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More Than Just a Wedding with Jennifer Starr
Weddings are more than a day—they’re a journey. Join Jennifer Starr on More than Just a Wedding as she shares expert tips, practical strategies, and inspiration to plan a meaningful, stress-free celebration you and your guests will remember forever.
More Than Just a Wedding with Jennifer Starr
Episode #27: "Where Logistics Meet Magic" (Featuring J.Starr Lead Planner, Adriana Reyes)
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Where Logistics Meet Magic (Featuring J.Starr Lead Planner, Adriana Reyes)
Episode Summary:
What does it really take to create a wedding that feels effortless, emotional, and beautifully executed?
In this episode of More Than Just a Wedding, Jennifer sits down with J.Starr Wedding Company lead planner Adriana Reyes to explore the powerful intersection of logistics and magic. With a background in hospitality and years of hands-on experience, Adriana shares how thoughtful planning, calm leadership, and quick decision-making come together to create truly seamless wedding days.
From managing unexpected challenges to building deep trust with her couples, Adriana gives an honest, behind-the-scenes look at what great planning actually looks like—and why it matters more than most people realize.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode:
- Adriana’s journey from corporate hospitality to wedding planning
- Why you don’t need a “big personality” to thrive in weddings
- The power of staying calm under pressure—and how it impacts the entire day
- Real stories from the field, including handling unexpected wedding-day challenges
- How personality matching between planner and couple creates a better experience
- What planners are managing behind the scenes that couples never see
- The importance of clear, intentional communication (and what not to overwhelm clients with)
- The moment trust is built—and how it transforms the planning process
- Common misconceptions about venues, contracts, and logistics
- Why music plays such a meaningful role in creating lasting wedding memories
Key Takeaway:
The “magic” of a wedding day is built on a foundation of strong logistics, experience, and trust. When those pieces are in place, couples are free to be fully present—and that’s when the real magic happens.
A Favorite Moment:
Adriana shares that many of her couples describe their planning meetings as feeling like “therapy sessions”—a reflection of the calm, clarity, and confidence she brings to the process.
Advice for Couples:
“Take time to check in with each other throughout the day. Everything else will be happening around you—but those moments together are what you’ll remember most.”
About Adriana:
Adriana Reyes is a lead planner with J.Starr Wedding Company, known for her calm presence, strategic mindset, and ability to problem-solve in real time. With a strong background in hospitality leadership, she brings both structure and heart to every wedding she produces—ensuring her couples feel supported, confident, and cared for from start to finish.
Connect with Us:
Follow along for more wedding planning insights and behind-the-scenes moments:
Instagram: @jstarweddingcompany
Website: www.jstarweddingcompany.com
I'm your host, Jennifer Starr, and this is More Than Just a Wedding, the podcast where we celebrate real people, real moments, and respected budgets. Let's make wedding planning feel a little more human.
SPEAKER_02I have a very, very special guest that I'm so excited to chat with today, Adriana Reyes, one of our incredible lead planners on the JSTAR Wedding company team. Hi, Adriana. Thank you for saying yes to this. Of course. I listen all every week. I tune in. Oh my goodness. I'm so happy to hear that. And I'm excited to be able to share a little bit about you and your story and how you connect with your clients and how you bring just beautiful experiences to life. So let's jump in. Adriana. And be as honest and transparent. We want that. We want that. Our listeners want that. Adriana, what made you want to get into weddings and what has kept you in it?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so funny enough, I worked on the venue side of everything. I seen the wedding planners, the social event planners at the hotels, and I was like, never. I will never do a wedding. I will never do anything social. I'm love corporate events. I love everything about it. And then I mean, obviously, like I would listen and hear about it. And I think I was young. I was in my 20s, early 20s, and I was, I think a part of me wanted it really bad, but I was just like, I'm too cool. I don't like this. Um there's a little bit of like intimidation about it, maybe corporate to the social. It's different. And I was so like, I think when I was young, I was so I am not a big wow, like exciting person. So I never thought I could fit that role. I was like, I'm not made for that. I made for corporate, I know logistics, I know how to do X, Y, and Z. So from an outsider's point of view, I was like, I'm not this showy person, I'm not this bubbly girl all the time. I could never do that, right? Um, and then actually when I started assisting with you guys is when I was like, oh, I can for sure do this. Um and I think that what kept me in it was um I just fell in love with it. I had so much fun um getting to work with all the planners on the team and um then bringing to life what we've created over like a year's time with a couple. Um, and I just loved it and the creativity side of it, because I feel like no wedding is the same. A lot of people might look and say same white flowers, same pink flowers, but I feel like weddings are so special and so individualized for our couples. Um, so that's why I feel like they're none are the exact same, and it makes it more exciting every time. There's always something new.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, it's never the same job by any means, right?
SPEAKER_00There's always nothing, but always something fun.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, there's similarities, but it's always a totally different puzzle to put together. Um, I had Jonathan Allison on the podcast recently, and one thing that he shared that maybe resonated with you was he was telling me that when he tends to compare himself to other photographers, sometimes he sees big personalities, you know, kind of like, you know, making the jokes or or you know, doing the videos online and creating a lot of attention. And he's always he was sharing with me, he's thinking, like, goodness, is that what I should be doing? You know, because that's not his natural personality style. And what has been so amazing for me, like as the owner, is knowing that you are more of you you prefer behind the scenes more so than center stage. Is that accurate?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, definitely. When I was uh an assistant general manager at a hotel, I used to tell my GM, I'm like, you're the one waving, kissing the babies up there up front. I'm the one in the back, fixing the mistakes, getting in there, figuring it out, um, and just hiding in the background.
