up paying a thousands and thousands of dollars fee like I did, because that was terrible and took me a few years just to fully recover from that. Um, and I think I'm still so terrified. I like triple check my taxes every year now. It's just, oh my gosh, that was absolutely terrifying.

SPEAKER_01 20:22

What do you think makes some character companies last for years while others disappear?

SPEAKER_00 20:27

I think that logistically, again, finances. I just I always say that finances are like the blood of the company, and if it's not flowing correctly, then you can't survive, you know, and that's just the reality. And I think that it can get to a point where you have no option but to close or sell things or, you know, have to get another job that then takes time away from your business. And and uh I think that's just the unfortunate reality that uh you have to know your finances and have a a very healthy financial setup and cash flow and system and saving system and all that um for this business and for especially this industry, I think because we have we are such a a high expense industry, you know, like we are a smaller profit margin, higher expense industry. That is just the reality. So to make it to make it work, you have to be really on top of that. Um but more so mindset-wise and like heart passion-wise, I think that the mindset of you know, making sure that you're not taking pride in burnout and hustling because that's a toxic work environment that you've put yourself in. Really creating a strong system that you feel supported in, that you can continue to grow your business. Um, you know, making sure that you are honest with yourself about making true great decisions for your company. You know, again, this is going back to finances, but like overspending and calling it investing is not something that is going to be possible over time for you and especially. Especially if you are growing and then starting to do huge events where you're seeing $50,000 of money coming in. If you have a spending problem that is affecting your business, you're gonna spend that money and be in a bad space. And that is not a fun for your mental health. That is not something that is sustainable. Um and then on top of that, if you are overworking yourself and not paying yourself enough, it's just not something that's sustainable. So taking care of yourself, knowing that you don't have to work through burnout, you don't need to be working 24-7. You deserve to take vacations and pay yourself and take weekends off where no one's talking to you. Um, that is all possible and it is possible with the systems. And I think that that is the the companies that I see that just continue um to thrive are the companies that have really figured that out.

SPEAKER_01 22:49

Okay, this last question is kind of fun. Finish this sentence.

SPEAKER_00 22:53

The character entertainment industry would be better if I think the character entertainment industry would be better if the owners of companies focused more on ourselves as business owners, as collaborators, and as team leaders than as performers. And that doesn't mean that we shouldn't perform. I love performing. Um, but I think that people who want to perform and mainly want to perform and don't want to be a business owner should work for somebody else, should perform, should join a company. And the people who are stepping into the business owner role should be focusing on themselves as that, as an entrepreneur, as a leader. Um, and of course, doing, you know, the the fun stuff sometimes and performing and, you know, getting to do that, which we all, I'm sure, love, and that's how we ended up here, but really being able to support our team um in a way that is that is about them, you know, and and spending way more time talking to each other about how to create a healthy business and a supportive industry and collaborating um and and supporting each other than just talking and creating toxic like standards of how a princess should look or or what that should should be like. Um I think that that the more support we can have for each other and the more we can just focus on our own business and trying to grow it, um, I think I think that would make our industry a whole lot stronger. And that's definitely something that I am so passionate about and trying to create that community all together. I also think just recognizing like how cool we are in this industry, like I am so passionate about this industry because it is all of these mainly women, right? I I don't know many industries mostly dominated by female owners, mostly very young business owners who are going full-time in their business, making this all possible, generally without a business background, or even thinking that they wanted to own a business um before owning it. And I just think that's so magical and so cool and so special. And I'm just so excited about it all the time. So I think if we just remember the magic that everyone is in this industry and just trying to make magic and make these memories for these kids and make magic and memories happen for our teams too, I think the more we can remember and focus on that the better.

SPEAKER_01 25:19

Michaela, thank you so much again for taking the time to be part of today's episode and for being willing to answer both the fun and the hard questions. I absolutely love hearing perspectives from other owners in this industry because no matter where you're located, I think so many of us experience similar challenges, wins, and magical moments. And to everyone listening, I hope this episode gave you a little behind-the-scenes insight into what this industry is really like beyond the dresses and social media posts. If you enjoyed today's episode, make sure you share it to your Instagram stories or Facebook and tag both of us so that we can see your listening. You can find Michaela in a dream is a wish party LLC online if you want to check out her work and support her company. And of course, don't forget to follow the Party Princess podcast for more industry conversations, behind the scenes stories, business advice, and probably a little bit of chaos too. I'll see you guys in the next episode. Bye everyone.