The Wedding Biz - Behind The Scenes Of The Wedding Business

"My proudest moments aren't only about design. They are about how my clients feel when they see and experience the design." Listen as Andy and his guest Lisa Vorce discuss Lisa's love of celebrations, what inspired her to leave corporate America to launch her own business and much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz. Lisa is a world-renown celebrity event planner, receiving accolades from Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Brides, BizBash, and Martha Stewart, to name a few. She planned several events for Kobe Bryant and produced some of the most iconic celebrations, including the weddings of John Legend and Chrissy Teigen and Kate Upton and Justin Verlander. Lisa is a speaker and headliner at conferences worldwide, including WPPI, Engage, and DWP. Lisa shares that the first event she worked at was a birthday party for George Clooney's mom, how the referrals from the first wedding she planned led her down the destination wedding path, and the process she follows for each client. Lisa also shares the roles each of her

Alan Shukovsky is located in NYC and is the Executive Director of Event Sales & Marketing for Glasshouses, which has new venues in NYC, including The Glasshouse, the highly anticipated new venue with a capacity of 1,850 located on the west side of the city. He is a member of a Manhattan-based task force for events and catering in NYC. The task force is made up of 30 plus of some of the most prominent properties and local event professionals in the City. Their purpose was essentially to collaborate and create a system of protocols, checks and balances, for running events during and after the Covid-19 pandemic and for both event professionals and their clients to feel safe. At a minimum, listening to this conversation will give you a host of important issues and ideas to think about. Below are the documents that resulted.    Links: https://theglasshouses.com/ PRISM blog @the.glasshouses on Instagram

I recently started a series, coming out from time to time called "A Conversation With," which will feature general conversations with a variety of previous and new guests. Today's conversation is with Colin Cowie, who has been on the show two previous times: Part 1 was episode #128 and Part 2 was #135. I urge you to check them out as they were both absolutely engaging interviews.  Colin was my first entre into the luxe wedding market, with Kushner Entertainment when he hired myself and one of my bands, SoundConnection, to perform for two of his major wedding clients. Those two experiences, with Colin, taught me the true meaning of luxury and I will forever be grateful to him for such invaluable lessons.  In today's release, Colin talks about what a typical day is like now, during the Covid-19 pandemic, and what he has learned about himself. He also talks about how his brand is diversified, working in hospitality outside of the event business, having launched a new division of his event planning and design b

"Reinvention is a personal intervention with yourself." Listen as Andy, and his guest Kathi Sharpe-Ross discuss her book Re:Invent Your Life! What Are You Waiting For? Kathi gives specific ideas for moving forward and reimagining our lives and careers on this episode of The Wedding Biz. Kathi shares that this book was something she decided to write ten years ago and how she had to reinvent her entire book launch plan since the pandemic. She speaks about how important it is to listen to yourself and acknowledge when we could use a little tweak. Kathi says that sometimes you need to reframe the brain and reframe your point of view. Are you so caught up in your life that you forget how important self-care is? Kathi shares that you need to permit yourself to take a breath or a moment to clear your head. Self-care and occasionally being selfish is good for you and can be good for everyone around you. Take time and listen, so you will know when ah-ha moments happen. Listen as Kathi shares how to change up the routi

I wanted to give floral designer Preston Bailey a platform to share his thoughts, given what is currently going on with the protests and increased public consciousness about race relations. As usual, Preston allows himself to be vulnerable and refreshingly direct. We touch on his personal experience, experiencing racism for the first time, when he moved to New York City from Panama at the age of 19. Preston also talks about his early and continued experiences, as a black man, working in the event industry. And he gives wonderful advice, to people of color, both in and out of events. Please enjoy this very special episode of A Conversation With: Preston Bailey.  Preston Bailey Website Instagram: @PRESTONRBAILEY Preston Bailey On the Wedding Biz Part 1 Part 2  

