We met at a Queers in Cannabis event by creative collective brand FLAMER and immediately clicked. I was drawn to her energy and relaxed yet outgoing vibe. Not even knowing she was the masterful mind behind the iconic Saltburn party at 3 Dollar Bill earlier this year, which was praised by The New York Times for its approach to innovative fashion. After realizing she was the “Chlo” in Chlomosexual, I was even more fascinated by her and wanted to write about her.
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Chloe Philips (she/her) is a queer 28-year-old woman who founded Chlomosexual, an event planning company that creates safe and fun spaces for all queers—sapphic, trans, gender-non conforming, and cis alike. However, she has a history that her Instagram followers may not know about. In turn, her LinkedIn followers don’t know the full extent of how her passion project became her career. And now I have the pleasure of telling her story.
Who is Chloe Philips?
Chloe grew up in South Orange, New Jersey and went on to study at Rutgers University where she began with a major in engineering. She admits to getting into engineering because she was strong in math and science and afraid of being unemployed while the vestiges of the 2008 recession loomed into the early 2010s over her first few years of college. However, Chloe felt envious of her peers who got to take classes that weren’t limited by a rigid curriculum.
“I wanted to take fun classes,” she says. “I had enough of physics and was yearning for creative writing, photojournalism, or even ballet.” She was ready to choose passion over job security.
“I don’t fucking want to be an engineer,” she laughs. “So I was like, if I’m not going into engineering, I’m going to have 10 jobs and internships on my resume by the time I graduate, so I’m the most employable bitch graduating, and I will definitely have a job.”
And that she did. She interned at many different places from a law firm, to Cosmopolitan magazine, to a Swiss houseware brand. She found herself drawn to the tech space and ended up at WayUp, a job-finding website for students with a full-time position as a Field Marketer halfway through her senior year. She managed the company’s on-campus presence connecting students with opportunities.
“I managed about 1000 students to make sure that there was mass knowledge of this website existing on their respective campuses,” Chloe shares. “So this is kind of the foundation of me learning how to reach a mass audience.” She credits her ability to reach mass audiences to her field marketing experience.
Chloe then went on to work at Greenhouse in May 2018 and then to Tropic in fall of 2021 garnering six years of software selling experience. “I liked being in control of my own destiny and how much money I could make,” she says. “Being good at selling software can make you a shit ton of money. So that’s why I liked it and stayed at it. But after a while I felt the same way as I did pursuing engineering. I was like, ‘This financial security is cool, but I feel like I’m missing something.’”
Chloe discusses what it was like being queer in a straight male-dominated industry.
“So being queer at certain companies was totally fine,” she claims. “It depends on the company, like Greenhouse. They love the gays.”
However, she found that some companies do not have the same values of acceptance and inclusion.
“I only lasted like six weeks at my job after Greenhouse,” she shares. “When I was there, my team was all straight men and they would say disgusting things to me.” Chloe describes an inappropriate question asked by her male co-worker that put her queerness and sexuality under a microscope.
“I quickly left that role for Tropic,” she says, “where I feel like I really learned how to be a good salesperson above all else.”
Chloe hosts her first party to celebrate coming out while connecting cannabis brands to the queer community.
“At the time I came out as queer and was disappointed by the lack of spaces for queer people who aren’t cis-men,” she mentions, referencing how there were only 27 venues identified as lesbian bars in the entire U.S. at the beginning of 2023. As of this writing, according to The Lesbian Bar Project, there are 32. Eager for more inclusive spaces, in the spring of 2023, Chloe decided to throw a coming out party complete with cannabis sponsors.
“I wasn't really drinking at the time, and so I was like, ‘I'm going to pull cannabis into this,’” she shares. Chloe went to a local legacy brand in Williamsburg and asked them if they wanted to engage with some new customers and sponsor some products for the party. They were excited to work with her and offered THC tinctures to make canna-cocktails for hundreds of guests.
