Anna Strindberg — The Super Model From Sweden Building Her Empire In New York as AnnaSoSwede

Swedish farmer girl turned New Yorker hospitality professional. Anna has a background in political science but decided to turn event and wedding planner as soon as she had her Master Degree diploma in hand. She runs multiple venues as a Director of Sales and Events while she models and creates for Playboy at the same time.

AnnaSoSwede.com & Photography: @Photo_Panesso

How did you get started in your career? I worked for my mom at her restaurant/tea shop my whole life and learned what real hospitality meant – to care for people, to cater to people’s needs and to create memorable experiences. Once I graduated from college, I got an internship here in NYC and I left Sweden. I had a great mentor at my internship and worked my way up from an intern to Director and the rest is history! Well. History in the making, if I may add.

What is your moment where you realize “you made it”? When I received 10-15 insane TripAdvisor reviews and Ian Schrager himself gave me a shout out! At least then I knew I was on the right path. I get headhunted a lot which is incredible and definitely makes me feel like I’ve made a name for myself within the industry.

What career advice would you give your younger self? Just keep working. I know that hard work pays off is a cliché but I’m a firm believer it’s true. Every day isn’t easy and every day isn’t fun – but try to make it fun even when it’s hard and all of a sudden, things will change with you because hard times are never permanent.

What are your biggest influences in your career? My parents. They taught me consistency, discipline and structure. That, combined with just loving people and enjoying the ride, has had a huge impact on me. I’ve worked with some of the best people in the event industry and I feel so blessed to continue to grow next to them and see them grow as well. Entering the nightlife scene was a bit of a new world for me and my old boss Kaitlin Prince gave me a whole new perspective on how women can run this industry and do it with compassion for everyone – a strict door doesn’t have to mean that not everyone is welcome. Being influenced by power women like her, has been a huge blessing.

What’s the most difficult part of your job? That I always work when everyone else is off. I don’t think I’ve been free to celebrate NYE in almost 10 years! And I’ve missed weddings with friends and family because I have my own wedding bookings. That one can be a bit hard.

What’s next for you and your career? I hope to open up and re-brand a new amazing hotel here on the Lower East Side – new restaurants, new bars, new event space and a whole new brand. We just started the reconstruction process so big things are coming!

Where can we keep up with you? You can follow me on Instagram: AnnaSoSwede. I don’t have a dog and I tend to do a lot of things alone but I make sure I post it on my stories to my mothers dismay and my fans’ delight, haha.

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