"Diane has impeccable taste and style, she is a style queen" Andy and John Emmanuel discuss Diane's social media following, and why she believes the more genuine you are on your feed, the more prospective clients will understand your style and who you are as a designer. John is Australia's premier floral designer who appeared on The Wedding Biz in January, find the link to his episode here.  Diane Khoury is a Sydney-based event planner, with over 360,000 Instagram followers. Diane Khoury Weddings and Events has been credited for revolutionizing the planning, styling, and concept design of luxury weddings and events in and out of Australia. With her financial background, she can meld the creative and business sides of her company to create a uniquely successful business. John handles the floral design for most of Diane’s events, and really has to understand what she wants so he can make it happen. Listen as they speak about the imagery she described from a christening she did in Lebanon, and how special she m

Have you ever heard of a bride planning her own wedding with 500 guests and with no experience in planning an event of any size? Listen as Andy and his guest Diane Khoury discuss how she was able to pull it off and why it was the reason she started her own wedding and event business plus much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz. Diane is a Sydney-based event planner, with over 360,000 Instagram followers. Diane Khoury Weddings and Events has been credited for revolutionizing the planning, styling, and concept design of luxury weddings and events both in and out of Australia. Diane's weddings stand out as stunning works of art with a passion for glamorous detail and an appreciation for unique displays. After being sought after by celebrities and socialites, Diane continues to catapult the definition of celebrating love and luxury in Australia. Listen as Diane speaks about how COVID-19 is affecting her business, planning her son's virtual birthday party so he could have a celebration and her first retail jo

Listen, as Andy and Heath Alan Ray discuss Neillie's insights into having different streams of income under one umbrella, how using this pause for the pandemic to reassess your company can be beneficial and much more. Heath is the owner and Creative Director of Jackson Durham, a full-scale event design house.  Neillie Butler is the Founder of Mariee Ami, a multimillion-dollar wedding and event planning firm in the Southeast. Ami a Vie, their new lifestyle brand, extends their community beyond their clients by engaging blog content, social media, and an online shop of entertaining artisanal essentials. Listen, as Heath shares how his company is using the downtime to reorganize and downsize inventory. They discuss Neillie's pricing model and how using a percentage-based model instead of a flat rate model allows for better cash flow and budget distribution. Do you ever caption your pictures on Instagram? Andy and Heath talk about how this is an enormous part of what Neillie does on social media. Instead of just

"As planners, we need our clients to trust us." Listen as Andy and his guest Nellie Butler discuss why she says becoming a bride's friend is the only way she can do an event justice, and getting a bride to trust her makes her job easier. Neillie is the Founder of Mariee Ami, which means 'a bride's friend.' Mariee Ami is a multimillion-dollar wedding and event planning firm in the Southeast, recognized for producing celebrations that reflect a genuine sense of hospitality. Their new lifestyle brand Ami a Vie naturally translates to “a friend for life,” and it's meant to extend their community beyond their clients by engaging blog content, social media, and a shop of entertaining artisanal essentials. Listen as Neillie shares when she launched her business, how she used blogs about creative content to get her name recognized, and when she started hiring employees. Neillie speaks about her process from start to finish, with a client, and that her personal signature is doing what her clients want no matter what.

This is the first of a series of conversations, called "A Conversation with," beginning with photographer Phil Van Nostrand. Phil was first interviewed by Andy on 12/3/18 (see link below). Taking good care of ourselves, during this pandemic, is critical to our mental and physical health. Although Phil had been traveling 100-200 days per year, he has adapted fairly well to living as we now know it. Andy and Phil discuss whether or not they feel fear about their finances and what their perspectives are on the topic. Phil brings up a discussion on mini-matrimonies for clients and the mini-wedding society for the B2B market. They also discuss the need for pivoting and reinventing themselves doing what they love and feel passionate about. Andy takes this opportunity to announce the launch of The Wedding Biz Network, featuring leading voices across the wedding and events industries exploring topics with and gaining inspiration from other industry leaders and upcoming notables. The first Network member, who launch

