Meet Rochelle Jaleh | Business Owner & Executive Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rochelle Jaleh and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rochelle, what is the most important factor behind your success?
Archive Rentals is a small business that thrives because of the company culture and the team behind the brand. Although Archive has 3 branch locations, 2 in the United States (San Clemente, CA and Austin, TX) and 1 in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico we are all extremely tight knit and are constantly communicating. When one branch is facing a hurdle, it’s communicated with the other locations to see if similar circumstances were overcome and how. We fight as one group for the greater good of the company as a whole and lend a hand where it is needed. We’ve also instilled an environment where successes are cheered company wide. When morale is high, we believe our customers reap the most from our creativity and our willingness to go above and beyond. We celebrate milestones with our team like new baby arrivals, birthdays and home purchases. Dialogue is open, wins are cheered on and this feeling of constant excitement resonates through the team. We’re in a field where parties and events are the norm so we want our daily life to reflect those fun feelings. We love making wreaths together during the holidays, vacationing together in the summer, and happy hours when we get some time to cheers. After clients stop by our office we often hear what a fun work environment it seems to be based off the constant hum of new ideas being bounced off of one another. We pride ourselves on being as close as a family and believe that is the key factor to our success. Clients like working with people they like and I believe they feel our positive energy and authentic enthusiasm for their special day.

Please tell us more about your business. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today business-wise. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
Every success story comes with it’s set of challenges, just take a look at how this year has played out. Archive Rentals started 2020 with projected sales to far outpace previous years and then covid hit. Our world was turned upside down as I laid-off 49/50 employees (including myself) in March 2020. So many industries were affected but in those moments it felt like the event industry was hit really hard. Our business makes 70% of our revenue on large gatherings and those were banned. Corporate events, weddings and special occasions were put on a stand still for months. Yet our expenses didn’t stop. We owed trucking, warehouse/showroom rent, inventory purchases, etc. These challenges taught us the importance of being resilient and learning to pivot. We have done more backyard weddings/parties than we ever did before – converting backyards into fairy tales. We also helped launch a new brand (Weddily) that will be available to consumers next month and will help couples book their venue and vendors online.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My ideal day would include riding a golf cart around Laguna Beach, stopping at our favorite local hangout, The Deck for a cocktail and finishing the day by watching the sunset at the beach. The following day would be filled with at Zinc for brunch, woods cove for a beach day and then a Salt Creek picnic with wine, music, and charcuterie boards. Doesn’t get better than that!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
A book that’s made a deep impact on how I run Archive Rentals is a read titled “Good To Great: Why Some Companies Make The Leap and Other’s Don’t” by Jim Collins. It describes how to take a leap from an average company to one that is stellar! A key takeaway that I’ve brought into how I manage my day to day is to put people in roles where their competencies are best suited for them and lay out a growth plan where they are able to invest, train, and learn and grow within the company. The other person who deserves credit is my husband/best friend/business partner, Ryan Jaleh. He has always made me believe that I can do it and whenever I am nervous about an outcome or a challenge he always stays positive and motivating. I couldn’t do it without him and I am beyond grateful for his support and love over the past 15 years.

Website: www.archiverentals.com
Instagram: archiverentals
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/2997638/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/archiverentals?lang=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archiverentals/
Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/archive-rentals-san-clemente-6?osq=archive+rentals
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcJVQxZf2ZS0AfTltFKpSeA

Image Credits
Dana Grant photography