Founder Focus | Rock Paper Coin
In our Founder Focus series, we spotlight innovative minds reshaping industries and inspiring others to pursue bold ideas. Today, we’re featuring Elizabeth Sheils, Co-Founder and CEO of Rock Paper Coin, a Portland-based platform modernizing contracts and payments for the events industry.
Fallon Mertz:
Elizabeth, thank you for chatting with me today! I was excited for this one, I actually planned weddings for years.
Elizabeth Sheils:
No way! Where were you based?
Fallon:
All over! Oregon for awhile, Vegas for a couple years and then Dallas. So I know the chaos and magic of the industry pretty well!
Elizabeth:
That’s amazing.
Fallon:
So let’s talk about Rock Paper Coin. What led you and your co-founder, Nora Sheils, to start it?
Elizabeth:
Nora founded Bridal Bliss in 2002 after winning a business competition at Gonzaga University. She opened the company inside her mom’s bridal shop, Anna’s Bridal, in Lake Oswego. As brides came in to try on dresses, her mom would say, “If you need a planner, my daughter can help!” That’s how it all started.
I joined Bridal Bliss later and helped expand it to Bend and Seattle. As we grew, we were managing 40 women and producing 100–125 weddings a year, we started realizing how inefficient the backend operations like contracts, invoices, and payments. Everything was PDFs, checks in the mail, or clunky systems that didn’t include the planner in the process. So we went in search for software and sent out a nationwide survey and received almost 800 responses. Everyone was comfortable using tech, but nothing was streamlined. They were juggling spreadsheets, Word docs, PDFs, and timelines in different tools. That’s when we realized there was a massive gap in the market.
We had no tech background but decided to build the solution ourselves. We connected with a development firm, learned all the jargon by Googling it later, and used our network, including some past wedding clients, to raise initial funding. That’s how Rock Paper Coin was born.
Fallon:
That’s so impressive, especially without a tech background. Once you launched, did you get any pushback from couples or vendors?
Elizabeth:
Honestly, couples adapted quickly. Signing PDFs and mailing checks was such a pain. Vendors were trickier. Many had already been targeted by other software companies that didn’t understand the wedding industry. But once word spread that Rock Paper Coin helped them get paid in 48 hours instead of a week, adoption took off.
Fallon:
What do you think sets Rock Paper Coin apart from those other CRMs?
Elizabeth:
Traditional CRMs were never built for weddings. They were made for generic small businesses. In weddings, the planner acts like a general contractor, coordinating everything. These other CRMs always excluded planners from the contract and payment loop, which made no sense.
We built Rock Paper Coin for the entire vendor network, planners, florists, caterers, photographers, and clients, all in one place.
Fallon:
Are you noticing any shifts in wedding spending, especially with the economy being uncertain?
Elizabeth:
Spending hasn’t decreased, but how it’s spent has changed. Vendors dealing with physical goods, such as: flowers, catering, cakes, face price fluctuations. Many are adding clauses that allow price increases as their costs rise, which makes couples nervous about budgeting.
Interestingly, we’re seeing more couples choose destination weddings abroad because pricing is more stable in places like Mexico or Europe.
Fallon:
How did you come up with the name Rock Paper Coin?
Elizabeth:
It’s kind of a funny story. We had another name picked out, but someone bought the domain out from under us and tried to sell it back for $25,000. Total scam. We wrote ideas on a whiteboard and started playing Rock Paper Scissors to narrow them down. During one round, Nora jokingly said “Rock Paper Coin” (since a lot of our choices had the word “coin” in them”), and it just clicked. It tied in perfectly with our payment theme.
Fallon:
When you launched, what were your first steps to legitimize the business?
Elizabeth:
Hiring professional developers helped, the product worked when it went to market. We also tested it internally at Bridal Bliss, with real clients using it before launch. That caught a lot of bugs early. But honestly, our reputation in the industry gave us credibility. People knew we were hard workers and wouldn’t release something half-baked. That helped vendors trust us.
Fallon:
Do you plan to expand beyond weddings and events?
Elizabeth:
It’s already happening organically. We’ve had accountants, travel agents, and virtual assistants start using Rock Paper Coin because they see how easy it is when working with their clients who use Rock Paper Coin. We’ve removed wedding-specific language from the platform, so it works for other industries too. But for now, our focus is still on events, there’s plenty of market share to grow.
Fallon:
What’s been your biggest professional accomplishment so far?
Elizabeth:
Nora and I were named to Portland Business Journal’s “40 Under 40,” which was a big honor. But honestly, one of our proudest moments was when a stranger, someone with no personal connection to us, paid for their first Rock Paper Coin subscription. That validation meant everything.
Fallon:
What advice would you give to an early-stage entrepreneur?
Elizabeth:
Find a co-founder. There’s no one else who will understand the pressure like another founder. It’s a tough, lonely journey, and having someone in the trenches with you is invaluable. And take the money when it’s available. People love to say “don’t take bad money,” and yes, avoid investors who don’t align with your values, but the truth is, startups need cash to survive. We took the opportunities that kept us alive long enough to grow.
Fallon:
That’s great advice. What’s the importance of having good legal representation?
Elizabeth:
It’s critical. We got bad legal advice early on and had to rework all our filings, which cost us time and money. Having the right lawyer from the start saves so many headaches, especially when it comes to attracting investors. We’re incredibly grateful for our legal team. Meredith and her team have been instrumental in helping us get structured correctly and stay protected as we grow.
Fallon:
If you could snap your fingers and fix one pain point in the events industry, what would it be?
Elizabeth:
I’d want more stability, both economically and operationally. But more than that, I wish creative professionals would dedicate 10–15% more energy to the business side of things.
So many people in this industry are artists, florists, planners, photographers, and they focus on their craft but neglect the backend: data, finances, systems. When they do invest in that side, it completely transforms their business. Rock Paper Coin was built to make that part easier.
Fallon:
I love that. Thank you so much for sharing your story and insights, and for building something that helps so many in the industry work smarter.
Elizabeth:
Thank you! This was so fun.