"Bridal is inherently timeless." Listen as Andy and his guest Micaela Erlanger discuss what she means by this and how the pandemic has affected timelines for the production of bridal gowns. Micaela also shares why she believes that designers will see a rise in demand for wedding dresses for the fall and much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz. Micaela is a celebrity stylist based out of New York City and Los Angeles. She was named one of the most powerful stylists by the Hollywood Reporter and has sustained the title for five years. Honored with the Style Influencer Award by the Council, Micaela is also a Marie Claire Image Maker Award winner. She has styled Constance Wu, Lupita Nyong'o, Common, Jennifer Hudson, and Hilary Swank, to name a few.  Listen as Micaela shares the disappointment she felt when she had to postpone her own wedding and how she is supporting the brides she styles with her unique insight. Micaela also discusses the trends she sees emerging during the pandemic and how ready-to-wear co

“Advertising says hey I’m great, PR is when somebody else says you are great.” Listen as Andy and his guest Meghan Ely discuss what this means and how important it is to have the recognition if you are interested in being published. Meghan shares a simple formula that can help you get your name recognized with the media as an expert in your field. Meghan is the owner of OFD Consulting, an award-winning publicity agency that focuses on the wedding industry and the B2B market. Their client portfolio ranges from top tier planners and venues to well regarded national brands, and industry thought leaders. Meghan is a long time industry speaker and writer, a wedding wire education expert, and is a regular contributor to Wedding Planner Magazine and others. Listen as Meghan discusses the generational shift, a hot topic in the industry, what it looks like, and who is affected by it. She also talks about transparency with social media, letting potential clients get a sense of who you are, and how technology can free u

Could you be more productive with honing your storytelling techniques? Listen as Andy and Sean Low discuss Bill's insights into storytelling and how doing it more effectively can help you with prospective clients. Sean's consulting firm, The Business of Being Creative, focuses on providing practical advice to those in the business of being creative. His client list includes the who's who of the wedding industry and design community.  Andy is announcing the official launch of his new podcast network called The Wedding Biz Network, in which Andy will produce podcasts for other people in the event industry, with Sean being its first member. Sean's show will come out within a week or two, so be on the lookout for it because it is fantastic! Bill Baker is a wonderful consultant who says that behind every leader, brand, strategy, idea, or initiative is a story. Bill teaches us how to make those stories strategic and have  ideas come to life. Bringing people together with a story is an art, and Bill is the artist. L

When you hear a story, does it engage your brain? Listen as Andy and his guest Bill Baker discuss how to use storytelling in your communication to persuade, influence, and inspire people and the importance of making sure that your team, creative partners, and clients are clear on the story of your brand and mission. Behind every leader, brand, strategy, or idea, there's a story, and Bill makes these stories real. Listen, as Bill shares his definition of storytelling, how to use it to bring your company's ideas to life, and how to use storytelling to bring in prospective clients effectively. What do you need a story to do? Listen as Bill shares why knowing this is important, and some tools that you can use to become a better storyteller. Bill also shares the building blocks of how to put a story together; he relates this to the event industry and talks about how effective this can be with potential clients. Bill speaks about the difference between reporting information and telling a story, and how pulling a st

Andy has Julie Novack as his guest co-host today on The Next Level. Listen as they speak about Steve Kemble, who is known as “America’s Sassiest Lifestyle Guru,” and how he brings his unique perspective to the events he plans. Julie is the CEO and Co-Founder of PartySlate. PartySlate is a photo-rich website where leading event professionals share their work, build their brand, and drive leads. Steve has been the magic behind countless corporate events, weddings, and other ventures for over two decades. He is also one of the industry's most visible, vocal, and unique personalities. Steve has appeared on numerous TV and Radio programs, and has received over 25 industry accolades. Andy and Julie discuss how having a PR and Advertising degree helped Steve grow his business and why now is the time to reinvent yourself and your company. They also speak about the importance of getting your creative partners and team members on the same page, when planning an event, and how critical communication is with everyone.  I

