-Story and photography by Lia Crowe
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A small-town boy from Campbell River with a big imagination and limitless creativity, Aidan Henry is driven by a love of creating unique events with moments that will be remembered for a lifetime.
“The basic root of why I do what I do is to create these moments for people. At the end of people’s lives, they may not remember much from their day-to-day life 20 to 30 years ago, but they are going to remember a few [significant] moments. And a lot of those moments are typically from events. We do a lot of unique events and create experiences that are enchanting, whimsical and a little bit different — we don’t do the status quo,” says Aidan.
| Aidan Henry photographed for Inspired Style by Lia Crowe. Lia Crowe photography |
With a Bachelors of Commerce degree from the University of Victoria, Aidan first worked in digital marketing.
“At the age of 29, I had to do some soul searching. In digital marketing, I didn’t feel like I was being overly creative; I wasn’t really making a difference. So I did some career testing and the number one career match for me was event planning. I always knew that I loved hosting parties and seeing people have fun. So I started Brink in 2011 — I threw myself into the deep end and learned how to swim.”
Asked what innate quality has led to his success, he says, “I’m a little bit of a control freak. You can’t have even one thing go wrong in event design because it can throw the whole thing off and you don’t get a second chance. At Brink, we come up with a concept and follow it all the way through to execution. I think that things can get lost in the mix if you hand it over to someone else and don’t see it through to the end.”
So what ingredients make those magic moments?
“People are really busy these days — on their phones, always thinking about work. Life is cluttered. What I want to do is create a moment, three hours even, where people can just disconnect from all that stuff. Instead, they’re trying really great food, trying a cocktail, seeing beautiful flowers, hearing great music and it’s real — it’s tangible. It’s important to me because I think people need that and deserve that.”
Outside of work Aidan is passionate about charity and giving back.
“I feel that I’m very fortunate, so I give back quite a bit. I love volunteering, whether it’s at Our Place (where I usually volunteer at least once a week) or a few other different places around town. And a big part of my work is organizing charity galas.”
When it comes to good style for Aidan, clothing has to be properly fitted and have a bit of pop.
“I wouldn’t go so far to say that I’m a peacock, but I like colours — things that pop — a little bit of something different to catch your eye.”
STYLE INSPIRATION / LIFE
Style Icon: Conor McGregor.
Favourite Artist: Salvador Dali.
Favourite Fashion Designer or brand: Dolce & Gabbana.
Favourite Musician or band: Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Era of Time that inspires your style: ’90s rock.
Film or TV show that inspires your style or that you just love the style of: Fight Club.
Favourite local restaurant: ll Terrazzo.
Favourite Cocktail/Wine: Bourbon Sour.
Favourite Flower: Calla lily.
Favourite city to visit: New York City.
Favourite Hotel: Fairmont Hotels.
Favourite App: Headspace.
Favourite place in the whole world: Hawaii.
CLOTHES/GROOMING
Favourite Denim, brand and cut: Diesel.
Current go-to clothing Item: Bow tie.
Best new purchase: Sport coat.
Accessory you spend the most money on: Watch.
Favourite work tool: Notepad.
Sunglasses: Tom Ford.
Necessary indulgence: Pocket squares.
Reading Material What do you read Online for style: PartySlate.
Fave Print magazine: BizBash.
Coffee table photography book: It’s My Party by Joe Mineo.
Favourite book of all time: Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson.