SPEAKER_02Well, and what's so unique and so wonderful about that is that I have found there are a lot of couples out there that prefer your personality over someone that's super showy and um aggressive and uh, you know, I I don't want to talk badly about either personality type, but just very different than than you are. And they um they really want someone that's cool, calm, collected, strategic, calming. And so it's been a really fun experience for me. And it's as the owner and and I handle the majority of the sales, I'm I'm listening to the sales calls and I'm listening to personalities, and it's sometimes I I would like to think most of the time I get it right when I really try to personality match our couples to our planners. And ironically, sometimes it's not even like it's not even the same personality type. Like case in point, sometimes when I'm on the field, I will attract a bride that's very type A. And I I probably wouldn't, it's ironic that I own a planning company, but I wouldn't really consider myself type A. Logistics, I have to work quite a bit harder for. I would say relational and um creativity, and and that's a little bit more my strong suit. But sometimes I will book a client that's a little opposite of me, and halfway through the planning process I realize she needed me. She wasn't like me, and maybe similar to the clients you attract too.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, definitely. I think um opposites really do attract when it comes to all senses, and you can tell too, and my couples tell me it's like a therapy session with me, which is I think it's so funny. Um, because they're like, we feel so great after our calls, after we've talked everything through. I've been stressing all week, but we love that we get these calls and we can talk through everything and you just calm us right away. And I never noticed that that I guess was a theme that I'm this super calm person, I just am who I am. Um, so when I started working with you guys and you guys started pointing that out, and I was like, oh, okay, that makes sense. And now my couples are saying it, so it really makes sense.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, no, it's very real. I think our team has a lot of incredible, passionate women that bring a lot to the table, and sometimes with different personalities can come a lot of emotion. Like for for me, when I'm really fired up or passionate about something, I'm I have a hard time seeing the logic and just I'm just writing on the emotions, and it's so nice to be able to tap into our group and say, Yeah, what do we think about this? And then have like a calm logistical side to it, or like, you know, you're really good at explaining the other point of view. Like our venues love you because you have so much venue experience when we have a situation where a venue starts to do something different or they're charging differently, and we're all we're getting passionate and fired up about how this affects our clients. You're good at saying, Hey guys, well, did you ever think about it like this? Probably why they're doing this, and it's just so helpful. So thank you for that.
SPEAKER_00I'm through and through a Libra. So we're the scale, so I like to talk about well, what about this or what about that? So I feel like with my zodiac sign, I'm for sure a Libra. The vain part of it, I don't know about that because I can't lost how we look, but everything else, that's me. Interesting.
SPEAKER_02Okay, yeah, okay. Um, Adriana, you like we like I mentioned, you have such a strong background in resorts and venues. Um I think you have worked more hospital, you have more hospitality experience, definitely in various leadership roles. And and our team has a has a lot of hospitality experience too. But you've why don't you talk us through some of the roles that you have done in your career that and how that helps with wedding planning?
SPEAKER_00I've I think I've done pretty much every job at a hotel. I started as a barista at a coffee stand in a hotel, and then I worked all the way to like front office. I was in accounting. Accounting is very sorry to the people that do accounting, but it was the same thing every single day. So I was like, gotta get out of this. Went to sales, and that's when I really got into events. Um, I was the conference service manager, so I had about like six or seven sales managers that booked all the events and groups, and then I was the one servicing everything. So a lot what our couples um talk to first is or throughout their wedding pro planning process. Um, that's what I did. And then I went all the way up to being an assistant general manager, opening a new property. I was a general manager, so I've kind of dabbled in everything. I even say I've done housekeeping, I'm in there cleaning toilets with the girls and making their beds if I needed to at that point. And even I would say yeah, right? Wow. And I feel like just in my career in hospitality, I've worn so many different hats and having to like fix things on the spot. And what you learn in hospitality is you never say no, you're always going to say yes or spin it in a different way. Like, maybe we can't do this, but we can do this. Um, so I think just all those years of having that, it really helps me when it comes to wedding planning. If I need to explain the venue's point of view to my couple, I can help them understand it more. Sometimes I could get frustrated if a venue is a straight no, because I know being a venue, like, okay, like what can we do for them? Um, so I feel like I just have that. And then you always have to be fixing things when you're in hospitality. Like I said, if I needed to go fix the TV, did I know exactly everything? No, but I learned along the way every time there was a problem, what we can do, how we can fix it. And I wasn't scared going in because in hospitality, the unknown always happens. And I feel like in wedding planning, as much as we can be logistical and do everything by the minute on our timeline, things can happen. And it's up to us, yes. And as us as humans, I mean get nervous and scared. What are we gonna do? What are we overwhelmed? But I feel like so much in my career, I've had to just be that person that everyone else looks to. My staff would look up to me and be like, what do we do? And I had an answer for them. And just to correct it right away. So, because I was the last thing I needed to keep employees, right? I didn't want them scared to come into work every day. So having that strong leadership, I think also helps me in the wedding part of it as well. The wedding world.
SPEAKER_02When you were talking about all of that, I had the flashback moment. Um, you and I did a New Year's Eve wedding. Not this year, the year before. Yeah. Yeah. Right. Beautiful, tinted, gorgeous wedding. I the decorations, the great vendor team. It was gorgeous. Yes. And because it was New Year's Eve, they had booked a phenomenal DJ with like all the bells and whistles, right? He had the cold sparks and he had the CO2 cannons and and and on top of that, you know, we had to light this backyard. So there was bistro lighting and the tent in the tents, and so a lot of electricity required. And kind of right after dinner when he started getting in the crowd, um, one of his, am I gonna say this right? One of the amps went out.
SPEAKER_00Um so first it was the lights went off. And thankfully, shout out DJ Vera had a speaker in the back of um the venue that was just on its own, its own sound. So we at least had some noise. So the lights went out, then all of his equipment went out. So we killed, as soon as like he started, I don't know, pressing buttons, then the electric part of it just was like, we're turning off and the whole thing went off. But luckily, we had that backup speaker.
