“3 Things to Keep in Mind when Collaborating w/ Others”
When collaborating with others the 1st thing that you must always do is ASK QUESTIONS about the event itself. Where do you plan to have this event? How accessible is the venue to your guests? What is your expectations for your event? What is your vision for this event? How many people are you anticipating will attend your event? The answers to these questions will allow you to begin your process of planning. In my case of TASTE OF THE RUNWAY, it was my job to CREATE the BRIDAL SUITE for this event. This has never been done at the TORA DC event, so as a first timer, I wanted the bridal suite to come together beautifully.
After asking questions about the event, the 2nd thing that you NEED to keep in mind when collaborating and working with others is LISTEN to what is being said. Listen to what the producer wants and envisions for their event. Listen to what the producer says about the location, the set-up and the ambiance that they want to create for their event.
Some key items that stuck out to me in creating the BRIDAL SUITE for this show, was the location, the Washington Convention Center, which is a central location and also located in the Nation’s Capital. Another thing that stuck out to me, was the fact that my name, “Stephanie White Events” is on this event so, with that being said I wanted to pull out some of my “preferred vendors” to help me transform and create the bridal suite space at this event. Ultimately at the end of the day, I want people to know that when “Stephanie White Events” plans an event for you, she brings plenty of FLAVOR, ELEGANCE and CLASS to her events! In the case of TORA, the producer of the show gave me plenty of lead-way in terms of how I could create the bridal suite, what vendors I brought in and how the suite would be set-up. This lead-way allowed me to be as creative as I wanted to be. As a Coordinator, I am a visual person and things that are BOLD catch the eye, so that is what I wanted to bring to the BRIDAL SUITE!!!
The 3rd thing that you must keep in mind when collaborating and working with others is always EXECUTE!! The worst thing that a person can do is do all the work and research for an event and on the day of the event, everything becomes a BIG FLOP!!!! Planning and coordinating events can be very stressful, so I always make sure that on the day of the event, I have 1-2 people to help with the set-up and break-down of the event space. If your lucky, the producer of the show will have “Event Volunteers” on the day of the event to help with the event. On the day of the TORA show I had 1 event volunteer and my Assistant to help with the set-up of the bridal suite and with the execution of the Bridal Fashion Show Segment of the Taste of the Runway Washington, DC event; which I was in charge of solidifying the Bridal Gown Vendor (Cherry Blossom Bridal) for the bridal fashion show segment and the models to model the “Bridal Gowns” which were all picked from the Model Casting event for the show. As a whole, because of my ability to ASK QUESTIONS, LISTEN to what is being said and because of my ability to EXECUTE plans, I was able to bring a wonderfully, elegant and sophisticated bridal scene to the Taste of the Runway Washington DC Event!! 
Events, Affairs, Occasions 