Interview by Abernathy Cochran interns and Gainesville High School seniors John Jessup and Anna Kate Embry
Meet Peyton Bolling and Stephanie Zohouri! Peyton and Stephanie own an event planning company called Platinum Peach Events in Gainesville. Peyton is married to Josh and has two children named Wilder (4) and Winnie (2). And Stephanie is married to Joshton.
We want to thank Peyton and Stephanie for spending time with us recently and telling us more about their life and love of Hall County.
Q: Please tell us about your current career.
Peyton: “Our story does kind of go hand in hand. I was teaching fourth grade and really loved it. I had a great experience and then a girl moved in right next door to me, another teacher. The greatest thing ever and became a really, really fast friend. Stephanie was leading a committee called Sunshine Club. It was a party planning club for the teachers. We would plan things like birthdays and other parties and I wasn’t even in the club, but Stephanie wrangled me into helping her. We went through Covid together as teachers and that was hard. After that we kind of started thinking through what if we wanted to do something else. We loved doing the party planning and the teaching was getting hard and at the time for me, I was having my second kid and felt like I wasn’t spending a lot of time with them, I kind of wished for something that I could do that gave me more free time to be with my kids because they’re little. We were on a break, I sat Stephanie down and I said, ‘do you want to quit our jobs and start a business? She said, ‘yeah, absolutely!’ We both knew we would finish the year out teaching but we knew we weren’t going back and I was having my daughter at the time and so that summer is kind of when we started getting our LLC in order and thinking through some stuff.”
Stephanie: “I think just being in the Sunshine Club sparked a passion that we are really good at this and this is way more fun than teaching. So, I think that it gives us that freedom of our own schedules and being our own bosses. It was a lot of fun and we worked so well together, I think that helped spark Platinum Peach Events.”
Q: Please tell us a little bit about your family.
Peyton: “I am married to my husband Josh and we have two kids, Wilder and Winnie. They will be four and two soon. I grew up here in South Hall and went to Johnson High School and then transferred to Gainesville High School. My parents live in Flowery branch and we’re all pretty local to the area, so I’ve been here my whole life.”
Stephanie: “And I’m the complete opposite. I actually grew up in Gwinnett County in Suwanee, but my husband Joshton grew up in Flowery Branch and so when we got married he was like, ‘I’ve got to go back to Hall County.’ This is home for him, he grew up on the lake and he wanted to be back in Hall County. We don’t have any babies, just a fur baby.”
Q: What do you love most about what you do?
Peyton: “I think what I love most about what I do is that it’s a creative outlet for me…and I get to work alongside my best friend and have flexibility and autonomy with what I’m doing.”
Stephanie: “I definitely think working together was a big plus because we work so well together. I get to work with my best friend, and it’s so much fun because we get to do things together and we balance each other out. But being able to design and create something like somebody’s wedding day and being there for all these special moments in somebody’s life is really, really cool.”
Q: What are a couple of your favorite restaurants in our community?
Peyton: “My favorites are probably El Sombrero, specifically the one on South Enota and I also really love Avocados.”
Stephanie: “Definitely Dilettos for my coffee and breakfast. And then I love Recess. I’ve become friends with the staff there and I buy my eggs from one of the girls that works there. They know my name when I walk in.”
Q: Who is the most interesting person you’ve met here in our community?
Peyton: “In our business, I think that Sherri Christensen is someone that’s been very interesting to me because it seems like she just knows every single person anywhere she is. She actually did my wedding in 2015 and she owns Soirees Southern Events & Bridal. She’s a very hard worker, she’s incredibly talented. She does flowers and she has a whole coordinating team. She manages a few venues in Northeast Georgia. And for me, she’s been very inspirational because she’s been someone who I can look up to in this business especially to do with weddings. Sometimes the business can be kind of closed off and she’s been very open to giving advice, helping us and introducing us to people.”
Stephanie: “I feel the same way about Dawn Mumpower with Peach’s Kitchen. I don’t know a whole lot of people here and to me she’s one of those people that took us under her wing and she just taught us how to grow our business. She also knows everybody and she’s just always been really sweet to us.”
Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would it be and why?
Peyton: “For me, I would go to Rome, Italy. We have family there and my husband and I and the kids try to go every two years. I would just say I would go there because we miss them. We talk, we FaceTime them every single day. Two of his sisters right now live there, but one of his sisters is married with our nephews. We went last year with the kids.”
Stephanie: “I’m terrified of flying but if somebody wants to help me escape this cold weather and bring me to Turks and Caicos, or just somewhere that’s warm.”
Q: What is one of your favorite movies? TV shows?
Peyton: “The movie is hard to pick. I think if I were picking a TV show, I love ‘Ted Lasso,’ that’s definitely one of my favorite shows. And for a movie, I think I love the new ‘Little Women’ movie.”
Stephanie: “I’m watching ‘Yellowstone,’ that’s a big one for me right now. And also ‘Legally Blonde’ and ‘Miss Congeniality.’”
Q: What advice would you want to give or leave with people?