SPEAKER_02Right. So the music was continuous, thank goodness. Because if it had been total silence, that the energy would have been affected by that. Yes. And then they were able to go get what did they a generator, that's what it was.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. We so plugged it in in a couple different places. It was her brother's house, and we were going all over the garage. We tried it and then it went off. And then we did another one and it went off. And yeah, thankfully they're like, let's get a generator. So they went like 15 minutes up the road and got us a generator. And again, thankfully, we had that extra speaker because it, like you said, it would have been just, what do we do now? It's so quiet. And it was at that hype moment of let's dance and party.
SPEAKER_02But in that moment, Adriana, like internally, my heart was pounding. I felt so uncomfortable because I couldn't, I couldn't fix, I was there assisting you. Um, but I felt sort of like hope, like I couldn't help. There was, I can't, I can't make a generator. Yeah, you know, and and and there was a little bit of intimidation because I'm not understanding all the electrical needs and and so forth. Um, but you stayed so calm. And while that that's so important, it's because you're you're chatting with the couple, you're letting them know what the plan is, what's happening. You you know, you're not elevated in your um your voice, you're not talking really fast, you're not getting worked up. And so I feel like that was so I was grateful I wasn't the one in church because you were able to speak to them just calmly, and it didn't, it didn't elevate the situation into a greater yeah, and I feel like everyone like feeds off your energy.
SPEAKER_00So I feel like if I had like a chaotic, crazy energy, then they would also be chaotic, even like my vendors. Like, I feel like I was so calm with it that I was checking in with Jared and just making sure he was good. And I feel like having that also didn't probably freak him out as much as like his equipment kept turning on and off, and that it was all on his shoulders. And I think just having that presence with my vendor team and with the couple, um, you just gotta have that nice calm energy because it you really do feel it.
SPEAKER_02They can. I think the planner's energy affects so much more than we even realize on the day of it. Really glad you were leading on that one, my friend. Oh my goodness. Um I wanted to ask you, Adriana, do you know, because I did some math before you hopped on, do you know how long you've been with J Star Wedding Company?
SPEAKER_00I will be five years this year, I'm pretty sure. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Including including all of your experience with us, right?
SPEAKER_00Yes, yeah, including all of my experience from like the first time I interned or assisted April.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, at the Wigwam, right? At the Wigwom, yeah. Yeah, amazing. Do you know how many weddings you've you've produced as a lead up to now?
SPEAKER_00No, I I everyone always asks me, like, how many weddings do I have currently that I could go on my computer and count, but I don't know off the top of my head.
SPEAKER_02You've done a lot, a lot for the company. If if my math was right, you've you've done up to done over 30 weddings as a lead planner on the company. Okay, awesome. It's amazing. Yeah. It's amazing. Like, and I think an important thing that there's a quote and I won't get it right, but when you're selling a service, you're not just selling um physical human to do certain tasks on a certain day. Yeah. You hiring all of the days and years that they have done that service before yours. Um, because you just you just get better and better and better and more confident and knowledgeable. And that's that's really what it's all about. Um I think so. And I think too sometimes with that, you start to you kind of know everything to be on the lookout for, yeah. Right. You know, um, I think something that I have to work on not doing is oversharing everything that could possibly happen. Um, whereas I think you you have it internally and you're aware of it, but you don't necessarily have to share that with a couple them all the time about everything that could happen. So amazing. Um, Adriana, when you walk into a wedding day, is there like what's the first thing you're assessing? Or what are you thinking? Kind of where does your mind go when you've parked and you're you're walking in?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I'm like really like excited. I'm like, let's do this. I have like no worry in my mind. Um, and if I do, I've already like addressed whatever that worry or what it was. Um, and the first thing I do when I get there, I really look at w my paperwork one more time and I walk my space, just seeing where we're at, because I want to know exactly what's going on, what hasn't happened, what venuers have gotten there, who's next, just so it's on the top of my mind. Um, and I'm really all about I want to get all of the information right so I can give to my team. So if we're missing something, if I'm like, my team is arriving in an hour, I want to make sure I've pulled all the personal items or I've looked at everything that's in the boxes and is like, okay, this goes here, here, and here. So then we can execute it right then and there when my team gets there, and there's like not that misstep. I'm all about business when it comes in. We're like, we're here to produce this beautiful wedding, and of course, we're gonna have fun along the way, but I want to just set my team up for success and then set my vendors up for success. So if there's anything, maybe a net new property I haven't seen where we plug in anywhere, and I want to look at the electrical sorts, I kind of do that walkthrough as well when I first get there. So kind of setting myself up so then I can set up everyone else.
SPEAKER_02I feel like there's always one little unknown. Like, yeah, we've done all of these details, and then there's one little thing that you're not like for me. This last wedding I did, it was the sign language interpreter. I'd never worked with an interpreter before. So that was my one kind of unknown. Um, but I sure made sure I knew everything else. Yeah, you know.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. And I feel like you just as I mean, we already we live and breathe our paperwork anyways. Um, so it's just getting there on site, looking around, okay, where am I gonna put this? Where am I gonna place that? Um, does this make sense? Does it not, oh, this hedge never grew in and it has no flowers. Like, where are we gonna set someone else so it's not photographed? Things like that start going through my mind when I arrive on site. And then once I'm done with that, give me my good 10-15 minutes of it. Then I'm like, okay, let's go see the bride and groom and check on them, make sure they're doing good. So then I know I feel confident in what's going on. And I'm like, I'm just gonna ooze the confidence when I go and talk with them.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. You feel like you've got your footing first. So we touched on this a little bit, but I didn't ask you specifically. You are known for being incredibly calm under pressure. What's your approach when something isn't going to plan?
