189 THE NEXT LEVEL: AUGUSTA COLE Discusses CHRISTINA MATTEUCCI – The Executive Director at David Beahm Experiences

Today on The Next Level, Andy Kushner is speaking with Augusta Cole, Executive Director to Lynn Easton, of Easton Events, a world-renowned planner and designer.

Augusta and Christina are lucky enough to work for individuals who allow them to truly have a voice and to feel a sense of ownership in their companies. Christina has worked with David Beahm Experiences for many years and they maintain their relationship by having respect and trust. David shows confidence in her abilities and Christina knows that he appreciates what she is doing and trusts that she will always do what is best for the company.

They speak about the similarities between the way David Beahm and Lynn Easton lead their teams, the ritual of debriefing after events and how they allow everyone to give ideas on how to make the next one better. 

Augusta is in agreement with Christina on many things and needing a forward thinker leading the company is one of them. They feel that if you have someone who cares about what you think, where you want to be, and will help you get there, then you are in the best place you can be. 

This is a great and elucidating conversation so listen in and see if you can see yourself in this discussion.

Continue reading

188 CHRISTINA MATTEUCCI, Creating The Ultimate Collaborative Relationship Between #1s And Their #2’s

Welcome to the Wedding Biz Christina Matteucci, the Executive Director at David Beahm Experiences. Christina is on the show to discuss how to be the best “number two” to your “number ones,” and how your “number ones” can best support the “number twos.” Andy and Christina take a deep dive into this topic as it is one that Christina has spoken about at several events, not the least of which is the Engage Summit.

Christina is affectionately known as “Teuccimama” by her colleagues and friends in the events industry and has been in the industry for almost two decades. She has first-hand experience in creating a sustainable and functional infrastructure to support a growing creative talent. Her experience has made her a highly sought-after resource in the event industry and a captivating speaker on all things “Number Two.” 

Christina has so many amazing nuggets of information to share about building a business around a creative talent and what that entails. Listen in as she reveals a bit about her past, her love for the performing arts, and how she managed to combine her childhood dream with a love for events to create an amazing career. Christina is a force in the industry and shares what it took for her to move!

Continue reading

185 THE NEXT LEVEL: LYNN EASTON Discusses MARCY BLUM – A Pioneer of the Experiential Approach to Event Planning

Today on The Next Level, Andy Kushner is speaking with Lynn Easton, creator of Easton Destination Events, a worldwide luxury destination wedding design, and planning company. She is also the Co-Founder of Easton Porter Group, a luxury hospitality company with a portfolio of award-winning boutique hotels, vineyards, restaurants and event venues in North America and Europe.

The discussion this week is on Marcy Blum, an internationally sought-after event planner, and entertainment expert. She has been named one of the best in the world by Vogue, Martha Stuart Weddings, Harper’s Bazaar and the New York Times magazine. 

Marcy has worked with celebrities including LeBron James, George and Tamika Soros, Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick, to name a few. She has also appeared on television shows including Oprah, Live with Regis and Kelly and the Rachel Ray Show.

Lynn speaks about how events need to evolve as they unfold. She also believes that every event should be customized for each client. Planners always need to up their game, plan more creative activities, and Marcy is the master at planning experiences. This is a conversation you won’t want to miss.

Continue reading

184 MARCY BLUM, A Pioneer of the Experiential Approach to Event Planning

Andy is very excited to welcome Marcy Blum, an internationally sought after event planner and entertaining expert who has 30 years experience. She has been named one of the best in the world by Vogue, Martha Stuart Weddings, Harper’s Bazaar and the New York Times magazine. Marcy has appeared on many television shows and, with event planner Sarah Haywood, has developed EPIC, the Event Planners International Collaborative that offers an intensive and advanced wedding and event planning education.

In this episode, Andy and Marcy discuss how she got started in the industry, when she started her own business and how scary it was to strike out on her own. She tells us about wanting her event designs to be different from everyone else and looking for clients who wanted the same thing. She also gives us insight into what the business looked like when she got started in the 80’s and how it has evolved today.

Listen in as Marcy talks to us about some of the weddings she remembers, the way she structures the rates she charges for her services, her advice for people starting out in the industry today and about EPIC, the program she started with her friend Sarah Haywood. Marcy is a pioneer in the event industry and you won’t want to miss all of the knowledge she has to share about the industry.

Continue reading

183 THE NEXT LEVEL: PHILLIP VAN NOSTRAND Discusses KING DAHL Former Executive Director of Events, MGM Resorts.

In this episode of The Next Level, Andy Kushner and Phillip Van Nostrand a photographer based in New York and California, talk about King Dahl’s interview on the Wedding Biz. Phil has been been published in numerous publications including the New York Times, Fortune.com, Huffington Post and Forbes.com and was a master class speaker at WPPI. 

Listen in as they talk about King Dahl and his incredible designs. King is the former Executive Director of Event Design for MGM Resorts, where he was responsible for 1200 events a year. He is known for his signature style which is large, dramatic productions and was inducted into the Event Solutions Magazine Hall of Fame. They talk about how he left his career when he was at the top to slow down and enjoy life and then came back, two years later, as an in-demand event design and production consultant. This is a very entertaining episode about King Dahl, Phil’s life philosophy, travel and making your job work around your life. So relax, plug in and get ready for an entertaining conversation.

Continue reading