“I immediately reflected on my years of sales training and was like… ‘Holy shit, this experience is useful anywhere,’” she remembers. “I couldn’t believe how immediately passionate I felt.”
Chloe started planning her next party only a week later. She knew she wanted to keep bringing cannabis into her queer events and while planning, Chloe connected with FLAMER— one of NY’s first regulated brands, that also happens to be queer.
“FLAMER is how I got into weed [professionally],” she states.
Chloe Sparks up a business relationship with Queer Cannabis brand, FLAMER.
Chlomosexual’s second event was a Lesbian Pride Party and FLAMER was in the building. In June 2023 they had just received their licenses from New York State following the openings of prime cannabis dispensaries, Housing Works and Union Square Travel Agency (now known as The Travel Agency), in December 2022 and February 2023 respectively.
Chloe quickly became close with Wyatt Harms, co-founder of FLAMER. From a 30-minute-phone call to getting lunch, Chloe became one of the brand’s first investors.
“I just think what they’re building is so different from any other cannabis company in New York,” she says. “Other companies sell weed—FLAMER sells being hot and cool.”
Chloe notes how sexy the branding is with their red papers, black packaging, and Gen-Z coded strain names like “Lobotomy” and “Silly Goofy.”
Building this relationship between Chlomosexual and FLAMER has allowed for both brands to become a part of creating positive experiences for queer people in NYC through nightlife—where cannabis is on a pedestal and in many ways an alternative to alcohol and other substances.
“I keep giving FLAMER money because they are disrupting the cannabis industry in such an iconic way,” she says. “Everything from how HOT their branding is to how incredible their weed is makes it a no brainer decision for me. I also trust that fucker [Wyatt] with my money.”
In addition to having FLAMER products at many Chlomosexual events, she also continues to work closely with them as an investor and strategic advisor.
How Chloe Became Chlomosexual:
“I throw these parties for the community, not for myself,” Chloe expresses. But in order to continue throwing these events she would have to devote more of herself to this mission while having a full time job selling software.
“People are always surprised that I had a day job this whole time,” she laughs, “There was definitely an era where I wasn’t sleeping or really doing anything other than working [but] I felt more fulfilled at my day job, because I had this passion outside of it.”
Chloe shares that after a few parties she began to love it more and more, and even the people around her could see her passion. They, along with her followers, pushed her to continue planning these queer events leading her to one of her most notable parties to date.
“I’d gotten into a rhythm where I felt like I knew what I was doing, and then, when I decided to throw the Saltburn party, it immediately fucking escalated,” she says. “The feeling that I feel putting together a party is unmatched—I wish I could bottle that up.”
Chlomosexual Presents “The Perfect Party for Bi-sexuals”—The Saltburn Party.
After Saltburn released in theaters in August 2023 and then on Amazon Prime by December—people were obsessed. From memes about slurping up actor Jacob Elordi’s bathwater to posts on how to style an outfit like characters Farley or Valencia, it was a social media phenomenon. Knowing this and being sucked into the Saltburn world herself, Chloe wanted to bring that world to life for the queers of New York City.
“We [Chloe and her friend, award-winning journalist Chris Roney] sat on my couch watching it and I was like, ‘This would be such a good bi-sexual party,’” she remembers, “I posted on my Instagram story, asking my followers if they wanted me to do it… and my phone lit on fire.”
“I always make sure to ask my followers, because at the end of the day,” she continues, “not to sound like the fucking president of the United States, but I work for the people.”
During her promo of the event just two weeks before the party, someone from The New York Times reached out about covering the occasion. “I asked them directly, can I tell people?” she shares. “Because I knew people’s looks would eat, but I wanted people to know that their looks should really eat. They firmly said no; it was the hardest secret I’ve ever kept but luckily, my community served iconic looks even without leaking the surprise.”
“Plenty of pairs of antlers and wings were on full display as attendees queued outside the club waiting to let loose their early-2000s alter egos,” writes Madison Malone Kircher from The New York Times. “Many of the guests were in their early 20s and ready to experience that particular moment in cultural history for the very first time.”