SPEAKER_00It's really internally, honestly. Um, I start going through, okay, if we're not on time with something, I start thinking of different ways. What is it? What's going on? How can I fix this? So I'm really troubleshooting throughout the whole day when things are happening. Um, so when something big happens, then I've already thought of, you know, like if I need to call my assistant to stop what they're doing, to pull them to do something else. And um, I feel like I just have that much experience working just in hospitality that like I'm pretty quick with it. Um, maybe it's not the 100% best decision right then and there, but I know it's a decision that's gonna get us to the next step, and then we can revisit it and be like, okay, let's fix it this way better. Um, so that's kind of I feel like I'm more internally with my brain. And then once I like have a plan, then I'll go to the venue or the vendor and say, can we do X, Y, and Z?
SPEAKER_02I'm trying to think of a really good example, but I think there's bigger examples, but one being let's say like the wrong linen sizes are delivered, and we have to figure a way to cover these darn tables and make them look good, knowing that they're not properly sized. Okay. Like the head table, you know, do we scoot it up? Do we tuck in the chairs? Like, can we get Another linen, like realistically, knowing that all the plates have to go down and all the florals have to go down. Are we gonna still hit our timing? And it's wild, isn't it?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and I feel like I make those executive decisions too. Like maybe we are Donna Linen and you know they shipped all their linen here. Okay, so the executive decision is this table's not gonna have it because I know it's not gonna be as photographed and it's not as important as say the head table, the cake table, or the guest tables. Um, can I pull it from somewhere else to make it work better? Um, and I don't go to my couples with all of that information because they don't need to understand or worry about any of that.
SPEAKER_02Because I think when you bring up when you bring up it, not to say it's not a everything's a important thing. But there are some things more important than others. And I think if we bring a small, smaller misstep, you know, wrong linen for the cake table to our couples. If you're trying to tell a couple that on a wedding day when they've already entered this like dream state of they're not even in reality, you don't want to do that because the first thing they're gonna start doing is, oh my gosh. Yeah, like to them, it's like the biggest problem in the whole wide world because you've just entered the conversation telling them something's wrong, and then they start to spiral like, well, what else is wrong? Oh my goodness, like, you know, is is my family gonna be here on time? Is did the cake even get delivered? They just start doing this. They start spiraling. Yeah. Part of protecting their experience is really knowing when they need to be notified of something and when they don't need to be notified. I agree. That's huge. So, Adriana, you do so much behind the scenes as a lead planner. What are things you're handling that clients probably never even realize?
SPEAKER_00What am I handling? Everything. Um the logistics, probably. Like, so if we have a big rental team coming in, I'm already thinking about what door are they gonna enter through, what time they can start, and is this gonna mess with any of the timeline or carving out exactly the enough enough amount of time in my timeline for those things. Um, so I think it's a lot of like the logistics that my couples never see. I just present to them, you know, this is what we're doing, and they are like, okay, great, but they don't know how much comes in account to it, like who I'm talking to, talking to the so if I do have a big rental team, then it's I'm talking to the Ven you, making sure we can come in or load in that certain way, and talking to my team and saying we're gonna do X, Y, and Z. So I think in the behind the scenes is a lot of that.
SPEAKER_02And I think it's also one of your your gifts. I've I've noticed I can at times, especially if I'm feeling a little anxious, I can over-communicate details. And I don't, I have to remind myself, my sweet couple, they don't want me to know all of this, and they're not understanding what I'm saying. It's a whole different language. So I think you're really good at not overwhelming your couples and only presenting the information that's completely necessary for them.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I think so too. It's like one of those things. I'm like, they hired me for a reason to take care of that one little thing that they don't shouldn't have to worry about. It's something that I can take off their plate easy. And it may like take some days for me to work it out or figure it out, but they don't need to know that.
SPEAKER_02Well, and this decision fatigue is not talked about enough in the planning process. You make you book your photographer. Okay, great. There's 100 additional questions after you've chosen your photographer. Yes. Potentially, potentially. Um and that's a lot. So it's nice when our plan like our planners know our couples and know what they want and know what's necessary, what's unnecessary? Um I think our couples really value that. I think so too. Adriana, what does taking care of a client look like to you in a really practical sense?
SPEAKER_00I think um kind of getting to know my couple and knowing what they need before they know that they need it. So I think just I have some couples that are very busy and I have some that can be very heavily involved. Um, and I just am thinking probably 10 steps ahead of them so then I can help them when it comes to decision making or what we're doing day of or anything like that. So I think I think that I think that answers it.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I I absolutely. How would you say you balance being efficient and logistical while still making the experience feel seamless for your couples? Um good question. I just well, I think we we touched on that.
SPEAKER_00I think not over asking all of the intricate specifics. I think so too, yeah. And just keep it keeping it again, it goes back to who my couple is and what their expectations, what they need, what they don't need, um, and how involved that they need to be with certain things. And if I know my c again, if I know my couple really wants it, just understand the why. Because sometimes they're like, I don't understand why we can't do X, Y, and Z. And instead of just saying, no, just move along, it's okay, we got it covered. I some of them I know they want to understand that. So I'll take that time to explain um what that why is. And I think that helps um build trust with my couples as well. So then once they've built that trust with me, like once I have their trust, um, it's like amazing. It's all downhill from not downhill, it's all uphill from there, and they're like can let go of everything and know that I understand their vision, I understand what we're doing day of, and they don't have anything to worry about.
SPEAKER_02It's such a real statement, and it's isn't it a uh it's almost you can almost sense when that happens. It doesn't happen right away, you know, nor should it. It takes time to build some trust and to get to know our couples, but there'll be this point in the planning process, whether it's at the end of a meeting or it's in an email response where you're like as a planner, you you kind of go, you know they trust you. And they there's like been this, this almost a shift in the like the table just turned over and they're like, We know you know best, we trust you, whatever. And that is the it's best feeling.
