Family

Meet this local mom who started her own event planning business

Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.
Posted 2023-06-01T17:53:51+00:00 - Updated 2023-06-02T11:00:54+00:00
Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.

Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.

1. What’s your name, and in what part of the Triangle do you spend most of your time?

My name is Jordan Drake, and I live in Apex, N.C. I spend most of my time in and around Raleigh and Cary.

2. Tell us a little about your family and one activity you enjoy together.

I have the most precious little family. We are a mighty team of three! It is made up of my husband George, our 6-year-old daughter Reverie, and myself. We are originally from Chicago and go back often to visit family, but have spent the last six years living in Nashville and now Raleigh since 2020. We thoroughly enjoy the South and can't imagine ever moving back to the Midwest (don't even get me started on the winters!).

Our family has absolutely fallen in love with the lush pines and greenery of North Carolina. Even our commute to kindergarten is like driving through an enchanted forest. My family's most favorite activity would have to be going on our day trip adventures to the North Carolina coast. On the rare occasion that I have a weekend off, we like to pull out the map and past issues of Conde Nast Traveler or Southern Living magazine and find hidden gems to visit between Raleigh and the coast. We keep track of our adventures in a little car trip notebook.

Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.
Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.

3. Tell us about your career journey and how you ended up in your current position.

I have loved fashion, decorating, and design for as long as I can remember, and my education and career path certainly reflect that. My career journey began at 15-years-old interning at Nordstrom as part of their Fashion Board program, which quickly turned to cashiering and then sales in the juniors department at Nordstrom in Chicago, where I worked until early college.

I double majored in Fashion Merchandising and Advertising at Northern Arizona University and experienced my first taste of boutique life while working closely with a female entrepreneur. I really enjoyed my time at the boutique as it allowed a bit more freedom with merchandising, and I was able to see all aspects of the business, like buying, inventory management, visuals, etc.

After graduation, I began my formal career at Saks Fifth Avenue in Phoenix as a brand ambassador. I missed being in the epicenter of the fashion industry, so I relocated back to Chicago and took a management position with Calypso St. Barth, a luxury women's clothing boutique on Oak Street (Chicago's version of Rodeo Drive).

When I became engaged, we moved to the suburbs, which took my career briefly to Kate Spade and then to a position with Ulta Beauty corporate on the prestige cosmetics inventory team where I learned a new skillset. I am very thankful for the knowledge and amount of time I spent in excel and SAP to understand supply chain.

While at Ulta, I fostered a relationship with the National Events Manager, and when I was six-months pregnant I accepted a promotion to join her team as the Regional Prestige Sales and Events Manager for the Midwest. Talk about a female, mom-supportive company promoting someone about to go on maternity leave! I spent the last three months of pregnancy training and traveling to local Illinois stores. After maternity leave, I traveled throughout the Midwest and managed all the national brand events for Ulta Beauty in my territory. This was where I gained the eventing knowledge that I use in my role today as the owner of Haute House Kids.

My career at Ulta ended when my husband accepted a role in Nashville, TN. I suddenly found myself as a full-time stay at home mom in a state where we knew no one, so I tapped into my networking skills, started a meetup group and set up weekly playdates and events to explore the Nashville neighborhoods.

When Reverie was settled in pre-school, I took my first stab at entrepreneurship and opened a local pop-up children's boutique called Velvet August. I moved that little shop into a cute booth space in downtown Columbia, TN called Bleu32 (like The Painted Tree in Cary). Fast forward to March of 2020, when Covid made the world stand still – including my shop. All that time at home gave me a creative itch, so I remodeled Reverie's playhouse and documented the process on social media. To my shock, it gained viral attention on local mom pages and gave me the idea to create custom, themed playhouses for other children…resulting in the birth of Haute House. Haute, as in haute couture, and house simply for the little abodes I was restyling.

In May of 2020 we relocated to Raleigh for George's position, and I put all Haute House plans on hold. After getting settled in the Triangle, and with our daughter preparing for kindergarten, it was time to launch Haute House. In spring of 2022, I hosted a tea party at my friend's flower farm, and the event’s success made it clear that the Triangle wanted curated events. I spent all of Summer 2022 building my community event program and met some of the most amazing business owners and families. In August I booked and planned my first private event - a mermaid and pirate pool party for the sweetest birthday girl! Eventing organically grew and left little time for the labor-intensive playhouses, so we eliminated that from our offerings. Haute House Kids celebrated its first birthday this April, and we are currently booking for private events into November 2023!

All this to say, dream big, mamas!

Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.
Meet Jordan Drake, who owns Haute House Kids.

4. What’s your favorite activity to do with your family?

My favorite activity to do with my family is an art project. You can often find us coloring as a family, working on a puzzle, or creating a cardboard cat house for our pets. Reverie is always the project manager.

5. What do you love about parenting as a working mother?

I love how much it inspires Reverie's creativity. Every time I am working on a new event she loves to get involved and give ideas and feedback. She has also become the best day-of assistant. I am so happy that she will remember all the hard work her mom put into building a brand while also being a loving mom and wife.

6. Tell us about a challenge you’ve overcome as a mother in the workplace.

The biggest challenge I have overcome is finding a balance with scheduling my time! It has taken a few months, but I finally feel like I am in a good groove with office work, site visits, and day-of events. I still have not perfected mixing in friend time for me, so you'll have to check back on that.

7. What are you passionate about outside of work and family?

Iced lattes! I absolutely adore finding new coffee shops and boutiques to explore. I also love antiquing and thrifting for home decor.

8. What is one book, podcast, article, social media account, blog or other resource you can
recommend for moms?

I love following Amber Fillerup. She is a creator that I have followed since before she had kids and her business. Now she has four kids and owns DAE, a successful hair product line. She is a total free spirit creative, and I love how she romanticizes special moments with her kiddos. And if you want to laugh, I absolutely love Emily Vondy.

9. If you have a favorite go-to spot in the Triangle, what is it?

My go to spot lately has been the patio at The Optimist. It is my favorite weekday place to work!

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