Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Doktor.
Hi Alexis, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Alexis Doktor Designs is the result of a walk down a few different paths… My story begins in NYC where I was born, raised, and graduated from FIT with a fashion design degree. Not satisfied with the idea of just one career path, I also danced professionally as a ballet dancer, which is what originally brought me to South Carolina. As a ballet dancer with the Columbia City Ballet based in Columbia, SC, I was able to perform and experience a level of artistic freedom, as well as challenges, that one doesn’t get to experience in other more ‘typical’ jobs off of the stage. As well as being on stage, I was also working in another area behind the scenes. I put my fashion design degree to use as the costume designer for the company, and after years of being fully involved with the Columbia City Ballet on those two levels, I began wearing yet another hat within the company and started working on their fundraiser events. At first, it was small scale assistance, but as our fundraisers grew in both size and complexity, I found myself taking on more responsibility with those events, which eventually led me to helping fellow dancers with their weddings, other nonprofit companies’ events, and the rest shall we say is history.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
A smooth road probably isn’t a very exciting one. I can’t say everything has been easy, but it certainly hasn’t been boring either. Being a ballet dancer, or any other performance-based artist comes with its own set of challenges. You’re always striving for a better role, more stage time, longer performance contracts, etc, but at the end of the day, those challenges are what make you a better artist. As a wedding planner, I have found the most challenging thing was just initially breaking into the industry. When I first began, though it felt like such an organic transition, I quickly realized that I was in a large arena of already very well-established professionals here in Columbia. Our state is lucky to have such a well-known wedding destination city of Charleston, but Columbia can certainly hold its own when it comes to having a spectacular, sophisticated, or over-the-top event. We have some absolutely outstanding wedding vendors here, in every category, all of whom have different styles and specialties. Once I realized what my style and specialties were, and what things I could bring to the table here that are unlike anyone else already working in this area, it all began to fall into place beautifully.
I find that I am often seen as an anomaly here in Columbia – while I have grown to truly love the southern feel and small city/big town vibe of ‘Soda City’, I will always be a New Yorker. What I discovered, though, was that means that I bring a few different styles and sensibilities to the table than what a typical SC-based designer might be able to. For some people that is exciting and adventurous, and for others, it can be a bit intimidating. But realizing what sets me apart has been the best motivating force to continue to grow my business here, and push my own boundaries and capabilities.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Alexis Doktor Designs is a wedding planning firm that specializes in an artistic approach to wedding design. I have always thought of myself as an equal left-brainer and right-brainer, so wedding planning is a really wonderful arena to exercise both of those skills. While I love getting into the super nitpicky organizational items for wedding days such as creating the overall timeline, coordinating with all of the vendors, figuring out logistics for the venue, etc, where I really love to focus my energy is on the design side. With a degree in fashion design, and a very brief dabble in interior design, I look at every wedding as an artistic expression of each client I’m working with. Every wedding day is a capsule creation of their wildest dreams. With Instagram, Pinterest, and all the other visual platforms nowadays, almost every client comes to me with a wealth of image inspiration to choose from. My job, and the part I truly love the most, is taking all of those pictures and ideas, and honing in on exactly what aesthetic perfectly suits my couple, and then what overall look and feel will perfectly illustrate that vision for them. I want every wedding I do to be completely unique. So, I guess that’s one of the things that sets me apart – I don’t ever want my weddings and events to look like someone else’s. Every bride and groom is unique, so every wedding should be unique, and be an impeccable representation of them as a couple, as well as the individualities that are what make them perfect for each other. Another thing that sets me apart is that whenever you hire Alexis Doktor Designs, you are working personally with me. Not to say I work alone. I am beyond blessed to have the most amazing team of professionals who help bring every event I create to life, as well as interns who I absolutely love having the opportunity to work with while cultivating them in this awesome field, but when you hire ADD you are working specifically with me throughout the process. I won’t ever hand you off to another person on my team or expect interns to orchestrate the magic on your wedding day. While my team is absolutely my backbone, every client can rest assured that they will always have me at the helm.
What does success mean to you?
Simply put, to me being successful is being happy. Happiness comes in so many different shapes and forms, but honestly, every single human I know is just striving to find true happiness.
I am so lucky that I get to do something that I love. That at just 40, I’ve actually already had three completely different professional job titles, all of which I’ve loved for totally different reasons. Not many people can say that they truly ‘love’ their job, but I’ve been able to say that about three completely different ones.
I hope to continue to find happiness in what I do – working with unique clients every single day, creating magical weddings, bringing people’s dreams to life. As long as I find joy in my career, I will consider that a success. And working with absolutely amazing clients, and fellow artists in all of my fields is just icing on the cake!
Contact Info:
- Email: alexisdoktordesigns@gmail.com
- Website: alexisdoktor.com
- Instagram: alexisdoktordesigns
- Facebook: alexisdoktordesigns
Image Credits
Stee Garman Photography
Jessica Hunt Photography
The Carters Creative
Wyeth Augustine Photography
Brigitte Renee Photography
Nicholas Gore Weddings
Clark Berry Photography
Anne Rhett Photography
