Wedding planner Georgina Postlethwaite. Picture by Jordan Harris

Thursday, February 16, 2012
9:00 AM

Nikolai Baker talks to Georgina Postlethwaite, conference and events manager at the Assembly House, about what it is like to be a wedding planner.

Jobs24 factfile: wedding planner

Training

Many training routes can lead to this role including event organising, hospitality and catering, project management or public relations. Many people choose to become a professional wedding planner after organising their own wedding.

There is no industry recognised qualification in wedding planning although qualifications in a related area like event organising or hospitality management would be an advantage.

Timescale

A Foundation Degree in Event Management will take two years to complete

Local training

• City College Norwich 01603 773773/ www.ccn.ac.uk

Offer a wide variety of full-time and work-based hospitality and event management courses from level 2 to a Foundation Degree in Leisure and Events Management.

• College of West Anglia 01553 761144/ www.cwa.ac.uk

Offer full-time and work-based options in hospitality and catering.

• University Campus Suffolk 01473 338833/

Offer a two year Foundation Degree in Hospitality and Event Management at their Great Yarmouth campus and a BA (Hons) in Event Management at Ipswich.

• Poultec 01362 850983/ www.poultec.co.uk

Work-based routes in hospitality and catering

• Apprenticeships www.apprenticeships.org.uk

For further information check:

• UK Alliance of Wedding Planners (UKAWP) http://www.ukawp.com/index.php

Salary range

Starting salaries in event/ wedding planning for companies are around £16,000 – £20,000 a year. Many wedding planners are self-employed and charge an hourly or flat fee or a percentage of the cost of the wedding.

Belle Jones

Why is it a good profession to get into?

To be working in this environment and being able to plan someone’s special day is just an incredible opportunity.

As a wedding planner you are potentially planning the biggest day in your client’s life and it is just great to be involved in helping to actually put their ideas into practice. It is an extremely interesting profession where you get to meet lots of different types of people; it couldn’t be a better job!

What does the work involve? 
The first part of my role is meeting with my clients to discuss what sort of wedding they want and then to show them what we can offer. The second part is working alongside them to plan, organise and execute the event which is great because I get to see the whole thing from start to finish.

There is a lot of communication involved in being a wedding planner and you are responding to questions all the time. The house is hugely busy with wedding receptions during Christmas and summer time; it’s a popular venue!

What are the positives/negatives of the profession?

I love the buzz that planning a wedding gives you. Being able to work as a team is another big positive, the staff at the Assembly House are an amazing group of people who are committed to making great things happen.

If there is a negative, it is probably the hours or the fact that there is a lot of weekend work involved which perhaps doesn’t appeal to everyone; it is not a negative for me though!

Is there much local demand for people trained in this area?

I think there is as there are lots of venues in the region that all require someone who is dedicated to taking enquires and turning them into live events.

I would recommend doing a BTEC in Hospitality Management as it gives you a basis in marketing, accounting, customer service skills, understanding the industry, conference and events. It is a good basis to start with as qualifications and experience go hand in hand.

What would employers look for in someone applying for a vacancy?

You need to have a good track record as people need to have confidence in you to be able to plan and deliver their special day.

I would look to see if you had any customer service experience and, on interview, it is very much about your personality and commitment to working in an environment such as this.

It is also good to keep up with the latest trends such as vintage-themed events. You have to keep your finger on the pulse!

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As March 17 fast approaches, Liz Kirk, ’10, and senior Blake Faulkner are putting finishing touches on their wedding plans. The couple has been together for more than two and a half years, over a year of which they have been engaged and planning their wedding.

Between both of their busy lives, planning a wedding has been a balancing act. Kirk, who majored in history and elementary education with a minor in English, is a full time substitute teacher in the Hillsdale area while Blake is double-majoring in Christian Studies and Speech.

“When he proposed, the whirlwind began,” Kirk said. “It has been a lot of work for him to be doing school and planning at the same time. And even though I’m working full time, it’s a lot, but it’s easier.”

Spring break worked out to be the best time for Kirk and Faulkner to tie the knot, a time when family can take time off work and friends will be on break.

