January 20, 2017

Meet Janet O’Brien of O’Brien Productions in Kennesaw

Local Stories

Janet, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My background was in recreational therapy but during the 1988 recession, I made a career change and started my company in the basement of my house. We used family and friends to work all of the events. We had more time than money for advertising so we became heavily involved with local chambers and non-profit organizations to network. We did events free of charge so companies and organizations could see what we could do.

Hard work, more hard work and a passion for excellence have led to our success. We are willing to do whatever needs to be done to get the job. We still believe in giving back to the community and we support 12 non-profits a year including the Atlanta Foodbank, The YMCA, Wellstar Foundation, and the Smith Gilbert Gardens to name just a few. Most recently we worked with The Not Alone Foundation which featured Dionne Warwick and it helps to raise awareness and money to help fight against kidney disease.

We believe in working hard, playing hard and always doing more than what our client expect.

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?
Certainly, there have been struggles along the way. Our industry is heavily tied to the economy. When the engines of the economy slow down, it affects the pocketbooks of corporations. During lean times, budget cuts lead to the downsizing of many corporations and along with that, events are sometimes the first items on the chopping block. The recession of 1988, the events of 9/ 11, the collapse of the banking industry and housing market led to many companies in our industry to shut the doors. We were able to make it through the rough financial times for a few reasons. One is that we offer a diverse product and we were able to adapt to the changing times. When morale was low in companies due to downsizing, we were able to focus on team building programs. We meet our clients where they were at and within their budgets.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
O’Brien Productions is a full-service party rental and event planning company offering a wide variety of services. We are incredibly affordable and offer high-quality products. The best part is that we own our party rental equipment to ensure that our customers receive the best pricing in town. We produce over 500 top quality events a year throughout the southeast and provide professional event staff to oversee each event. Our commitment to excellent customer service is what drives over 25 years of our success.
These are just a few of our specialties:

• Casino Parties, Themed Events, Carnivals, Festivals, Décor & Pipe & Draping
• Inflatables, Game Shows & Team Building Activities
• Tablescapes: Linens, centerpieces, chairs, & table Rentals
• Client Appreciation Events
• Specialty Entertainment: Magicians, Caricature Artists, Face Painters, Stilt Walkers, DJs, bands, etc.
• Company Picnics
• Catering and Food Service Management
• Off-Site Venue Selection

I am very proud of my staffs and my staffs are what sets us apart from others. From the sales people to the registration desk staff to our set up crew, everyone is very friendly and detail oriented. We have created a culture of friendliness and everyone rises to the occasion of being extremely helpful to one another and to our clients.

What were you like growing up?
Well, started my first business when I was 12 years old…it was a little dance studio. I liked to dance and continued to do so and was a feature baton twirler at Georgia Tech. I started O’Brien Productions when I was 25 years old.

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