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Life and Work with Evin Urban

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Evin Urban.

Evin, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Barry and I moved to Denver six years ago, right after getting engaged. We really wanted to get married in the mountains in Colorado but it was just too much to ask to haul all our friends and family out to Denver and then drive hours into the mountains to get that real mountain wedding feel. We got married at my mom’s tiny home vacation village in Western Maryland, and since we were the first wedding there, we had to figure out all the details on how to have a wedding there for the first time. It turned out so perfectly people are still talking about it to this day, and it planted the seed for us to start our own. Two years ago, we set about to create that perfect venue that we wanted when we were getting married, and we’re so proud to have created something better than we ever could have imagined. North Star Gatherings is an eco-friendly, off-grid wedding venue less than an hour from Denver with the most amazing Rocky Mountain views.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It’s definitely been a rocky road (literally!) getting here. It’s taken much longer than expected, and we’ve had a lot of regulations and red tape to deal with, especially running on off-grid solar because it’s something a lot of people haven’t dealt with before and don’t know how to work with. Building on a rocky mountain top surrounded by Forest Service land has created its fair share of difficulty. We’ve had to blast a ton of rock with dynamite (not as exciting as it sounds) and beg other projects for their extra dirt to make a level enough parking lot. Not to mention the extensive measures for fire safety in such a high-risk area! We haven’t yet completed construction, so we’re not 100% through all the hurdles but after two years of development, it’s amazing to see the light at the end of the tunnel and share our excitement with our future couples.

To other young women just starting their journey, I’d say never accept “no” as the first answer. Keep asking for help, keep searching for answers, and be strong but stay human. I’ve gotten out of a lot of tight spaces by just appealing to others at a human level. I think people can get stuck in a formal business routine and forget we’re all human with stories and families and struggles. Whenever possible I’ve tried to tell people my story and a little about myself so they see I’m just a person behind this email address or phone number and that this business is a labor of love for us.

Please tell us about North Star Gatherings.
We are so proud to be the only off-grid solar powered wedding venue in Colorado and to offer stunning mountain views less than an hour from Denver. We are a small family business-right now it’s just myself and Barry running the whole show. We hope to hire somebody really amazing down the line to help us as we grow, but we will always be a small family business with a real person on the other end of the phone. We really care about every couples’ big day and we want to contribute to it to being the most amazing experience of their lives.

There’s a wealth of academic research that suggests that a lack of mentors and networking opportunities for women has materially affected the number of women in leadership roles. Smart organizations and industry leaders are working to change this, but in the meantime, do you have any advice for finding a mentor and building a network?
Just keep reaching out! I’ve reached out to many venues and venue owners looking for mentorship, friendship, and advice. Most have produced very kind receptions on the other end, but some have been oddly rude and you’ve just got to brush it off and move on. I found an amazing mentor on Facebook who’s been absolutely invaluable to developing our business, and just chatting with other venues in the area and joining local venue groups has been great to learn more about our market. I don’t think networking is necessarily my strong point so it’s something I try to make an effort at, and I’m almost always glad when I do.

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Image Credit:
Photo: Roxy Harbitter, Renderings: Danades

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