Have you ever heard of a bride planning her own wedding with 500 guests and with no experience in planning an event of any size? Listen as Andy and his guest Diane Khoury discuss how she was able to pull it off and why it was the reason she started her own wedding and event business plus much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz.
Diane is a Sydney-based event planner, with over 360,000 Instagram followers. Diane Khoury Weddings and Events has been credited for revolutionizing the planning, styling, and concept design of luxury weddings and events both in and out of Australia. Diane’s weddings stand out as stunning works of art with a passion for glamorous detail and an appreciation for unique displays. After being sought after by celebrities and socialites, Diane continues to catapult the definition of celebrating love and luxury in Australia.
Listen as Diane speaks about how COVID-19 is affecting her business, planning her son’s virtual birthday party so he could have a celebration and her first retail job at age 13. She also speaks about guests at her wedding wanting her help to plan theirs, which gave her the idea that this might be what she should be doing.
Diane describes a magical christening she did for a client in Lebanon and a time when she almost had to cancel a wedding because of technical difficulties. Diane says that balancing her personal life with her professional life is difficult, but she makes it work with the support of her husband.
In six years, Diane has taken her business from nothing to amazing. Listen as she shares how she used social media to share her personality and cultivate clients. Showing her children that working hard and following your dreams can lead to success is something that Diane is passionate about.
Also, Andy is announcing the official launch of his new podcast network called The Wedding Biz Network, in which he will produce podcasts for other people in the event industry, with Sean Low being its first member. Sean’s show now comes out every Tuesday and stay tuned for more new show announcements coming soon.
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Show Highlights:
[02:36] Welcome to the show, Diane!
[03:24] Diane shares how the pandemic is affecting her business in Australia.
[05:15] Diane speaks about rescheduling all of her events due to Covid-19.
[07:06] Are you looking at this downtime as an opportunity to reinvent your business?
[08:10] Diane shares how she gave her son a virtual birthday party with gift bags delivered to each child’s home with props to use during the party.
[10:26] Diane discusses her background and growing up around parties and gatherings.
[11:59] She shares that she landed a retail job at age 13 and where she went after college.
[14:02] Diane says she planned her own wedding, which was the catalyst that propelled her into the wedding and event industry.
[15:13] How did you know how to plan your wedding with 500 people and with no experience?
[17:15] Diane shares how she got started in the industry when someone liked her wedding and wanted her help with their own.
[19:26] Diane planned weddings on the side for the first two years while keeping her corporate job.
[21:20] Were you scared when you took that leap full time into the event industry?
[22:56] Diane speaks about how she has juggled being a wife, mother, and building her business from the ground up.
[24:17] Diane shares her process from the first contact with the client through the end of the event.
[26:08] Diane describes an event she did for a client in Lebanon and how she came up with the idea for her magical design.
[30:08] How do you handle challenges? Can you describe a time when you had a problem that you overcame?
[35:26] Diane shares how she balances the creative and financial sides of her business.
[36:54] She speaks about how many full-time employees she has.
[37:23] Diane discusses her philosophy on the way she prices her events.
[38:00] How do you feel about social media?
[39:45] The most important thing on social media is showing people your personality.
[41:41] Diane shares some advice about work-life balance and how important it is to have a good support network.
[44:33] Showing your children what hard work and following your dreams can mean for your future.
[46:42] Thank you so much for being on the show today!
LINKS & RESOURCES
Find Diane
@dianekhouryweddingsandevents
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Title Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Kushner Entertainment
Mentioned:
Wendy El-Khoury on The Wedding Biz
