Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Brown.
Hi Katie, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Like a lot of people, I moved to LA after college and, like a lot of people, I found it hard to authentically build relationships and a consistent community. Most of the gatherings I went to were networking events or parties in loud bars & restaurants, neither of which are good environments for fostering deep connection and conversation. I longed for a space where I could meet people in an inviting atmosphere and get to know them beyond surface-level conversation. So I decided to start hosting dinner parties at my home with the simple goal of gathering intentionally. Every gathering had a purpose and every detail, from the theme to the place cards to the food to the conversation, revolved around that purpose. In the beginning, I asked each guest to bring a friend to the dinners and it slowly grew from there! But it wasn’t until I started posting about it on social media that it really took off. Turns out, I’m not the only one who wanted to gather around a table, eat a good meal, have authentic conversations and leave a party feeling seen and known.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Like all businesses, there have definitely been some challenges, but probably my biggest challenge came during the pandemic. It’s pretty hard to have a gathering business when you’re not allowed to gather… I tried hosting virtual gatherings but it was difficult to replicate the same type of atmosphere I had at my in-person gatherings (not to mention the general Zoom fatigue that we all were feeling), so I pivoted to making “A Gathering in a Box” subscription boxes, so people could have all the tools they needed to host their own gatherings. This led to me discovering how passionate I was about helping others host gatherings and encouraging the host in all of us! Though I no longer sell the subscription boxes, I have taken the same philosophy and applied it to my content so now I can help people all over the world feel confident and inspired to host their own gatherings.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At The Lane is all about hosting intentional gatherings and helping others do the same through our in-person gatherings, content, products and services. Our in-person gatherings are mostly themed potluck dinner parties. Our most recent one for example was a “Dream Vacation Dinner Party” where each guest picked a destination they would love to travel to and brought a dish or drink inspired by the destination! Guests were encouraged to wear their favorite vacation outfit and we spent the entire evening discussing and planning all of our dream vacations. For those that can’t gather in person, we also share hosting & gathering content on our social media platforms, have a variety of dinner party playlists on our Spotify profile and send out a monthly newsletter with tips, tricks and gathering ideas. This year I was also able to weave my love of thrifting and estate sale shopping into At The Lane by hosting monthly pop-up sales on our Instagram.
What does success mean to you?
To me, success doesn’t have just one definition, especially when it comes to the “success” of a gathering. Sometimes a successful gathering looks like guests exchanging numbers with new friends at the end of the night, sometimes it looks like all the food coming out hot, sometimes it’s about the types of conversations had around the table and sometimes it’s just about executing the vision I had in my brain when I first came up with the idea.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.atthelane.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gatheratthelane/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@atthelane