SPEAKER_00It's like shutting your laptop after that, after talking to them, and I was like, wow, I feel so good that they feel so good about me because they know I'm gonna execute it, and then it just gets me even more excited for their wedding day. Um, just because I'm like, wow, I have I've gained that trust. And it's a lot, and then it's their wedding day. Like it's a lot to give somebody that they don't get to meet with every single day. So I'm very thankful for the ones that give me their trust really soon in it. And even if they give me trust day of, um, you can totally feel the difference of it. And it's amazing.
SPEAKER_02You know, as a company, we have thankfully produced so many incredible weddings. But once in a once in a while, once in a very short, you know, slim while there will be a couple that we know we don't have that trust. And um it is the worst, worst, worst feeling. But oftentimes it's not just us that feels it, it's the other vendors too. It's kind of um, it's the the whole team doesn't have it. And on a wedding day, um we experienced this in the past couple months, not with one of your couples, but another one of our couples. Um all of the vendors were nervous on the day because they knew that they didn't have that gain trust, and it just it made it not feel as smooth and and solid as it should have felt. And it was such a we were all we were all really bummed out about that. Yeah, you know, I don't know what we could have done to make it different, but you know, and it's just part of hospitality. Once in a while you you you experience this, but it makes us appreciate those times where we know we have it. Yeah, it's just the best.
SPEAKER_00It really is the best feeling.
SPEAKER_02Agreed. Adriana, what's something about venues or logistics that couples tend to really misunderstand?
SPEAKER_00Um, I feel like their contracts they sometimes don't understand what a food and beverage minimum is, that it doesn't encompass the um service charge and tax. And then sleeping rooms. Sometimes they're contract and obligated to fulfill 90% of their room block, and sometimes they just don't understand that um on the venue side of everything. And then sometimes I feel like they're not really understanding the layout of um where they're having their wedding, that ballroom, that outdoor space. What you can truly do maybe logistically you can't do. Like maybe they sold you a dream and said 200 people can fit here. But then when I start looking at the space, I start thinking, okay, but we're gonna have a DJ, we're gonna have a photo booth, we're gonna have this. So now it's just like making the perimeter of your room a little bit smaller. Um, so I feel like sometimes they don't quite understand those things right off the bat.
SPEAKER_02And when they book their venue too, they they might not be thinking, they're not thinking logistically, they're thinking of the dream. They're thinking of how beautiful the photos are gonna be and how um special it's gonna feel for their guests walking on this property with all these beautiful like landscapes and waterfalls and so forth. Um They're not thinking of you know the actual space and the math that goes into it and being able to service it well. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Because when there's gonna be trade jacks and all these corners, is my servers gonna be able to walk through the tables with this much space? Are they too close? Things like that. But I feel like I can I can look at um a layout and be like, this looks great, or sometimes I'm like, it's gonna be a little tight.
SPEAKER_02You know that I'm asking you, Adriana, for all of all of my diagrams. Um, in your opinion, what separates a good planner from truly a great one?
SPEAKER_00Um, I think communication. I feel like if you again understand your client and what they're looking for, if you can get and match what they're exactly looking for, and being very adaptable. I feel like being that as a planner, not every again, wedding is the exact same, not every timeline is gonna work. And I love when a client is like, let's do something different, let's have cocktail hour before we have ceremony, like so fun. Um, so I just feel like and having that communication and just being able to adapt to what they're looking for so we can execute their wedding, what they dream dreamt of.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Adaptability, that's not spoken about enough. That's a good one. It's one of my strengths. It is one of your strengths because, and even with some of our most seasoned planners, um you can get in the habit of doing things a certain way, and it's the only way. And when that becomes challenged, that's when the superhero needs to come out, and that adaptability and making sure like this is really something that they value.
SPEAKER_00They they want the reverse ceremony or they want, you know, um they want to fli they want to have dinner in the space that they got married in. So we're flipping the whole thing in an hour and a half. Like I and I just feel like that's definitely one of my strengths is just I'm so good with the flow and I'm gonna make it happen. And if anything changes, or if they come and they're like, we want to do something different, just adapting and adapting to my couples in general, because again, I have some that are like we need a call every week, and then we have some that send me one email a week because I don't have time for all of this, and it's just something with me. I'm not like, oh my goodness, they're doing it completely wrong, or X, Y, and Z. I'm just like, no, this is how they work, this is how their brain manages things, and I am here to help. I'm not here to put on so much more stress. I want them to feel good after we talk um and not stressful. So communication and adaptability for sure.
SPEAKER_02Yes, I love that. I love that. Um, Adriana, I know that music is a big part of your life, and I know you um, it's so funny because we all bring our different our different things to the table as planners. It makes me laugh. But you are very specific in wanting to make sure you match your couple correctly with the DJ, the musician, or the band. How does your like music, love of music influence the wedding experiences and wanting to guide your couple in the best way?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I I feel like you know how they say taste and touch and feel. It's those key senses that bring you back to a moment. I feel that way about music. I feel like I can remember a song and I could think about that song, and it's gonna take me back to that memory, to that moment. And I feel like that's it with weddings. So I like love seeing what my couple's favorite song is or what their favorite artist is, because then I'm already in my head, I'm like, this DJ, this DJ, or this DJ are gonna be perfect, or this band, or this band, or this band. Um, and if I see that maybe they've told me I really want to reach out to this DJ, and I'm like, well, this is your music taste, this might be a better fit. Um, I I just feel like the vibe that you bring to the wedding is so important to all of my couples that they want to have the most fun. And I feel like music is just what brings it in is that party aspect. It's you walking down the aisle to your favorite song that maybe it's instrumental and your family knows wow, this is her favorite movie, and they made it instrumental, it's so her, and that just makes music so fun that you can do it in so different, different ways and make it personalized to you. So then when you are listening to that song again or watching that TV show that you walk down the aisle, you just brings you back to your wedding day or to that special dance or to that dance where all of your friends ran because they heard it, and the DJ knew the DJ knew that that was the song for you guys, and you guys were all dancing to that. And I feel like yeah, music's important. Like really great DJ will not only like tap into musical taste, but they'll they'll they want to know the year they graduated and what was the yeah, because um that's how you get in and because a lot of people were like, I want to keep people on the dance floor, and I think those are great questions for the DJs or for the band to ask what year or what are some crowd pleasers that like what school did you go to? Because and everyone loves their school and they want to come chant the chant or whatever. Um, and it it's just important is to keep people on that dance floor too, and have those memories, those core memories, and they're attached to those songs.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you know what's funny? I I don't remember I would can never remember ceremony time or um you know the cost of a wedding or the guest count. Those aren't things that ever like stick, but I can remember a lot of certain songs for certain couples. And when I hear them, I think of them. Yes. Um, especially if they're like really unique, yeah.