“They didn't credit me at all when they posted the article on Instagram,” she mentions. “And people went out with their torches and pitchforks, and I feel like it got me so much more attention than if they would have tagged me. It made me feel so much love and also made the post go pretty viral. So many people were commenting and tagging me.”
Chloe reflects on this monumental moment—showing her that maybe she could do this for real. “It felt like I had an army of people supporting me,” she says. “People want me to keep doing this.”
Chlomosexual Parties are changing the Nightlife Game for Queers in NYC.
Chloe shares that “I kept searching for a specific vibe of parties that I didn’t feel like existed. So I was like, okay, someone's got to throw them. And at first, because I had my financial stability with my day job, I was just spending money and throwing parties as a hobby. I wasn't expecting to make money off any of these and turn this into a career.”
She continues,“Some people do pottery, some people play pickleball. I throw weed-sponsored ragers for over a thousand of my closest new friends.”
Despite just throwing these parties for fun and giving the people what they want, she started to make a profit from them and realized could actually make a career out of this. After working her day job while planning parties and attending events, she experienced extreme burn out and left New York to reset in California. After a few months she resurfaced in NYC, her first night back hitting the ground running with the FLAMER Queers in Cannabis event—where I had the pleasure of meeting her.
Chloe Leaves the Tech Industry and is Working on Chlomosexual full-time.
While she was away, she took time to think deeply on her future and what it means for Chlomosexual. Chloe came to terms with the fact that she was ready to take the leap and leave corporate structure behind for nightlife and entertainment. “I quit my job to party and smoke weed full time!” She laughs.
While she is closing this chapter of her life, she shares how former teammates have become real life friends, and how thankful she is for her background in Sales and Field Marketing, feeling it’s armed her to take on this next adventure. “I value what I learned in my day job more than I ever have,” she shares, “now that I get to apply it to building my own empire, I really can appreciate how much I've gained in the tech world.”
What’s NYC events are coming up for Chlomosexual?
Chloe is trailblazing within the event space right out of the gate from leaving the tech world. The past few weeks, Chloe has been gearing up for her nine upcoming events. This includes a Pride Month Eve party May 31 where she’s got theatrics planned for midnight as NYC’s hottest queers countdown to Pride month, a weekly pride pop up “Fruity Tuesdays” at Mary’s Bar in Brooklyn. And this Friday, May 17th, Chlomosexual is producing a Challengers Themed party—another “perfect party for bi-sexuals.” Not only will this party be impactful on the queer community, but Chloe announced this week that all of the ticket profits will be donated to a Palestinian Mutual aid and Evacuation Fund.
Chloe is an inspiration who cares so deeply for people and the effort that goes into crafting these once in a lifetime experiences. Her authenticity and care sits alongside strategy, passion and gritevery party she throws and every space she creates, she embodies the spirit of inclusivity and lovey. Chloe Philips is not just a party planner—she's a force, leading the charge in a new era of nightlife.
“I thought I was a business bitch first and foremost,” she smiles, “but seeing the community who I get to build this for get as excited as I am about what I’m building? That’s the feeling I can’t stop chasing above all else.”
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Chloe debuts her podcast series NOT SAFE FOR WERK, a podcast about Hot People with Hot Jobs in June. Be sure to tune in where she’ll interview guests who are building iconic careers out of chasing their dreams.
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Photoshoot details:
Shot + directed by: Lensy Michelle Photography
Assisted by: Chris Roney
Makeup by: Sophia Cetta
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Written By:
Kally Compton (They/Them/She/Her) is a culture writer, poet, and content creator. Based in New York, they currently write and contribute to various culture, cannabis, and fashion publications. They are the former Editorial and Production Director for The Lexington Line, LIM College's culture and fashion magazine.
For more information, follow them at @kallycompton
@kallycompton (IG)
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