Celebrity Entertainment and Production Services Extraordinaire, Julie Estes (BETa upsilon-oregon state)
Portland-area born and raised Julie Estes (Beta Upsilon-Oregon State) grew up hiking, camping and wandering her majestic Pacific Northwest backyard. With a wild heart and even wilder aspirations, she set her sights on New York City after college and landed in the fast-paced world of high-end event production. Backed by 20 years of experience, Julie now owns Special Ops Production (SOP) House, a production company specializing in celebrity talent, live entertainment and large-scale events — think five- day weddings where the flower budget alone is $6 million. “Absolutely crazy, I know,” Julie laughs. After braving one too many East Coast winters, Julie now snowbirds, splitting her time between New York and Los Angeles to enjoy the best of both worlds, sans any parkas. “I love New York, but I can’t do the winters,” she says. “So instead of shoveling snow back East, I can sit on my LA-based balcony, basking in the gloriousness of warm weather, answering emails. It’s amazing!” Rewind. How does someone break into the New York scene and end up working with A-listers like Diana Ross, Lionel Richie, Diplo, Nelly and Kesha? A whole lot of gumption and pluck, which might as well be Julie’s middle name. That, and the confidence she built as an Alpha Phi, learning how to lead, communicate and rally a room as chapter president — skills she’d call on again and again. “[My Alpha Phi sisters and I] were doing real-world things: managing budgets, speaking publicly, pitching to strangers during rush,” she says. “It gave me the confidence to go out there and do it for real.” And she did. At 23, Julie interviewed at Martha Stewart Omnimedia in New York City. She didn’t get the job, but the experience of meeting Martha’s team and exploring the city with her mom sealed the deal: Julie would move to New York. Two months later, she did. She spent the next seven years climbing the ranks inside the city’s elite party planning industry. Starting as an unpaid intern living off dollar pizza and Diet Coke, she said yes to every opportunity —
booking entertainment, planning events, managing logistics, soaking up knowledge. This worked in her favor because she was offered a full-time job while also volunteering for even more events, like New York Fashion Week, as a side hustle. Eventually, Julie was promoted to senior planner at the same firm she interned at. “Working with clients whose net values are in the seven to 10 figures taught me luxury, white-glove service, discretion and professionalism.” Julie says. “I learned early on what it takes to produce for this type of clientele, and now it’s one of the many elements that set me apart.” Following her seven-year tenure at that first job, Julie took a (semi) break, traveling through Asia for three months before freelancing in design and entertainment production. That led to her next big gig: vice president of production and events at a live music firm, working with top-tier talent like Adele’s drummer and Sting’s guitarist. When they weren’t touring, it was Julie’s job to produce their performances at high-end events, often across the country or abroad. “I’ll travel at the drop of a hat,” she says. “This job let me do so much international travel, taking bands all over the world. Definitely pinch-me moments.” These opportunities didn’t come easy. A self- described recovering workaholic, Julie was always “on,” especially as a transplant trying to make her mark in the city. She was often first in, last out, raising her hand for the most challenging projects. With each new experience, her toolkit — and her confidence — grew. Eventually, she realized it was time to stop executing other people’s visions and start building her own. She made her way to L.A., freelanced for a year, then hit pause when the pandemic brought events to a standstill. After some sunbathing and serious soul-searching, she decided to start fresh. By summer 2022, SOP House (sophouse.com) was born. Today, SOP House is a go-to name for booking celebrity talent and providing planning and
Julie worked with American singer Lionel Richie, producing his performance for a private event in summer 2024.
Julie with her Beta Upsilon sisters at Oregon State’s Red Dress fundraising event in fall 2023.
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