How about a jungle-themed corporate event with elephant rides? Listen to Andy and his guest Steve Kemble, who is known as “America’s Sassiest Lifestyle Guru,” as they discuss how he takes a client's idea and creates a fabulous event. Steve shares one of his favorite corporate events and how he made the jungle theme come to life plus much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz. Steve has been the magic behind countless corporate events, weddings, and other ventures, including events for Oprah, Presidents’ Obama, Bush, and more for over two decades. Steve has been dishing out fashion disses at celebrities for over three years as a top cop for the U.S. Weekly Magazines Fashion Police. He has also appeared on ABC's Extreme Makeover Wedding Edition, Style Network’s Whose Wedding Is It Anyway, and Married Away.  Listen as Steve shares about working with Lee Iacocca, on the Statue of Liberty project, and how he was able to launch his own company in his mid-twenties. He speaks about his process when vetting a client

Do you have a strong brand identity? Listen, as Andy and John discuss Wendy El-Khoury, her insights into a brand identity, and how she believes it starts before the ring ever hits the hand. John is Australia’s premier floral designer, and John was on The Wedding Biz on January 13th, 2020, so check out his episode if you haven’t already.     Wendy lives in Sydney, Australia, and is the owner of Wedded Wonderland, which gives its followers exclusive on-trend and immediate access to the latest celebrity news, wedding advice, beauty tips, and lifestyle inspiration. Wedded Wonderland allows the audience to engage with creative suppliers, knowledgeable experts, and influential bloggers who set trends and create the benchmark for the bride and wedding community.   Listen as Andy and John speak about Wendy’s belief in brand identity and how she believes it starts before a couple even gets engaged. John shares how the pandemic has affected him and his business and how he now has people booking two years out for event

Wouldn't it be great to be able to go to a website you already follow for celebrity news and beauty tips to plan your dream wedding? Listen to Andy and his guest, Wendy El-Khoury, as they discuss how you can do all of this on the Wedded Wonderland website. They also chat about the challenges she faces with the pandemic and much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz.  Wendy lives in Sydney, Australia, and is the owner of Wedded Wonderland, which gives its followers exclusive on-trend and immediate access to the latest celebrity news, wedding advice, beauty tips, and lifestyle inspiration. Under Wendy's direction, Wedded Wonderland is the brides, socialites, and women’s inside guide to the transformative periods of one's life. She is often credited with the elevation and reinvigoration of the wedding industry in Australia. Listen, as Wendy shares how she went from managing a wedding venue to creating a substantial online business in just seven years. She tells us how she got interested in the wedding industry

Picking a wedding dress is hard, and you need an expert to make sure you look and feel your best. Listen as Andy and Nayri discuss Monte Durham, his humble upbringing, his great success as a fashion expert and TV star, and his love of being a hairstylist. Nayri Kalayjian is a wedding fashion expert with Lovella Bridal, she is also a best-selling author, celebrity stylist, and she coaches and educates with a series of fantastic online courses. Monte is a very successful fashion expert and one of the stars of TLC’s Say Yes to the Dress, Atlanta, where he had been the fashion director at Bridal’s By Lori, the south's premier bridal salon. Monte is also getting ready to launch a new reality show and open a new hair salon. Listen, as Andy and Nayri speak about her ability to gain a bride’s trust quickly, how location sets the tone sometimes but how she feels a bride should be able to wear the dress she feels most beautiful in no matter the place. They also talk about how the front of the dress is more important th

Have you heard an excellent rag to riches story lately? Listen to Andy and his guest, Monte Durham, discuss how he went from growing up with no running water to becoming a hugely successful fashion expert and one of the stars of TLC’s Say Yes to the Dress, Atlanta, where he had been the fashion director at Bridals by Lori, the south’s premier bridal salon. Monte shares his life in small-town West Virginia, how he was bullied and how that contributed to the man he is today. He discusses going to junior college, then a fashion program that led him to dressing mannequins before he started dressing people. Monte also speaks about wanting to style hair and going to beauty school when he was thirty-two. Listen, as Monte discusses his position at a bridal salon where he met Lori Allen, how she got him to work for her, and how she insisted that he star with her in the pilot for Say Yes to the Dress Atlanta, which had 10 seasons! Monte gives us insight into the show from the psychology involved with helping a bride fi