The Art of the Everyday Celebration

Years before Shanita Dublin Compagne ever drew up a business plan, she hosted a ninth birthday party for her oldest daughter that was, by her own admission, held together by a thought, a prayer, and a generous amount of hot glue. The parents who arrived for pickup did not see the frantic last-minute stitching. Instead, they saw an imaginative wonderland, showering Compagne with praise and insisting she turn her eye for styling into a legitimate company. At the time, she tucked the compliments away. She had a six-figure career in luxury retail management to maintain and a growing family to nurture in Las Vegas, the city she had called home since 2004.

Then came 2020. With the world at an abrupt halt, Compagne welcomed her third child and found herself unenthusiastic about stepping back onto the corporate retail floor. Her best friend, Shawna, was feeling similarly uninspired by the prospect of returning to corporate education recruiting with a new baby of her own. As families sheltered in place, birthdays kept arriving, milestones kept passing, and the need for joy remained urgent. Compagne remembered the magic of that long-ago sleepover and made an impulsive call to Shawna: they were going into the party business.

Transforming the Living Room

Launching an experiential company in the middle of a global pandemic might have sounded reckless on paper, but Compagne understood human connection better than most spreadsheets could quantify. People were hesitant to book crowded venues, yet they desperately craved celebration. My Tentastic Parties was built to bring the wonder directly into living rooms and backyards, starting with bespoke, elevated sleepovers and expanding into glamping setups and luxury picnics.

Compagne quickly recognized that she was not merely renting teepees and fairy lights; she was solving a modern parental dilemma. The modern party-planning cycle often involves spiral-scrolling Pinterest, drowning three carts deep at craft stores, and agonizing over balloon garlands, only for hosts to spend the actual event exhausted in the kitchen.

"And as we've grown, I've realized that what we're really giving people is their time back," Compagne reflects. "Time to be present, enjoy their people, and make memories without having to worry about all the moving pieces." By arriving to transform the room and returning later to pack everything away, the company gave hosts permission to simply be guests.

Learning the Grace of the No

Navigating the transition from corporate executive to self-employed founder came with sharp learning curves. In the fragile early days of building a brand, the instinct is to chase every inquiry and accommodate every demand. For Compagne, the hardest developmental milestone was understanding boundaries.

"Understanding that not all money is good money," she explains, was a lesson hard-won through trial and error. Early on, it is tempting to accept every booking, but she eventually discovered that certain clients and arrangements exacted too high a toll in stress and compromise. Cultivating discernment also meant curating her inner circle with intention, choosing to surround the venture with genuine supporters and learning to step away cleanly from negativity.

That protective instinct extended to creative authenticity. In a visually driven industry where imitation is rampant, Compagne insisted on keeping her setups uniquely personal. Rather than mimicking trending templates, she leaned into the small, thoughtful flourishes that reflected her innate hospitality.

Motherhood in Four Acts

Behind the seamless canopy tents is a bustling domestic reality. Alongside her husband, Olivier, Compagne is raising four children spanning vastly different seasons of life: two young adults navigating college dorms, a first-grader, and a two-year-old in the thick of toddlerhood. In any given week, she moves between helping launch adult lives, grading spelling worksheets, and managing toddler tantrums.

The venture has afforded her the flexibility to remain fully present for those fleeting milestones without abandoning her own ambition. Olivier has grown accustomed to her expansive visions—knowing well that when she offers to set the table, an entire production is likely on the way—while Shawna continues to help anchor operations behind the scenes.

Success has accordingly been recalibrated. While the healthy growth of the bottom line remains vital, Compagne no longer tallies accomplishment strictly by corporate metrics. It lives instead in the returning clients who make My Tentastic Parties a yearly tradition, the warmth of a close-knit team, and the freedom to step out of the office whenever her family calls.

The Next Horizon

What began on the living room floor in Las Vegas has since crossed state lines, expanding into the Lake Norman and Charlotte markets in North Carolina. Yet Compagne remains restlessly creative, continuously looking for fresh ways to delight clients.

Her upcoming slate includes open-air bubble tents, turnkey DIY party boxes delivered straight to doorsteps, and dedicated event packages tailored specifically for adults who crave an elevated gathering of their own. For Compagne, growth is not about expansion for its own sake, but about exploring the edges of her imagination while maintaining deep roots at home. With faith at the helm and an instinct for celebration, she continues proving that the simplest moments are always worth making extraordinary.