SPEAKER_00One of my favorites were it was at the Arizona Biltmore, and he walked down to Instrumental for Game of Thrones, his favorite show, and she walked down to the instrumental of the White Lotus opening. And I mean, I was just like, this is like so you guys, and I love it so much. And then like seeing the crowd be like, I know exactly what he did here. Like it's cute, it's a moment, and it makes me think of them too. Like when I go back and watch the shows. Yeah, I remember those moments.
SPEAKER_02Music is so personal, it really is. So, Adriana, one thing that I love about you and I'm envious about is that you try to go to Coachella every year. Yes. What do you love about that experience? Like, how did this start and what is the draw for you?
SPEAKER_00So much. I again I come from a big background of um my family loves music, and then my partner loves music. So we that's why we go to Coachella every single year. We started going in 2016. My brother had gone the year before, so did my sister, and my sister was like When did it start? Like 1999, I think. Oh, you're kidding. Or 1990 something, yeah. And then it came back like in 2000 or 2001, and it has been going every year since. Used to start with only one weekend, and now there's two weekends.
SPEAKER_02Wow.
SPEAKER_00But yeah, so one day my sister called, we were young, 22, I think me and Gayla were saying, um, and was like, you guys have to go, you have to go. And I don't know how I had money where I was like, let's go. But um, we found tickets, took my little Toyota, all four of us crammed in there, and put and the beauty of Coachella, you can do it different experiences, right? You can get an Airbnb or a hotel, or you can car camp on site, and that's what we love to do. So we pack up the car with all of our camping gear and we camp there, and you're like minutes away from the entrance. So instead of like being at a hotel, you have to drive, wait in the line for like I hear people say three to four hours just to get in the venue, and three to four hours to get out. We don't deal with that with car camping. Um, and I think just being like in the camping hub, they've done a lot of like community where you can go and they have food and you can play games, you can get ready there. Music, like now they call it day zero. So the Thursday that everyone arrives. Now they have music, so like there's a DJ list here that every and a big DJ in the camping hub. Yes, and like there's this big heel that you go um and watch the sunset on day zero, and they have selling disco. So, like a lot of that community is already there at the camping grounds, and then this year we did preferred camping, which is like rows away from the entrance. We were like five rows away, it was magical. Um, so I got to paint my head around the corner and be like, oh, the line's short, let's go. Or like Justin Bieber was sound checking. I heard his whole sound check, um, and we can see different stages from where we were. So I just everything. Let's talk about Justin Bieber, Cortella.
SPEAKER_02Okay, yes. Right. Okay, because I um I'm not as cool as you, Adriana. This we know. And I I saw bits and pieces of it, but I couldn't figure out what was real, what was fabricated, and all of like the marketing experts that I pay attention to are talking about how he really like sort of interrupted the um interrupted the norm, and he was very authentic and real and just wanted to show up. And my biggest question is I keep seeing this clip of him now, and then him as like a 15-year-old boy where he hugs his younger self through like an an image. What do they call that? They had it for two AI. Holographic. Did that happen, or is that something okay?
SPEAKER_00I don't know if that was something that someone else did, but I will say it was him on one screen singing, and then there's another screen in the back, and that was playing the actual video that he's singing to. So you see a side-by-side of him, his older self, and then him as a little boy singing. So that was like, I think, really that moment, like he's singing with his younger self that was created and was so like different, and it was really sweet and cute at when I was watching it. Um, and I'm not a huge believer, like I am a believer. I'm not a believer. I like Justin Bieber, I like his music. I think his new album, Swag and Swag 2, are his best albums. And I know a lot of Justin Bieber fans are like, no, we don't like that. So I know a lot of people were really excited for him to sing his um hits. So I'm like, I go to every artist. It doesn't matter if I barely know them, I know a few songs, I know every song. If they're a headliner, like I want the chance because when am I ever gonna get that chance again to go see them? So we went and he was playing all of his songs, and when he switched over to like doing his whole YouTube stuff, it was really like intimate and like him being vulnerable because he's also making fun of himself because of the paparazzi videos that have been circulating with him, or um, he's showing us his favorite like memes, and like that's just funny. I was like dying laughing, and it was so different because I feel like I'm really there at Coachella to see the music and just feel it. I love a performance. Like Sabrina Carpenter that weekend, great, beautiful lot, Lady Gaga the year before. Her performance incredible. Um, but something about like stripping that all back and seeing people play their like live instruments and hearing their vocals and being like that intimate with them is where I really love going to Coachella for. Yeah, it's it's so much fun. Like I know people feel like it's not tangible and it's so is tangible. You just if it's important to you, then you're gonna make it happen. And walking on those fields every day, like is such an experience, and it's so much fun. And you're there at maybe the hottest point of the day, and then golden hour happens, and hearing music from left, right in front of you and behind you, like it's beautiful, it's really fun. I love it, and it not just Coachella, I've um gone to a bunch of different festivals as well. But Coachella is the one that like we go to every year, and I go with my siblings, so that's what makes um it a lot of fun because that's the time where we get to come hang out with one another, and Caleb's really close with my brother and sister, so they part ways and go watch a set, or me and my sister are doing something, so it's really fun to have all of us together.
