Meet Alexis Rogers | Upstate NACE Chapter President

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

Hi Alexis, how does your business help the community?
We are a non-profit organization that brings event industry professionals together to network, grow, and educate the people in our community to better themselves, grow their business, and better the community!

We help the community by hosting events where people can come together and feel safe to express themselves in the events world. Whether that is meeting new people and expanding their connections or attending an educational event and expanding their knowledge and skills. We want everyone in our industry to feel welcome and invited to come learn and meet others just like them or even a little unique!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I currently serve as the Upstate SC NACE Chapter President and recently moved into this role at the start of 2024. After obtaining my Bachelor’s in Hospitality Management from the University of South Carolina I moved to Atlanta, GA to begin my career in events. This played a huge role to get me to where I am today, back in Greenville, SC. Without that move I would not have had the opportunity to work for some amazing top tier companies and broaden my horizons in this industry. Also without my move to Atlanta I may not have discovered the NACE chapter in Atlanta which allowed me to learn what the organization is all about. This helped me take the steps needed to begin the rebuilding process and assume a leadership role in the chapter here in Greenville.

I am most proud of the leap that I took when graduating and moving to a larger city to help launch my career and start building those leadership skills. I hope to continue building and learning along the way and build a business of my own one day!

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?
While on the outside Greenville may look like a small city, but it is exploding from the seams with things to do, great food and beverage, and places to visit!

My weekly Itinerary would look something like this:

Day one: walking tour of downtown Greenville to explore the old buildings, history, and of course visit falls park to see the running waterfall that goes right through downtown. I would stop in for lunch and dinner at any of the amazing restaurants that feature an outdoor patio or rooftop experience to take in all of downtown and the surrounding views.
Day two: Riding or walking along the Swamp Rabbit trail from Traveler’s Rest, SC all the way through downtown!
Day three: i would spend this day hiking near one of the few mountains we have here in the area. My personal favorites are Table Rock and Paris Mountain!
Day four: i would take a drive out to lake Keowee or Heartwell and spend a nice day out on the water!
Day 5: I would take a trip back into town just to explore and taste some of the great restaurants and cocktails the city has to offer!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to give 2 shoutouts.

First, I would like to shoutout a previous superior, Mark Klein, who was my director while I worked for a food and beverage company in Atlanta, GA. His warm smile and greeting everyday made me feel seen when working in a busy office full of people that would usually overlook me. He was very supportive of my short and long term goals and was a great example of the leader I hope to be. We still keep in touch to this day and I will always be grateful for the experience I gained when working for him.

Secondly, I would like to shoutout another previous supervisor, Rebekah Vennes, who introduced me to the world of NACE (National Association for Catering & Events) a few years back. This experience pulled me out of my comfort zone and opened me up to a world of professionals that were there to support me and help me grow along the way!

Instagram: upstatenace

Image Credits
I hope to add more images by the end of the week and will credit the professional photographer on those photos!