Today we’d like to introduce you to Megan Garnier.
Hi Megan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I joined the event industry in 2013 when I started at Missouri State University. I joined my dorm hall council (go Freddy!) as an event specialist in 2013, where I helped to plan, organize, and run all social events for my dorm. I soon realized I loved events and joined Missouri State University’s Homecoming Committee in 2014 and 2015, where I planned an event each year for the whole campus. I joined Panhellenic Association (PHA) in 2015, where I planned an event for all new members in each fraternity and sorority on campus. I was the social chair for my sorority, Delta Zeta, in 2016, where I planned all our social functions for the academic year. Lastly, I was the Greek Week Director in 2017, where I helped to facilitate each event during the week.
I went to Missouri State University for a degree in marketing, advertising, and promotions; however, I quickly learned that for every executive board I applied for, I went for an event rather than an advertising position. My counselor recommended changing my degree to Entertainment Management, which studied the event, venue, sports, and music management. My focus was on the event and venue management.
After graduation, I accepted a server position with Bogey Hills Country Club in Saint Charles. Within 3 months of starting, I was promoted to their Social Events Coordinator. There were 3 of us on the events team, a corporate chair, a wedding chair, and a social chair. I had a rich background in food and beverage, so I also became one of the assistant food and beverage managers. I helped with the member dinner service each night we didn’t have events. I also served as the banquet captain for every event. I was in charge of all room setups and flips, our temporary staff, and the day of execution for each event, not just mine. Bogey Hills Country Club is where I learned I had a passion for weddings! I was one of the venue coordinators for each wedding and took over after our wedding chair left. I had gotten pretty close with some of the members, so when it came time for their daughters to get married, they asked me to be their wedding coordinator for the venue! I was so honored and quickly dove into wedding details! Fun fact, I planned my wedding based on one I planned while working at the club. I was honored to work under someone with such an extensive event background. I learned to ask many questions and to never say “no” to a client. Where there is a will, there is a way!
In 2019, I decided to leave the club and switch to a more 8-5 job due to some family concerns and took a position working in the sales office for Bowlero Corp, here in STL. There, I planned reservations, birthday parties, anniversaries, etc. It was nice moving to set hours and having both nights and weekends off for a while, but I soon missed the walkthroughs and tours, going over layout and setup, the day of event execution, and having that face-to-face communication with my clients.
Some friends got married on leap year in 2020, and they had asked me to be their day of coordinator. This was my very first wedding on my own! I had truly missed the day of execution. At the same time, I worked at Bowlero, so getting to work another wedding gave me the itch to start my own event planning company, but I ultimately decided to stay with my steady paycheck. When covid hit, I was laid off in March 2020, and I took it as a blessing in disguise! Start a Facebook page and offer event planning/coordination when the event industry opens up. I created my Facebook page, Events by Megan, in April 2020 and worked 3 weddings towards the end of 2020. In November of 2021, I became a registered LLC, and in May of 2022, I launched my website! I worked 15 weddings in 2022 and have 15 weddings booked for 2023! I’m still working full time, so 15 weddings are the maximum I can take a year until I go full time. Once I go full-time, I plan to work up to 35 weddings a year! I offer months of coordination, partial and complete planning services, and décor rentals.
It wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There have been some struggles. I didn’t think I would ever start my own company, so I didn’t take any college classes to prepare me for this. I had to take two law classes, finance, and accounting. The law classes helped me when it came time to register myself as an LLC, but I could have been better regarding finance and accounting. I wish I had asked for more help because filing taxes was rough. I purchased some awesome books, which have helped me with the back end of running my own company and hiring an accounting company. Another huge struggle is finding time in my days for me and my family. I was overbooking myself at first; I booked you if I had your date open. Then the time came when I had worked Sunday-Saturday three weeks in a row without a single off day for myself. I had to stay up past my bedtime to ensure the work was done on time. I work until 4 pm Monday through Friday and have, on average 3 client meetings a week after I get off of job number 1. So most days, I go from job 1 to client meetings and don’t make it home until after 7 pm. Once home, I jump on my computer and spend about another hour on office work. By the time I finish eating dinner, it’s usually time for bed. Thankfully, I’ve learned how much work goes into each event over the years, so I no longer have to worry about overextending myself. Until I go full-time, I limit myself to two events a month unless there are 5 weeks in the month, then I book up to three.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about Events by Megan LLC?