SPEAKER_02Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_00And do you do you sleep okay when you're camping? I have no issues going to sleep. I know some people, and some people were like, How could you do it? It's horrible. Um, I sleep in the car. We like put down all the seeds, we have an air mattress, we sleep in the car and like you don't hear anything. We put apples over the window so the sun doesn't come through.
SPEAKER_02Nice. Oh, that's so fun.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's a lot of fun, and I think camping is really fun.
SPEAKER_02You have a teenage daughter. Yes. Will you ever take her, do you think?
SPEAKER_00Yes, um, definitely. We will. So we've taken her to work tour. We're like, this is your practice. If you can't do work tour, you can't do Coachella because it's like 20 times the experience, and it's just so vastly big. Warp tour was not great. It was hot and I think they oversold the event. What was that? Was that in California as well? Yeah, that was in Long Beach. Okay, and this is like bands warp tour, so a lot of like bands and emo bands come together and just perform. So it's it was a lot of old school bands, too. That like I loved in high school, and she was like, Who the hell are they? Um I don't know. But so we've taken her there and and it was no fault to hers. It was just it was not the best. But we definitely we're we're talking about where like Scarlett should be here, like she's gonna have so much fun, especially. I feel like every year we get older and older, and there's a bunch of new people on the lineups where she's like, You need to go check this person out, you need to go watch this person. And I might be like, I don't know who she's talking about, but Scarlett said, check them out. And they usually like turn out to be someone like huge. Um, so I'm like, every year, like her favorite artists are there, and I know she'll have a lot of fun. So yeah, and she like really loves music, like her dad is loves every genre of music, and she's like has her headphones on every single day and like loves these certain artists and knows every song to everything. So I know it's like something finally that she wants to do. When she was little, we I used to lie to her and tell her that you had to be 18 years old or to go, and then she started, you know, she's on social media and she sees little girls there. She's like, they are not 18. So she's asked plenty of times, like, oh, you would have fun with me, or why not me? But it's definitely a conversation we really had a lot this year of maybe next year we'll bring her, if not um for her senior year of high school for sure bring her. Yeah, I feel like she needs to experience it.
SPEAKER_02What cool parents you two are? Oh my goodness. Wow, I love that. Who, if you had to pick one of your favorite performances this year, okay.
SPEAKER_00This year. Oh, it's so hard. So Dejahn probably is my favorite. He was incredible, and he's I don't know, I've never seen him perform. He's one of Caleb's really favorite artists, so he's like, we have to see Nanagul Triple, and he was so amazing. Um, I have so many though. Like Somber was so much fun. The XX, and then like Justin Bieber and um what's her name? Sabrina Carpenter were a lot of fun, but I would say for sure Dijon was probably like the best one of like that I got like that I appreciated. I knew a few of his songs, but when I seen him, I was like, wow, like you're really amazing.
SPEAKER_02There is something too about seeing an artist perform live that makes you appreciate the music. Oh, totally.
SPEAKER_00And then we got to see Jack White this year and like shredding on the guitar. I'm like, you're so good. And then I I love DJ, I love a DJ. So I got to see disco lines this year, and I was like super excited. So I like anything I can dance to or jump around to. And then I like really slow, and that's Dejon is like really slow and mellow, but he was he was killer.
SPEAKER_02Thanks for sharing that. We always know that you're you're our musical girl. Um, let's see. So as we've chatted about Adriana, you're really good at staying focused and solution oriented. Where do you think that mindset comes from?
SPEAKER_00I think it's just my youth. I think I've always had to be that way since I was little, and then I had my daughter really young, and I just feel like life experiences hit me all the time, and I feel like and I just keep going and get back up, and I think that's just naturally how I've become over the years.
SPEAKER_02You're a really hard worker too.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um, you've shared with me, you know, your career journey, and you you were doing hospitality um, I mean, pretty much all your life, right?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, all my entire life. Um, and I feel like I was always the one asking for the extra shifts, asking when I can move up, um, and just really climbing that ladder and trying to make as much money as I could when I was a young mom. Um, and I feel like I really get strong worth ethic from my parents. My dad is born and raised in Mexico, and so he didn't have the highest level of education, but he's come over to California and he is owning his own company. And my mom, too, she's taught me from a young age of you just gotta keep going after it. Because she was also a young mom and she built her career that way. And they've just have always seen them, and I was like, I need to dig deep and provide for my family and also for myself. I want more. I don't want, I'm not like this is good enough. I want to keep striving for the next thing. So admirable age Rama.
SPEAKER_02Um, let's see. What's something you've learned over the years that has changed the way you approach this specific job? Over the years. Like originally you had said you you had you would kind of put yourself in the corporate because in the industry we talk about corporate versus social, and sometimes that someone is solely corporate or someone is solely social. And I love that you have like broken through that.
SPEAKER_00And I think you're right, right on that. I feel like there is no perfect cookie cutter of a wedding planner. Like anyone and everyone, if you have a passion for it and you know you can deliver, can do this. Um, as long as you have that passion and you have that passion, not just for producing amazing events, is building relationships with couples. And I feel like I've broken out of that cookie cutter where I thought maybe I wasn't built for this, or I'm again not the most bubbly and laughing and kikiing with people, but I'm like, I know I can do this, and I'm really proud over the years that I feel so confident going into wedding days, even the week of weddings. I know some planners are like so worried or stressed, or they have a pit and they're sound like that something's gonna go wrong. And I'm like, no, I had my final call with my couple. I know everything is good, and I feel great going into it. So that's over the years, I feel like that has really changed.
