Category: 1The Next Level

Andy is excited for this special episode with floral and event designer Preston Bailey. Listen as they discuss how Preston is handling the pandemic both personally and professionally, what he’s learned about himself, and how he’s using the slow down to further his path both personally and in the industry. Preston also has a big announcement he is sharing with us, plus much more on this episode of The Wedding Biz.

Preston shares how he is handling the pandemic and what he has learned during 2020. Preston discusses how he thinks the event industry will change once the pandemic has been eradicated. He believes that event professionals will need to become better salespeople because consumers will want more value for their money.

Preston is hosting his own podcast called Stop and Smell the Roses! Listen as he shares why this is a dream come true and the content listeners can expect to hear. Preston also speaks about his segment called Dear Preston, where he will answer listeners’ questions live on air. His podcast will air every other Thursday starting January 14th on The Wedding Biz Network. See you there!

Don’t forget to listen to Andy’s new podcast, The Music Makers. It’s a podcast about behind-the-scenes stories from some of the most influential music industry pros around, including artists, recording engineers, record producers, songwriters, managers, record industry executives, and more. You can find The Music Makers podcast by searching for it in your cell phone’s podcast app or visiting

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Andy welcomes Carrie Goldberg back to The Next Level. Carrie is the Digital Travel & Weddings Editor at Harpers Bazaar, where she oversees all things bridal, weddings, and travel for HarpersBazaar.com. Listen as they discuss how who has the most input in weddings has changed, why Alex doesn’t advertise and how he maintains his client’s privacy by taking people’s phones at high-profile events, plus much more.

Alex is the Managing Director of Fait Accompli out of London, which organizes, plans and designs spectacular events worldwide from A-list to Royal weddings. He is also responsible for the wedding celebration of Ellie Goulding and weddings for the Royal family, including Prince William and Katherine the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry and Megan the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. 

Listen as Carrie speaks about the weddings Alex designs, the glamping wedding he planned on the grounds of a medieval castle, and how his discretion has earned him the high-profile weddings others seek. They discuss the challenge of keeping guests engaged, with or without their phones, and how 2020 has shown where people place their worth in business and life.

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Andy welcomes Jennifer Stein back to The Next Level. Jennifer is the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Destination I Do Magazine, which can be found at newsstands in all fifty states and twelve countries. She also publishes a daily blog, consults, custom publishes, and has a podcast called CONFETTI.

Majeda Bisharat and Sewar of MY Event Design, based in Jordan, cover events across the Middle East and Europe. MY Event Design is a full-fledged luxury event design, planning, and management company that has designed and planned events for influential figures in various industries and members of the Royal family.

Jennifer discusses the natural gifts that she believes people in the event industry are blessed with, how Majeda gets her inspiration from everywhere, and how great it is that Majeda and Sewar have a multigenerational approach to events that have served them well. Jennifer also talks about what Majeda said about Sewar’s engagement party.

Listen as Jennifer shares how vulnerable and upfront Majeda was when she said she is in a state of confusion when it comes to dealing with the pandemic and how she took that confusion and turned it into a new company called MY Tablescape so that everyone can rent the luxurious accessories they need to make any occasion special.

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Andy’s guest co-host today is Julie Savage. Julie is the Founder and Creative Director of Strawberry Milk Events, who has planned and designed celebrations worldwide. 

Listen as they discuss how impressive it was that Caleb launched his business at 16 and filmed 40 weddings his first year, and his insights into developing relationships with his creative partners, plus much more on this episode of The Next Level.

Caleb is a brilliant filmmaker and the owner of East West Production, a full-service event filmmaking company with award-winning coverage. Caleb’s work has been showcased in publications such as People’s Magazine, particularly for shooting Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra’s wedding. He has also been featured in Vogue, Martha Stewart Weddings, Brides Magazine, and Harpers Bazaar named Caleb as one of the world’s top filmmakers.

Julie discusses how she matches her clients with creative partners like Caleb, the process they go through from there, and how it’s a learning curve to know that you are not the right person for everyone and that Caleb seemed to learn that much earlier in his career than most. 

Andy and Julie share how Caleb writes a storyline, to follow when editing, and how he believes when working commercially, it’s not about the product as much as it is about the emotion behind the product and how to make that happen in a minute or less. Julie speaks about Caleb’s genuine team player attitude and how he is known for always helping creative partners where he can and how that keeps him top of mind when recommending a filmmaker to clients.

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Andy’s guest co-host today is Jennifer Stein, the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief at Destination I Do Magazine, which can be found in newsstands in all 50 states and 12 countries. She also has a wonderful daily online blog, consults, and custom publishes. Listen as they discuss Morgan’s view on elopement weddings, smaller events, and whether that trend will continue going forward, plus much more on this episode of The Next Level.

Morgan first began by founding Moana Events and Belle Destination Events and then created another element by adding Modern Elopement, for which she is the CEO and Creative Director. Morgan has been called the elopement expert by Destination I Do Magazine and is a planner who started in the elopement brand back in 2015 when she saw a trend for smaller weddings happening, and with COVID, the concept has exploded.

Listen as Jennifer discusses working with Morgan and the spread they did for Destination I Do Magazine. Jennifer talks about Morgan shifting her business to serve those needing smaller weddings and how she wanted to create something where the expectation met the revenue. 

Jennifer believes that smaller weddings are a trend that will continue even post-COVID. With people rethinking where they spend their money, the large, lavish wedding sometimes isn’t as important as having a little extra for something else like buying a house. 

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