Peyton: “It’s a piece of advice we’ve been given and I think I would continue to give it out, is to continue to take risks even as you get older. I think as we get settled into things it’s easy to think that we don’t have the capability of risk taking anymore. And I think for us, for me at least, this business was a huge risk, being married with kids, quitting a job, all of it was really risk taking and it’s been so beneficial, so I think risk taking regardless of age.”
Stephanie: “That no dream is too big or too small because I think people get comfortable in that career and just in life and it’s okay to venture out and try something new.”
Q: What current or former local business makes you the most nostalgic about our community?
Peyton: “I think Greens makes me the most nostalgic. I love all of the new things that are happening but I definitely still love running into Greens and grabbing something.”
Q: If you could choose anyone that’s alive today and not a relative, with whom would you love to have lunch. And why and where locally would y’all meet for this lunch?
Peyton: “I think I would do Betty White. I think how fun it would be to hear all of her stories, she’s so interesting. She had such an incredible life. I grew up doing theater and so I think there would be some sort of performer aspect and I would just laugh the whole time. And I’m taking her straight to Downtown Drafts. I’ll give her some ice cream, she’ll be good to go.”
Stephanie: “Mine would be Gabrielle Bonheur ‘Coco’ Chanel. She was the ultimate business woman and she changed the face of women’s fashion and went up against men and all that kind stuff. I’ll take her to Dilettos, we’re going to have coffee and macaroons and other little French pastries.”
Q: What is your favorite thing or something unique about our community?
Peyton: “My favorite thing about our community right now is I love how many new restaurants and businesses are opening up because I think it draws people to our city who either don’t live here or it gets people who live here kind of out and about.”
Stephanie: “I really like that you get a small town feel, you run into people at the grocery store but you also have all the perks of a city and the Square and all these new things are being brought to Gainesville. So you get a little bit of both worlds.”
Q: Where do you see yourself in 5 to 10 years?
Peyton: “For our business? I feel like we would like to be settled down at a venue in five to 10 years. I know that we would love to have full-time staff and maybe manage our staff.”
Stephanie: “Definitely still working together and growing Platinum Peach Events. Like you said with more staff and maybe move out of this shoebox, ha-ha. But maybe a bigger office with windows.”
Q: What is something on your bucket list?
Peyton: “I have always really wanted to learn how to do pottery, not paint pottery, but to make pottery. I just feel that would be kind of a fun hobby to have and go.”
Stephanie: “I would like to fluently learn another language.”
Q: What is something that you have been proud to check off your bucket?
Peyton: “Mine’s going to sound kind of weird, but having kids. It is a challenge and it was something I wanted to do and I am proud of doing it because it’s hard.”
Stephanie: “It would be starting my own business or our own business because, I always saw myself as my own boss.”
Q: What is your go to band when you can’t decide what to listen to?
Peyton: “I am a big Sublime fan. And I listen to The Avett Brothers a lot.”
Stephanie: “Right now I’m really into French cooking music. My husband loves the old school music background. And so there’s a lot of Frank Sinatra.”
Q: What is the most beautiful place you have ever been?
Peyton: “I think the most beautiful place I’ve ever been, don’t tell my family because it’s not romantic, it is Yellowstone National Park.”
Stephanie: “I’m a beach girl so anywhere on the beach. Sand and sunshine. I clearly just want to go to the beach.”
Q: Favorite month? favorite holiday? Best single day on the calendar?
Peyton: “My favorite month is August because my birthday’s there and I do love my birthday, but I like it because it makes me think of going back to school. Even though I’m not teaching and not in school, I love the feeling of renewal when you get all your new school supplies, clothing and I feel that way even when I’m not in school. My favorite holiday is Halloween because I love costumes, I like spooky and I think it’s very fun. Favorite date? July 4th because that’s when my son was born and it was very American.”
Stephanie: “My favorite month is October because I like the start of fall and it sparks the holidays. Favorite holiday? Christmas all the way. I start decorating for Christmas, November 1st. Best single day on the calendar? January 13th, our anniversary and 10 years together this year.”
Q: What would you rate a 10 out of 10?
Peyton: “Mine is Strawberry Basil Margarita at Taqueria Tsunami with the Ghost Tequila.”
Stephanie: “Dilettos Lavender cappuccino. And 10 out of 10 for us anytime we’re feeling down? A walk through Martin’s Furniture. ”
Q: Who would you want to play you in a movie about your life?
Peyton: “I would pick Tracee Ellis Ross, she’s one of my favorites. She’s one of my favorite actresses and she is just a very powerful woman. She’s Diana Ross’s daughter.”
Stephanie: “Mine is Reese Witherspoon.”
Q: Who inspires you to be better?
Peyton: “I think we’re going to have the same answer, but different people. I think our moms, we both have killer, awesome, amazing moms. And they’ve been really supportive and encouraging and hardworking. Both of them, very hardworking and we’ve watched them work so much.”
Stephanie: “They both have leadership positions. They’ve given us confidence and kind of translated those skills for us.”