Events by Megan LLC have come a long way! I first only offered months of coordination services, but over time I now offer full and partial wedding planning, full and partial months of coordination, and décor rentals. I am based out of Maryland Heights but travel up to 45 minutes at no additional cost. I will travel up to an hour and a half away for a small travel fee. I will travel longer than an hour and a half, but the travel cost becomes more extensive. I’m known for going that extra mile for my clients. I was recently asked during a consultation, “Is there any task you won’t do?” I laughed and said not! If I see something that needs to be done, I will do it, no questions asked. One of my favorite things about working weddings is that each wedding is so different, and you never know what will happen. You need to be prepared for anything and everything, and you have to be able to wear multiple hats. A coordinator/planner is very different from any other vendor you plan to hire. For example, I had my first micro wedding in May of this year, with around 30 guests. They were supposed to be given a waiter with their catering package, but they could only send 1 person, and that person had to cook and serve the food, so I became the waiter. I refilled water throughout dinner, cleared dirty plates, and washed their china plates. My couple asked me why I was doing this as it wasn’t part of my job description. I told them I wear many hats on wedding days, and if I didn’t do it, I would send them home with dirty china, which is not what I wanted to be known for.
I’m also there for more than just my clients. I’m there for their parents, grandparents, and full wedding party. During dinner, I’m constantly refilling water, getting cocktails, and ensuring everyone has what they need. Little do they know, this also helps me keep everyone in one place so when we need to get started with toasts and first dances, I don’t have to look for anyone; I know exactly where everyone is. At each wedding, I will have party members come up to me and tell me how amazing it was that I was also there for them! They’ve been to weddings before but have yet to get the service I showed them. I want parents and wedding parties to feel comfortable enough with me that they come to me when they need something.
A huge goal of mine at every wedding I work is to allow my couple’s parents to have a stress-free day as well. When you don’t have a coordinator or a planner, your vendors ask your parents questions throughout the day. Having a coordinator or planner wasn’t necessarily common 20-30 years ago, so often, parents are skeptical about hiring me. They don’t understand how much I do for them throughout the day. By the end of your wedding day, I want every parent to understand what I do and why a coordinator or planner is well worth the expense. I love when I say goodbye to the parents, and they are so grateful for being fully present in every moment throughout their child’s day and not having to worry about the vendors, the timeline, moving décor from ceremony to reception, or coordinating the grand entrance. All of that falls on me! You get to relax and enjoy. My clients love that they can send me their vision board or Pinterest page, and I will create a customized décor rental proposal based on what I see. They can rent all of their décors through me without worrying about reselling and losing money, transportation of décor, and setting up and tearing down. I’m constantly adding new items to my inventory and will add things I know my couples are looking for!
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I have always been a very outgoing, talkative person. I am someone who could easily have a conversation with a wall. I am a huge lover of all animals, but dogs hold a special place in my heart. I have always been a great organizer and a queen of to-do lists! I am known to randomly reorganize a whole room because I have decided the flow doesn’t work for me. I was constantly planning events for my friends growing up with help from my parents. My parents have always been my biggest cheerleaders, so when I would tell them about a new idea I wanted to do with my friends, they would help me turn it into a fun get-together! I hosted a few gingerbread house-making parties, a Halloween costume party, and my graduation party, to name a few. My parents helped me to fall in love with events so much.
Pricing:
- Partial Month of Coordination $1500
- Full Month of Coordination $2000
- Partial Wedding Planning starting at $5000
- Full Wedding Planning $7000
Contact Info:
- Website: https://eventsbymegan20.wixsite.com/events-by-megan
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eventsbymeganllc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eventsbymeganllc/
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/EventsbyMeganLLC/
Image Credits
Shannon Duggan Photography for shots of the Ritz – the room with greenery on the ceiling and the close up of the plate setting (pictures 7, 8), Erin Alexandra Photo for the one shot with the brick wall in the background – gold chargers with white plates and pink and gold décor, (picture 3) CMS Photography LLC for rest of the pictures (pictures 1,2,4,5,6)
