Life & Work with Shahidah Salaam

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shahidah Salaam.

Hi Shahidah, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Life of The Party Started in 2014. I began by selling linens on craigslist.

But I always wanted to decorate the full wedding, beyond just providing the linens. I didn’t have a huge network other than my faith-based community. With little experience in the decor field, I took on a position as an event planner that help me develop and I began researching tutorials on how to make parties stand out. A friend took a chance on me decorating and planning her wedding in 2016 and from there slowly the network began growing. I provided dessert tables and creating custom treats then started decorating the full party.

In 2019, I stepped out on pure faith and prayer and left my 9-5p to pursue my passion of event planning and decor, dedicating my time to it full time.

Life of the PartyKC finally took off in 2019, when we opened our first Event Space in Grandview called Elegant Affairs Event Space. With great reception from the community and a need for a bigger location, we opened up our second venue The Gallery at 705 in March of 2020.

The pandemic hit two weeks later which left us in shambles of what to do but our faith in GOD and turning our attention to our Non Profit organization (New Africa Community Center Inc.) to help others which allowed us to give back that’s when God started to really bless Us in ways that allowed us to remain open and push through the pandemic.

Now our event spaces are back open and running at full capacity!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Being that we’ve been open for only 3 years, The pandemic as discussed previously was the biggest hurdle for our new small business. We are still trying to stay afloat but it was a huge setback for our business.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I specialize in Themed decor and custom treats. We bring baby showers, weddings and birthdays along with your vision to LIFE! We are now open with proper Covid measures in place! You can follow us on @lifeofthepartykc on Instagram and Facebook as well as our venues: The Gallery at 705 and Elegant Affairs Event Space both on Instagram and Facebook.

We were voted Best Decor for 2020 by the Kansas City’s people’s choice awards and again are a finalist this year for the Best Decorator category! This has been a huge blessing for our family doing something that we love and being of service to the people, we are in the final stages of opening our 3rd location The Party House by Lifeofthepartykc in early August with a school supply giveaway and grand opening as a kick off.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Leaving the stability of a 9-5p job as an employee to stepping out on faith and becoming my own boss has been the biggest risk in business for our lives. But it was necessary for growth and a piece of mind. We thank GOD that it is working out; we have seen a great return on our investment into both properties so now our focus is on opening our third location In the area and giving back!

Contact Info:

• Email: lifeofthepartykc@gmail.com
• Website: www.Elegantaffairseventspace.com
• Instagram: Lifeofthepartykc
• Facebook: Lifeofthepartykc
• YouTube: Lifeofthepartykc
• Other: Elegant Affairs Event Space/ The Gallery at 705/ The Party House by Lifeofthepartykc

Image Credits
Khalis Shareef Zaynah Hazziez Shun’Nita Washington Myles Van