The couple agreed that being engaged a longer time eased much of the stress of the planning process. Kirk had experience with friends trying to plan a wedding in six months and did not want to have that experience planning her wedding.

“It was hard, because initially we didn’t know what we wanted. I know a lot of women stereotypically have the wedding planned before they are engaged. They have the Cinderella fairytale planned, and that wasn’t me. I was not the person that had everything figured out and had the scrapbook just waiting for someone to propose,” Kirk said.

The couple took care to work out the larger issues in the planning process before diving into the details including location, caterers, and decorations. They had to make reservations for the location the wanted a year in advance.

“The lesson we learned is that if you don’t have the big elements like catering, the reception hall, the DJ…if you don’t have that before Valentine’s Day of the next year, you’re not going to have it,” Kirk said.

Kirk’s search for the perfect dress was one of the many details to be worked out. Kirk would Skype and call her mother, who lived in California, after every appointment to discuss the dresses.

Eventually, Kirk found “the one.”  She recalls sending her mother a photo and calling her right away.

“She started to cry on the phone, and I knew from her reaction and the looks on my bridesmaids’ faces, that we’d found a winner,” Kirk said.

“But if there was one most difficult part of the planning, it was the invites, oddly enough. Liz wanted to design them.  More hours went into this than any other part,” Faulkner said.

Designing invitations early will force all other aspects to be taken care of because the catering, venue, registries, and schedule all have to be in order by the time the invites are sent, he said.

All these preparations can be difficult to navigate, but the couple manages to stay relaxed.

“Every time it gets stressful, we could just take a deep breath and say, ‘It’s OK, we’re going to Florida.’ That’s kind of been our rock,” said Kirk.

Kirk and Faulkner have planned a two week honeymoon in Florida.

“It gives you a goal to strive for and a light at the end of the dark tunnel, which is engagement,” Faulkner said.

After Faulkner graduates, the couple will move to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he will attend Cincinnati Christian University pursuing a Master of Arts in Theology.

“We’re ready to be married. We’ll be happier and less stressed,” Kirk said.

“Engagement sucks,” Faulkner said. “The only way you can mediate it is if you spend a lot of time together.  You’re not really dating, but you’re not married, either. You’re just in limbo. If it was a matter of our relationship, we would have gotten married the night I proposed.”

Neither Kirk nor Faulkner are nervous about getting married partly due to planning far in advance.

“Even if everything we want to happen fails, we will be married at the end of the day, and that’s really all that matters,” Faulkner said.

“Who could ask for anything more?” Kirk added. “Sure I’ll be upset if the cake falls over, or the wrong food shows up, but hey, at least we’ll have a good story to tell. I get to stand in front of our friends and family and pledge to God that I’ll stay by his side for the rest of my life. I couldn’t get any luckier, so I’m not nervous one bit.”

       kdrapkin@hillsdale.edu

Till now, the main ‘designer’ element about a wedding was the bride and bridegroom’s trousseau. But within a week, it would be possible to have the entire marriage ceremony planned by a professional fashion designer.
On February 18, at the ongoing Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week,

designer Rocky S will announce the launch of Vilasa, his wedding planning company.

“With the wedding industry growing at an average rate of 25 per cent annually, the lavishness doled out by Indians is getting larger. I believe it’s the right time for me to extend my creativity to this industry,” says the designer.

Unlike other companies, this firm claims to have no set packages and themes for marriages.

The reason: each wedding will be designed individually depending on what the customer has in mind. The cost too will depend on each demand. “It will vary as per the client’s requirements,” adds Rocky.

The designer insists that he will personally “oversee the creative aspect” of all elements involved.

The list of tasks the company will be responsible for includes invitation cards, food and beverages, entertainment, photography, gift packing and even the couple’s wedding garments.

Ask if patrons will be offered a discount should they pick something from his own wedding collection as part of the planning, and he says, “There will be no offer, but we will have some great packages for the bridal outfit and trousseau. I give my 100 per cent to whichever venture I get involved in and this one has scope for me to explore my creativity in things besides garments.”