Tag: Luxury Market

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 202 – The Wedding You’re Scared to Plan (with Laura Detwiler)

By Emily on

Laura Detwiler - Florida wedding planner interview

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What will take your wedding planning business to the next level? Is it a luxury event that gets you lots of social media exposure? Or a spot on a recommended vendor list? Maybe it’s that one client who will tell all their friends about your incredible planning skills. 

But here’s something you may not be ready for: the first wedding – the one that gets you all the Instagram tags and referrals – may be really scary to take on. It will be bigger than anything you’ve planned, with a budget higher than you can imagine spending. 

This week on Wedding Industry Insider Podcast, Laura Detwiler talks about the one big wedding that catapulted her career, and the one small party that started it all. 

Read More “WII 202 – The Wedding You’re Scared to Plan (with Laura Detwiler)” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 190 – How Does a Luxury Wedding Planner Only Make $24k? (The Fall and Rise of Gabrielle Pinkerton)

By Emily on

Gabrielle Pinkerton talks about losing money as a luxury wedding planner, and how she finally got it right

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Luxury wedding planners have it all, right? And with so many high-end weddings, they have to be making high payouts too, right? 

Well, not always. This is the story of Gabrielle Pinkerton, and how she ran her business $7,000 in the red. And it’s a valuable listen for anyone who wants to avoid costly mistakes as they grow their wedding business. 

Gabrielle is the owner of Cause We Can Events, a Nashville-based wedding planning company that specializes in full weekend events. When the business gained traction in 2016, Gabrielle found herself in the luxury market, paying out big commissions and handing off the most fulfilling work to her team. 

And she also found herself burnt out, underpaid, and running her business at a loss. When she ended 2024 with $24,000 in owner pay, she knew things needed to change. 

Read More “WII 190 – How Does a Luxury Wedding Planner Only Make $24k? (The Fall and Rise of Gabrielle Pinkerton)” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 188 – Georgie Mitchell Doesn’t Plan Luxury Weddings (And You Don’t Have to Either)

By Emily on

Georgie Mitchell encourages wedding planners who don't want to plan luxury events

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Wedding Planner Georgie Mitchell talks about cringey TikTok videos, flat-fee pricing, and why she doesn’t plan luxury weddings. 

Feeling pressured to start planning luxury weddings? For many wedding planners, the luxury market seems like the sole place for growth and profits. But what if you don’t feel drawn to luxury events? 

This week’s Wedding Industry Insider episode is perfect for the wedding planner who wants a path toward success that’s not intertwined with extravagant, luxury events. Our guest is Georgie Mitchell, owner of Georgina Rose Events, author of “It’s Your Wedding,” and TikTok wedding expert.

This interview is so powerful and will be refreshing for anyone who feels pressure to book luxury weddings, pressure to make the biggest sales, and pressure to get social media just right. Because Georgie is rewriting the wedding planner playbook. And during this episode, she’s getting real about the journey that brought her success. 

Read More “WII 188 – Georgie Mitchell Doesn’t Plan Luxury Weddings (And You Don’t Have to Either)” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 162 – Alejandra Poupel Shows Your Path To Destination Weddings

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How do you think the top destination wedding planners got to where they are? Was it a lucky break? A chance encounter with the right client? 

Theories like that can make it seem like destination wedding planning is out of reach, so we are so excited to share Alejandra Poupel’s story with you!

Alejandra is the founder of Alejandra Poupel Events, which produces luxury weddings in Italy, France, and throughout Europe. And she’s joining us on Wedding Industry Insider Podcast to share the inside scoop on luxury European weddings and what it takes to plan events in these incredible locales. 

Read More “WII 162 – Alejandra Poupel Shows Your Path To Destination Weddings” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 158 – Cassie LaMere Is Redefining Success in 2025

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Cassie LaMere talks about success on the Wedding Industry Insider from Timeline Genius

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Are you dreaming of success in 2025? At surface level, success may look like more events, or higher paying clients. But if you ask Cassie LaMere, success goes much deeper than that – and only YOU can define what success means to you. 

Cassie is the founder and creative director of the luxury event planning company Cassie LaMere Events. Over the span of her 15-year career, she’s learned a lot about event design, running a business, and becoming a luxury-level planner. 

