On Wednesday, January 31st, we welcomed wedding professionals from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara’s own wine country for a “mini summit” at Ventura Rental Party Center. This was an encore presentation of our last sold-out Wedding Planner Newcomer Mentorship/PowerLunch Experience, and I was excited to share even more updated information and offer the opportunity for collaboration at the end. As attendees arrived, they were greeted with sparkling bubbly and tablescape inspiration  styled and designed by the professional talent at Ventura Rental.  As with all our workshops, our signature “Little Black Box” made an appearance, too.   Photographer Isabel Gomes from Isabel Lawrence Photography was on hand to capture the story of the afternoon in photos (see below).

Because the workshop was content-rich in a very limited amount of time, we offered guests a very casual “grab and go” boxed lunch so we could work and accomplish our goals in the short time we had.  The content covered contract basics and not-to-miss items, as well as some commonly-forgotten but important protective clauses; a look at the wedding market in Santa Barbara and Ventura economically and culturally and how it is shifting and evolving.  Most importantly, how to identify this shift and be ready for it.  The way wedding planners approached weddings as short as 2 years ago is radically different today and continually shifting.  We also looked at a theme that is mission critical to understand in our business that is also one of the bases for this year’s Cater Source Conference:  “Disruption” being the new normal.  We took that concept and looked at how it applied to marketing, including the top marketing phrases that experts say “kill” your brand.  And finally, we addressed the number one source of investment that guarantees longevity in business.

At the end of the session, the conversation turned to personalized business coaching from all who were present, and inspiration flowed. Another successful community event with local talent who are going places!

Wedding and hospitality professionals are welcome to visit our Engaging Inspiration division, which offers personalized marketing, public relations and wedding coordinator training solutions.