Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Woodburn and Sarah Neukom, co-founders of ESP Presents and Exchange312.
Matt, Sarah, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
We met in 2011 when we were introduced by mutual friends. It was clear that our skills complimented one another (Matt’s diverse background in events gave him unparalleled experience and insight into the world of event production and Sarah’s background in non-profits and fundraising made her an invaluable asset with professional skills and business acumen that uniquely complimented Matt’s creative nature).
We saw what was lacking in the market and believed in the power of combining our passions together, so we founded ESP Presents in 2014 as an attempt to bring greater purpose to our work and to better serve the community we live in. Today, ESP Presents works alongside some amazing brands, purpose driven companies and non-profits that are making a real difference in Chicago and beyond.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
As entrepreneurs, we face challenges/obstacles every day. One of the biggest things that we’ve struggled with in our business is personnel…how to find the right people to join our business, how to develop and retain top talent and how to support their professional growth. As a small business, we really consider our employees to be an extension of our brand and we’re constantly evaluating how we can attract the right people and provide them opportunities to feel empowered personally and professionally.
Growth presents its own set of challenges. As our business continues to evolve with ESP and now Exchange, we’re constantly challenged by that – how to scale our business to meet demand/need but also maintain a structure that’s effective for growth and supports the bottom line. We’re learning more every day and while challenging at times, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the ESP Presents & Exchange312 story. Tell us more about the business.
ESP Presents is a boutique event production firm that creates purpose-driven experiential events. Combining more than 25 years of experience, our team are experts in event production, market activation, arts and music curation, audience connection and technical direction.
We founded the company in 2014 out of a desire to create bigger impact and have since grown a curated list of clients in the non-profit, lifestyle brand, and social impact space. Now, nearing its 5-year anniversary, we’re expanding – we just opened up our own venue space, Exchange312, an intimate and customizable event space in the heart of Wicker Park. We’ve always had the dream of opening an event space we can call our own and a place to share our love of hosting. Exchange312 allows us to do just that and offers guests a distinguished venue to exchange new ideas, inspired conversations, unique experiences and unforgettable memories.
We believe what sets us apart is our service. We’re very high touch with our clients. Everyone on our staff is compelled to over deliver and exceed expectations. It’s just what we do – failure is not an option and that’s what we think sets us apart from the competition.
Looking back, we’re extremely proud of how far we’ve come in the past few years. We’ve almost quadrupled the size of our team, starting from just one employee and working out of our home to a 5,000 square foot space. As it so happens, the things that create the challenge is also what we’re most proud of.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
In everything in life, I think luck plays a part in it. But much more important is the role of hard work, dedication and unwavering belief in your vision to make your dreams a reality.
Contact Info:
- Address: Exchange312 – ESP Presents’ Headquarters
1714 W Division St
Chicago, IL 60622 - Website: www.esppresents.com
- Phone: 312-956-4080
- Instagram: @esppresents
Image Credit:
Photo credits: Stoptime.Live (events)
Photo credits: DTKindler Photography (headshot)
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