She’s also learned a lot about success, and how success is only achievable if you define it for yourself (not based on what other people want and have!). 

Read More “WII 158 – Cassie LaMere Is Redefining Success in 2025” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 146 – Thomas Bui’s Time-Tested Approach to Luxury Weddings

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Thomas Bui on Wedding Industry Insider

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Were you a wedding planner before everything was online? If not, it’s hard to imagine how you’d make connections, care for clients, and pull off show-stopping events without today’s tools. 

That’s why we’re so excited for this week’s episode of Wedding Industry Insider! We’re welcoming Thomas Bui to the show to discuss his 23 years of wedding planning experience, and how he still includes some old-school practices to create elegant, modern weddings. 

Thomas is the founder of Thomas Bui Lifestyle, a luxury event planning and production firm based in San Diego and San Francisco. During his conversation with Eddie, he shares the steps he took to become successful in the luxury market, from working at events for free to leaping into a higher price point.

Read More “WII 146 – Thomas Bui’s Time-Tested Approach to Luxury Weddings” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 145 – How Tara Guérard Thrives With 8 Weddings Per Year [Rebroadcast]

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What if you could work less and make more money? It’s any wedding planner’s dream, but for Tara Guérard, it’s her reality. And she’s sharing her journey and hard-learned lessons for getting here.

This week on Wedding Industry Insider, we are looking back on our fantastic interview with Tara, who is the owner and creative director of Tara Guérard Soirée. If you were a listener when we aired our 100th episode with Tara, then this is a great chance to revisit her incredible insight. And newer listeners are in for a real treat this week!

These days, Tara exclusively works with lavish, six-figure weddings, but she talks about business finances in a way anyone can relate to. After all, she once booked 40 weddings a year and is thriving while only taking on eight weddings per year.

Read More “WII 145 – How Tara Guérard Thrives With 8 Weddings Per Year [Rebroadcast]” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 125: James x Schulze Tell Us How to Book Luxury Weddings

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James x Schulze

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“Who are you?” “What do you need?” “How can I help you reach your goals?”

These are the kinds of questions that can elevate your business and bring you closer to your dream clients. 

In today’s episode of Wedding Industry Insider, we’re learning how building authentic relationships can help you book more creative and high-paying weddings. 

James Christianson and Otto Schulze are the founders and co-owners of James x Schulze, a luxury wedding photography brand that was named one of the Top Wedding Photographers in the World by Harpers Bazaar.

They also help others break into the luxury market through Sage Journey, their training program that’s tailored for wedding photographers. 

In this week’s episode, we get great advice from James and Otto that will help all wedding vendors –  especially planners – elevate their work and appeal to high-end clients.  

Best of all, you can put their advice to work today. After listening to this episode, you’ll have a list of tasks that will help you move into the luxury market. 

Read More “WII 125: James x Schulze Tell Us How to Book Luxury Weddings” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 123: Crafting Enchanting Wedding Experiences With Ashley Smith

By Eddie Babbage on

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Think of the moment that you knew you wanted to do weddings. Do you still plan from that place of inspiration? Because this planner taps into that feeling to create enchanting experiences and challenges you to do the same.

Ashley Smith is the Principal of Ashley Smith Events, a team of experience-based designers specializing in destinations globally. With almost two decades of experience and a background in International Business and Hospitality, she brings out-of-the-box thinking to event planning and production. Known for creating magical dreamscapes, her work is featured in Carats & Cake, The Knot, Junebug Weddings, Ruffled, 100 Layer Cake, Green Wedding Shoes, Refinery 29, California Style & Culture, Bizbash, and other leading industry publications. Additionally, she has made the Best Planner list by BRIDES for the last five years (2017-2022).

In this episode, she recalls helping at a summer wedding in Spain and witnessing the father of the bride become overcome with emotion. Moved by the moment, she gained a new outlook on weddings and became passionate about cultivating unique and personalized events. In particular, she encourages you to embrace adventurous ideas and take risks in order to create authentic and memorable celebrations.

Read More “WII 123: Crafting Enchanting Wedding Experiences With Ashley Smith” →