Create with ANNA WANG

EP17 Directing tips for your wedding reception by Dion Woo by Anna Wang

EP18 Wedding photography tips by Sam from PHAO Photography by Anna Wang

EP19 Photobooths are still the best wedding entertainment value by Anna Wang

Welcome to episode 16 where we sit down with Poonam from The Maharani Diaries to talk all about South Asian weddings. She has a very interesting story and transformation from being a scientist turn wedding blogger. Her own struggles being an Indian bride is what catapulted her onto this path of now building an online community and directory for South Asian brides on themaharanidiaries.com . It was a series of adventures she shared with her husband that took her from Melbourne to Ireland, then to London at the epicentre of huge South Asian weddings where she was able to explore the wedding industry there. When her husband landed his job in Sydney, she saw it as an opportunity to grow her market here and we are super lucky to have her. Poonam shares all about the challenges South Asian brides have and how The Maharani Diaries aims to support brides in the process. We know the struggles all too well having dealt with many South Asian weddings ourselves and trying to strike the balance right between Western and Eastern cultures. If you are planning on having a South Asian wedding, this is the perfect podcast for you to tune into as Poonam offers some invaluable insights. You can find her on her website themaharanidiaries.com, on Facebook The Maharani Diaries or Instagram @themaharanidiaries

Glenda and David have been long time friends of ours - we actually styled their wedding since back when we were based in Liverpool. We became instant friends because they just resonate so well with us from planning their wedding day and over the years. Since getting married and having their son Orlando, they decided they wanted to take on their own business ventures so they could leave their jobs and be able to create more time for each other. Glenda has started her own online retail business called Lumia Professional for all you makeup artists and beauty junkies out there. The Lumia light is different to the standard ring lights that are quite stiff. Lumia lighting is brighter with 360 adjustable arms that is perfect for lashing, brows, tattooing and makeup applications. Our listeners even get 15% off when they type in the code ANNA WANG - jump on it! David is a salesman for Mercedes Benz and also the most supportive partner who has allowed Glenda to take on this big project. On the sideline, they also have their own partnership in a baby hamper business that provides new parents with the essentials they don't realise they need until they have it. They have some really amazing products like the Benny nasal aspirator that attaches to a vacuum and just sucks everything out. This would have been life changing for us to have with our girls. You can find them on Instagram @hampermybaby Glenda and David amaze us both being working parents, having a clingy child and still managing to juggle everything. It is inspiring to hear their story and their why. Thank you both (and Orlando) for sitting down to chat with us about your awesome business ventures and family life. We look forward to seeing where it takes you both.

Fred is a man of many talents. Originally an accountant, his love of fireworks propelled him into the world of corporate and events fireworks and the start of his business Sydney Fireworks & Pyrotechnics. Fred never set out to do wedding fireworks but it become a growing niche in the industry. The latest craze that took off for him is the CO2 gun. That's what we love about Fred is that he never stops continuing to grow and innovate. He recently acquired StarLight Chandeliers and doubled the entire range. With all this going on, we wonder how he does it all and juggle his family life on top. Fred shares all his tips on safety measures you should take into consideration when looking for a supplier for fireworks at your wedding or event. He also shares some challenges that comes to play on the day of the wedding with tips on scheduling and why you should have a professional MC. Having worked with him ourselves, we can assure you that Fred always delivers quality and exceptional service. With the prospects of a new showroom space, we know that Sydney Fireworks and Starlight Chandliers is going to continue growing and bringing more to the table. Exciting things are in store! Listen on for all of Fred's valuable insights, or find him and his services at: https://www.sydfireworks.com.au https://www.starlightchandeliers.com.au

Picture this, you’ve just spent thousands of dollars on beautiful floral centrepieces in your wedding venue. In daylight, it looks like a magical garden but come evening time, the venue just has their normal lights on and it just looks unflattering. As important as the styling, lighting is an essential element to creating the right ambience and atmosphere for your wedding night or event. In episode #13, we sat down to talk to Peter from Showtime Promotions & Productions who we’ve had the pleasure of working with for a long time in the industry, alongside his business partner Ash. So many of our clients don’t know about the importance of having an audio visual production company as part of the event. It’s not just about the lighting - Showtime also provide us with all our rigging, truss and production infrastructure for our ceiling installations, too. Peter talks to us about how he got started in the business, what they do and the highlights of working in the industry. He also shares about establishing business partnership roles and responsibilities and the different career opportunities available within the field. What our clients need to know is that there needs to be a budget set aside for lighting and production as well. Much like the mise en scene in film, events work in the same way – every component contributes to the overall vibe and outcome of the event. We are so proud to be working with Showtime. They have a display room in Moorebank where you can visit them, or you can find them on their website www.show-pro.com.au or check out their work on Instagram @show_pro

