Renowned Event Planner Mindy Weiss Talks Trends and Tips

How did you get started in event planning, and what inspired you to specialize in it and become a top event planner?

My upbringing is what gave me my start. I grew up in a home where my mother gave the best parties. They were always incredibly creative, over-the-top, and always themed and lots of fun. My mom was the ultimate hostess. So even though I didn’t plan on becoming a party planner, I learned from the best. Many years later into my adulthood, I owned a custom stationery business and a client asked me to plan their 75th birthday party. I didn’t think I wanted to be a party planner so I turned the job down. Luckily for me, the client was very persistent and eventually I said yes. I got so many referrals for future events from that one party that the rest was history!

What trends are you seeing in weddings this year, and what timeless elements do you think will always be in style?

I’m seeing much smaller bridal parties. I’m also seeing some couples opting not to have wedding parties walk down the aisle, but still include these loved ones in the getting ready process. What I think will always remain is the love of a classic bridal bouquet. Even if a bride may start out wanting to do something different, they always end up with a classic, traditional bouquet in the end.

How do you handle unexpected challenges or last-minute changes on the day of the event?

There’s typically no time to argue about a situation that should or shouldn’t happen. Things need to be dealt with immediately when planning an event. Sometimes the mistake people make is waiting too long to deal with the situation, so I always problem-solve immediately. If you let it linger, the problem doesn’t just go away; time is just lost. So, we assess the situation and then we’re on it and solving the issue. Then we go on to finish the tasks at hand. This way the problem doesn’t grow, it gets resolved and everyone can move on. Part of being an event planner is being a problem solver. Make sure you have someone on your team that excels at that.

Can you give us your top three tips for brides and grooms to stay stress-free during the wedding planning process?

1. Communicate as often as they need to in order to feel comfortable. I like to be available to my clients to help them stay calm. If they always know I’m here to communicate, they can let go of some of that stress. Sometimes it’s just a quick answer to a simple question but it puts their mind at ease.

2. Follow a timeline to make decisions, get things done, and get tasks completed. Sometimes the couple has a lot to do at one time and other times there’s nothing to be done. But having that checklist and timeline that they can continue to refer back to makes sure nothing is missed and helps them to know they’ve done all they need to.

3. Once you’ve confirmed a decision, it’s always a good idea to stay off social media because there will always be another idea. Just like when you choose your dress, you always go back to the one you loved in the beginning so stop looking once you’ve purchased.

Given that a significant portion of your clientele are high-profile personalities, could you describe the unique dynamics and challenges of working with them?

Working with any high-profile client is the exact same as working with any engaged couple. They want to plan a wedding, sometimes they have a limited amount of time or budget, and I find the only difference is the security that often needs to be hired for a high-profile event.

Could you share a particularly extraordinary or over-the-top request from a celebrity or client that you fulfilled?

I don’t think any request is over the top if it’s in their budget. If they want it, we will make it happen…as long as it’s not dangerous. Everything is expensive these days; what’s considered over-the-top to one couple or guest may vary to the next. It’s my job to get it done if it can be done. We fulfill dreams and that’s just expected and we’re happy to do it.