Today we’d like to introduce you to Erica Jordan Gensky.
Hi Erica Jordan, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My story is one of evolution. When I started wedding planning, I was a girl who was really good at organization and time management that wanted to make weddings just feel easier for brides. Back then, a successful wedding day was one that went according to the timeline, with a happy bride and free of hiccups.
It only took a few seasons to realize that I had the wrong take. While an organized, detailed plan is essential to the wedding day, it left so much to be desired – by our couples, our vendor teams, and myself. I decided Erica Jordan Weddings was going to dive headfirst into a new mindset. Today, EJW brings a refined approach to experience and hospitality to our couples, their guests, and our amazing vendor teams.
We believe that as wedding planners we are ambassadors of experience. Half of experience is the perfection – 1,000 things happening at the right time in the right place. But the other half is making people feel a certain way. We aim to captivate the guest, woo our couple, and strengthen our vendor teammates.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. We’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way, but learning from these mistakes has offered us growth we otherwise wouldn’t experience. For example, I went through a period where it felt like excellence and hospitality were constantly at odds. I didn’t realize it until I read Will Guidara’s “Unreasonable Hospitality,” but he gave words to the feeling I was experiencing. Some wedding days we were absolutely excellent. We had everything together, every tiny detail accounted for, and back-up plans perfectly (and seemingly easily!) executed. But I couldn’t help but notice so many missed opportunities for real connection and true hospitality. I would think, “I wish I could’ve touched up the bride’s lipstick before her first dance,” or, “That DJ was so good tonight – I can’t believe I didn’t take a second to learn more about him.” And when we provided exceptional hospitality, it always felt we were sacrificing some element of excellence to find the time.
Taking Guidara’s advice, I decided to *choose* these conflicting goals. Leaning into the friction has forced us to innovate. It forced us to create something that we hadn’t seen before. And now, we can show up to wedding days with the right tools and practices in place to prioritize both excellence and exceptional hospitality.
We’ve been impressed with Erica Jordan Weddings, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Erica Jordan Weddings aims to bring love stories to life for one day in time by leaning into our refined approach to experience and hospitality. We offer both wedding planning and wedding coordination, and we are known for our fully personalized wedding planning experiences.
Our planners are experts in timeless elegance – the type of weddings that will look like they happened yesterday when your grandkids are flipping through photos 50 years from now.
We love planning, but connection drives our passion for the business. When we’re your wedding team you gain a guide to all things wedding, an advocate, creative partner and a genuine gal pal.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I was often misunderstood by those around me. I was a self-starter with a ton of ambition and an intense perfectionist, which was usually interpreted as independence. But as much as I was an introvert, I craved connection. I was, and am, a sensitive person. Our world views sensitivity as a weakness, but I see it as so much more. Sensitive people are in tune with emotion in such a special way. It is a gift to be able to use emotion to move people – to make them feel something.
As a teen and young adult, I gravitated toward interests that utilize the power of emotion to move others. I did every single type of music offered to me growing up – piano, band, jazz band, marching band, choir, all-state choir, jazz choir, a cappella, theatre. Giving emotions a voice was something I absolutely loved. If I could make an audience feel a certain way while I was on stage, I was all for it.
It didn’t take long to realize that writing could do the same thing. And my love of journalism began. From print journalism to broadcast and even ending up in the marketing world, my sensitivity was my superpower. It’s no surprise to me that I’ve ended up in the world of hospitality, making people feel romance, elegance, and connection.
Pricing:
- Wedding Coordination: $2150+
- Wedding Planning: $3000 – $6700+
Contact Info:
- Website: ericajordanweddings.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericajordanweddings/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ericajordanweddings
Image Credits
Cassidy Drury Photography
