Once upon a time….
(everyone loves a good fairytale with a happy ending!) I visited a Welsh wedding venue searching for the perfect location for one of my brides’ big days.
It was a stunning venue, in a beautiful location – ideal for some incredible photography on the chosen date. It had a huge amount going for it and, like many wedding venues, it was used for alternative events during the week.
Image courtesy of Rachel Lambert Photography
When I held my initial meeting with the venue director, they explained that they loved hosting weddings but they were struggling to resource it effectively as they not only needed to cover weddings on the weekend, but because they also needed to have enough staff to manage the standard working week. They couldn’t justify taking on another employee, as they only really needed them for wedding season.
And so, it created a completely new avenue for Zoë…
Having understood the requirements, established the service they wanted to offer and the potential volume of events throughout the year, I offered to sub-contract to them – to run their weddings and other special events on their behalf as their on-the-day coordinator – and we all lived happily ever after!
“Working with Zoë was a pleasure, it made our job a lot easier…”
The Glendorgal Hotel, Newquay, Cornwall
I now run weddings for a number of venues in South Wales. Some of these are established wedding venues who offer a range of different services and are struggling to resource properly, failing to keep both clients happy and finances in order. The common issues with these venues might be having a severely over-worked Events Manager who does days, evenings and weekends, or an Events Manager who isn’t utilised sufficiently during the week. Or perhaps they just employ too many casual/temporary staff, who are always coming and going and who then don’t understand the venue’s values and goals sufficiently.
Then there are other established venues which are looking to develop their wedding offering, but who can’t spend enough time to focus on exactly what is required to manage that workload with everything else they’ve got going on as well.
I’ve also helped brand new venues just starting out, who need help to understand exactly what a wedding weekend will look like, what their clients are likely to require and need a plan put in place to get the business going.
What they all have in common is a desire to maximise the return on the asset they have (the venue and its grounds) and run as many events as possible, without massively increasing their cost base.
Image courtesy of Oliver & Ruth Photography
So whether a venue just needs an extra pair of hands to liaise with their potential and existing client base, or someone to run weddings on their behalf, I can offer that expert guidance and support. I have a team of fabulous, experienced and highly-trained wedding coordinators who work with me to manage some of these weddings. They will ensure every detail is covered so that every wedding, at every venue, is run smoothly and meets the couple’s expectations for their most special of days.
“Zoë – you were an absolute dream, so calm and I could totally relax knowing that you were dealing with everything. If there were any problems, I wasn’t aware, which just shows how good you are!”
Lucy & Pedro, Bride & Groom
I am a hands-on coach and a trusted advisor, helping clients to make lasting improvements and putting those solutions in place, to maximise the return on their venue and assets.
“A first class wedding planner! Zoë works at St Donat’s Castle often and every wedding she has managed has been run perfectly. We couldn’t ask for more.”
St. Donat’s Castle, UWC Atlantic College
To find out more about how I can help, please take a look at the Venue Management page on my website here.