SPEAKER_02Well, I admire too. I I think my observation of you, maybe it's incorrect, but I think you're really good at compartmentalizing things too, where I'm one where I amp up to a wedding, and even if I'm if I mean if I'm confident and I know it and I feel great, the emotionality of it and the responsibility of it, if I if I think about it too much, it can really start to get like heavy on my shoulders. And I have to check myself, like, you're fine. But you've done this for a long time, Jennifer. Got it. And for some reason, like usually after the ceremony rehearsal, when I've met all their people, I'm like, oh yeah, this is fine. Yeah, this is fine. But um, I just admire how you I think you're good at that. Like, you don't let the emotionality like take over um the task at hand.
SPEAKER_00I feel like in my career, it was always once you are in front of clients or anyone, like you're on a show, you gotta turn it on right then and there. And I mean, if I'm having a meltdown, I can run in the back room and have a meltdown. But I feel like that really has helped me where I'm like, we all got issues, we all got things going on, but I put them in a box and I'm like, not to worry about right now, and we're gonna do what we're here to do.
SPEAKER_02Adriana, I thought of another story. I think you're okay with me sharing this because I didn't even learn about this until like two months later. You are driving to a ceremony rehearsal, you're way over here on the East Valley, you're going out to Schnepp Farms for a wedding. And your puppy dog? My mom's dog. Your mom was giving birth birth, and you're on the phone to your daughter walking her through the steps of what to do.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yes. So my mom, unfortunately, she a lot. My brother had kidney transplant. My mom came over, she was staying with him for a while, and her dog got pregnant. My mom ended up going to the hospital. My brother calls me and is like, What is this black thing? And I'm like, What? We knew she was pregnant, and it's like, what? And I was like, Oh my god, that's a puppy. And I drove there right away. And I mean, I'm not a vet. I didn't know how many were in there and how long it was gonna take. And I was like, Scarlett, I have a tasting, and it's an hour away. What was a tasting? That's right. Yes, it was a tasting, and I was like, I'll walk you through and poor her freaking soul and her heart. She sat there and she delivered two puppies by herself, but she was calling me, she's like, What do I do? What do I do? And but calmed her, talked her through it. She she just wanted to feel a lot of emotion, so I know she was really nervous in it, but I was like, You got this, don't worry. And she delivered two healthy puppies while I was doing my tasting.
SPEAKER_02Only you, Adriana, only you. I know, I was like, that's crazy. That is amazing. And it's so funny. April told me that story later, like in passing. Oh, yeah, Adriana was on the way to a tasting, and what is happening? Just a it's a it's it's it's an applaud to your cool calm collector.
SPEAKER_00Funny enough, the couple she was um a large animal vet. The bride was a large animal vet. I did not tell her what I was doing at home because she's probably like, what the hell? But um, but I thought it was kind of like ironic that she's a veterinarian. I mean, I probably could have got advice, but the babies or the puppies had already been born by the time I made it to the tasting.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Fun story. All right. Um, let's see. Adriana, what's one piece of advice you could get every couple before their wedding day is to really soak it in and enjoy it between the two of them.
SPEAKER_00Things are gonna happen. Family is gonna be family, friends are gonna be friends, but if they can make it a point to check in with each other throughout the night or be eat eat that dinner, take that dance. Friends friends and family are gonna pull you left and right, but just make some time for each other. Or try to.
SPEAKER_02That's great advice. And in your opinion, what actually matters the most on a wedding day for the couple?
SPEAKER_00Them them getting married. I feel like that's the most important, and the all the loved ones that showed up for you.
SPEAKER_02And if a couple, let's okay, let's say you have a relative in another state and they are engaged and they are feeling overwhelmed. They're very practical, they've been to weddings before, they've been in weddings before, so they're kind of like, is it worth it? Is it not worth it? They're on the fence about hiring a planner. What do you tell them? What do you what do you want them to understand?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, um, of how much time goes into planning a wedding with or without a um planner. Um, I feel like I would really drive that home with them and make them really realize do you have the time to do this? Do you have the bandwidth? Because are you you have kids or families and a job? Do you have the bandwidth also to reach out to all of these vendors and really make them think of it on that side? Not that, of course, yeah, you can go make your own mail cards and have family put these out. That's things easy to remember. But are you gonna have the time? Are you gonna make the time to do all of that as well?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, people completely underestimate the amount of hours required. It's almost like another full-time job.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, definitely.
SPEAKER_02Okay, and then as you know, Adriana, we always close the podcast by asking um the we I titled this podcast More Than Just a Wedding. And I'm curious to know, and there's no wrong or right answer, to you, what does what do those words mean? More than just a wedding.
SPEAKER_00It's the memories, the feelings, and being in the moment. Is what makes it out to be. It's more than that. It's all of that, it's all of that.
SPEAKER_02All encompassed. Well, thank you, Adriana. You provided so many fun pieces of advice and information. Um, you bring something different and fresh to the table anytime you and I have a conversation. You are such a valued, valued planner on our team, and I'm so grateful to know you and work alongside you. And your couples are so lucky when they get the chance to work with you. So thank you for your time today.
SPEAKER_00Thank you. Thank you for letting me be a part of this team in this journey because it's changed a lot in my life, but I'm so grateful for all the girls on our team and the community that you built. Enhanced selecting all of us.
SPEAKER_02I feel like you guys magnetically were just like magically brought to my life, and I'm so thankful. We have a lot of fun behind the scenes. We do. Our group does. And maybe in the future, if I can figure out how to do it, we'll have a podcast with our with our core team.
unknownThat'd be fun.
SPEAKER_02And do some fun question rounds and and battle things out and have some live conversations like the ones we have in our in our group. Yeah, that would be fun. That would be fun. Yes. Uh good. And we'll we'll do that this summer. Figure that out. All right, everyone. Thank you so much for listening to today's podcast. I know you found information helpful. And um, thank you for being here. We'll see you next time. Thank you.
SPEAKER_01You've been listening to more than just a wedding with Jennifer Starr. If you enjoyed today's episode, be sure to follow and share it with your friends. Until next time, real people, real moments, respect budgets.