Stylish Events by Lisa is a full service event planning and design company with no boundaries. From traditional and elegant to unique and refined, we strive to make every event a success. We provide personalized service with the utmost attention to every detail. We arrange planning and design for every type of event including weddings, corporate, social engagements, photoshoots, and destination events.
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve ever faced while planning an event and how did you overcome it?
I would always say the biggest challenge to an event is the weather. Here in Arizona, it doesn’t rain much but when it does you better be prepared. We always make sure our clients have a Plan B set in place in case of the worst. Especially if they have a completely outdoor venue, which is very common here in the beautiful Southwest.
Lucky for us we work with some great companies that are offering amazing new options for tenting to provide our clients with.
What are some tips for creating an elegant and memorable event on a tight budget?
First, I would tell people to be flexible with your date! Some venues offer discounted rates on certain days of the week or lower prices as well if the event is held in the industry’s offseason.
Second, I would recommend looking for new and upcoming vendors in the industry. They might be willing to negotiate and provide services more affordably in order to gain the exposure and experience for their business. Just make sure to meet with them first and understand what level of service and product they are going to provide your attendees. They are a very important part of your event so you want to make sure they are going to be 100% reliable.
How important are your relationships with vendors and what are some ways that you successfully cultivate and ensure good rapport?
Our relationships with our vendors are so important. Without our vendors, we are not able to successfully complete an event. We all strive together as one whole group to be able to create our client’s vision.
We’ve worked over the years to build relationships with the best professionals in town. We created a preferred vendor program with incentives that benefit our vendors as well as our clients – creating an environment for all of us to flourish in and simultaneously maintain the highest level of professionalism.
What’s the most exciting thing on the horizon for you personally or professionally?
We are so excited about venturing more into destination management. We briefly started providing this a few years ago but it has begun to grow and take on a new life. Not all planners are able to travel and understanding this need we are able to help serve clients wherever they may need us.
Working in new places and venues really inspires us to be more creative and push ourselves to new limits where we have not gone before.
What’s the most surprising or unusual request you have ever received from a client and were you able to fulfill it?
Most surprising was a couple that wanted a wedding but wanted nothing “wedding” at all. No wedding dress, ceremony, flowers, or even cake. And yes we made that happen! A comedy improv troupe flew in from LA and gave arriving guests a comedy show, – all comedians got secretly ordained prior.
Close to the end of the show, the couple got on stage and one of the comedians married them. The guests thought it was just a party, not a wedding. After the main surprise, everyone was treated to a 7 piece live band, dancing, delicious food stations, cocktails, and an all you can eat cupcake bar.
Needless to say, it was one of the most memorable events we ever created for a couple in a beautiful historic warehouse in Downtown Phoenix.