In this podcast, Anna sits down and talks to Ganasri and her mum from Sai Garlands about traditional Sri Lankan and Indian weddings. We find cultural weddings so fascinating and so much fun. Did you know it could take up to 1.5 hours to make a traditional garland? Ganasri and her husband Neil were clients of ours, who have become good friends of ours. Ganasri was inspired by her mum, being 1st generation immigrant having the courage to set up her own business making gorgeous garlands. We ask Ganasri’s mum how she got started in the business and we’re so inspired by her story, too. Ganasri helps her mum with garlands on the weekends which is a bit more creative than her usual day job as an engineer. She is passionate about helping other brides coordinate their weddings as there is a lot that happens in traditional ceremonies that people should be aware of. We talk about planning, coordinating and everything involved including fire pits and “bringing the groom in” traditions. We love this mother-daughter duo and it is beautiful to see how the business has allowed them extra bonding time. If you would like to know more about Sai Garlands, you can visit their website saigarlands.com or follow them on social media: Instagram - @saigarlands Facebook - Sai Garlands

I sit down with Saul from Ebony and Ivory Entertainment to talk about how he and his business partner Jesse got started in the entertainment industry, not only in weddings but also pubs, hotels and other venues. Saul is such a pleasure to work with and Ebony & Ivory are one of our favourite bands to recommend because they are so talented. The great thing about Saul is that he is also a sound engineer so we know to expect quality and our clients are always happy with them as the band of choice at their wedding. I really enjoyed our chat and highly recommend Saul and his band for anyone looking for a band to perform at their wedding and other events. You can check them out on Facebook and on their website: http://www.ebonyandivoryentertainment.com/

Some of you know that my husband, Bailey, used to own a wedding photography and cinematography studio for a number of years so we've seen the incredible work that goes behind the scenes to document wedding. As the only wedding vendor that stays with the client all day (and after the wedding) my hat's off to these story tellers. We reached out to Rishi and Kanav of Rolling Canvas to share their journey as visual story tellers of cultural weddings. Pop over to their website https://www.rollingcanvas.com.au/

Great tips from one of Sydney's best Master of Ceremony Jessica Kalalo! Main take away is get the right Master of Ceremony as it'll make so much of a difference to the running and mood of your function. Small world; my husband Bailey, was Jessica's secondary photographer for her wedding several years ago!

Do wedding magazines still have a place in our industry that thrives on social media platforms? Call me old school but I still love feeling paper and smelling the ink and it's something raw and beautiful about being able to pick up a magazine to read. It's a great pass time that I rarely do, but when I do I'm so entranced that I'm in the delightful world of weddings. Wanting to re-connect with this I reached out to Victoria Black, owner of Wildfire Publishing and ModernWedding. Whilst they've been heavily investing and growing their online presence for years now, they still have some print - so it was so good to hear about her reflection of the industry, print and business in general. After all they've been in business for a very long time!

On Episode 7, Zena from Elegant Tea Time shares how she saw a niche in the wedding and event industry, to introduce prop hires for the industry - she's literally propping up the industry! I am drawn to the elegant design elements that they've been introducing because they're great to work with and it keeps things creative and fresh.

This one is close to my heart because I love hearing the few people in society who truly champion causes the impact communities. I love hearing the drive to create conversation that is positive and inspire others to better themselves. Dai Le is one those tremendous women Bailey and I met years ago, over a decade if I recall. Her passion to highlight the challenges that migrants have in Sydney South West, and becoming a platform for businesses out there. She challenged the pro-quo in local and federal politics; and in showing her commitment to women in politics, migrant voice and incredible passion for Sydney South West, she made a dent in politics out that region. All on top of being a a survivor of breast cancer.

Wedding celebrants are often thought as the person that only prompts couples to say "I do" on the wedding day, but there is so much more behind the mystique of this member of the industry. It's actually much more involved with laws that govern the steps and paperwork to ensure couples are legally married, and that's pretty important to get right! You wouldn't want to find out down the track your marriage is invalid because your celebrant missed a step or two. So I reached out to bring on a celebrant who knows all too well the requirements and work involved just to get you to the stage of saying "I do". Lillian Lyon has literally trained thousands of marriage celebrants so she was the perfect person to share her experience of preparing couples to say "I do", and what to look for if you're thinking about joining the profession.

Episode #4, Rachel from The White Collection talks with me about building a niche startup in the wedding industry, She details the lengths of sourcing bridal shoes from overseas and the challenges of competing against the established online and brick-and-motors retailers - all on top of having a young family and a consulting job.

Episode #3, I have the Venue Manager of SILVER PEARL Venues, Hanh. Some of you may be familiar with this project Bailey and I just recently completed where we completely transformed their business and venue. Pop over to https://www.silverpearl.com.au/designing-silver-pearl

Episode #2 is an intimate conversation with you on how I started the business, literally grew into it from servicing a need for my bestie, Kat!

Episode #1, I'm sharing the my first episode with the husband and wife team, Tarek and Jade, from ANEMOTION Photography and Film, who share their passion for weddings and building a business in the wedding industry.