August 2015 archive

How much should I budget for invitations? – San Antonio Wedding Consultant

View More: http://limelightsa.pass.us/sonterraWedding Invitations & Printed Budget For San Antonio, Texas

For many brides, they consider the invitation selection to be a very crucial part of tying the entire look, feel and formality into the wedding. The more formal the event, the more formal your invitation should be. This encompasses the type of paper, the way it is printed (thermography, foil, letterpress, engraving, etc.), the size of it, the included items (pocket envelope, ribbon, brooch, enclosure cards, etc.) and the way it is worded (spelling of honour, favour, spelling out dates, etc.).

Invitations are works of art and are a memento of the special occasion that sometimes are framed and kept forever as a remembrance of the day. A lot of time should be spent deciding on the perfect one for you! So, how much should you spend on your invitations? With most, if not all of them, the price depends on how many you purchase. The more you purchase, the less you will spend per invitation. What I mentioned above is also determining factors on the price.

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Option 1: Let’s go with a wedding of 200 guests and an average budget of $25,000-$30,000. I have found that the bride has a smaller budget for invitations and wants to normally stay within a $400 budget. This includes everything: the invitation, RSVP card with return addresses on envelopes and shipping/tax. This bride usually will not have a separate reception card but rather include it on the invitation to save money. She might make it a little more formal by the type of wording she uses on it (a free option).

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Option 2: For the more extravagant wedding with a budget over $40,000 for 200 guests, the bride is wanting to spend a little more for her invitations. I have seen some spend over $2,500. The invitations are very important to this bride and everything from the type of paper and printing process is looked at very carefully. An average amount for invitations would be closer to $800-$1000. She might order the pocket and additional inserts such as the reception and accommodations cards.

So, what about all the other printed items? Here’s a list of what else you could order:

  • Save The Dates
  • Programs
  • Menu Cards
  • Place Cards
  • Thank You Cards
  • Party Invitations – Engagement/Bridal Shower/Bachelorette/Bachelor/Rehearsal Dinner
  • Party Favors – customized boxes, bags, coasters, koozies, matchboxes, & other containers
  • Napkins, banners, tags, stickers, labels, ribbon, etc.

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In the 2015 Wedding Report, the average amount that couples spent on these other items ranged from $83-$119. However, it didn’t list for how many guests. From my own experience with ordering these type of items for my brides, I would say that cost is a little higher in the San Antonio market. Programs, for example, start around $180 for 200.

View More: http://limelightsa.pass.us/sonterra

I’m sure you’re asking yourself, “Are all these other printed items necessary?” It really is based on your preference. Save the dates have become very popular recently and almost all brides are doing them. They want to ensure their guests know way in advance of their special day so they can plan accordingly. Programs are about 50% – half of the brides I have helped have used them. I see either menu cards, place cards or other personalized favors at almost every wedding. Personalized napkins and koozies are very popular as well.

If you have questions about your budget and what you can afford please contact me. If you need help ordering all your printed items I hope you will give me the opportunity to assist you. You can schedule a one-on-one appointment to view invitations in person or you can go to my two online stores and look around there or even purchase them online. When you are ready to order contact me and I can order them for you too! You will receive 10% off your order by going through me! If you use my consulting services as well you will receive 15% off your entire order!  Call me at 210-595-9263 or email at Trudy@RoyaltyEventsPlanning.com. Here’s a link to my invitation page on my website with links to my stores: http://royaltyeventparties.com/services/invitations/

 

How To Start Your Own Children’s Party Planning Business

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My inspiration, my princess…my daughter, Meredith

I’m going to talk a little off topic of wedding planning because I am so proud to have launched my very first e-book just this week! The Secrets To Starting a Profitable and Successful Children’s Party Planning Business was a logic choice for me when I originally decided on the topic of this e-book. The number one question customers and friends always asked was, “How did you start this business?” Back in 2006, I was renting space in a children’s boutique in the Texas hill country where I sold baby items and dancewear for kids. I was a stay-at-home mom, but I have always had that entrepreneurial spirit all my life. After my daughter was born and there were complications at birth, I eventually quit my full-time job so I could spend more time with her doing therapies, teaching her, taking her to doctor visits, music classes, gym time, and whatever else I could do for her. I had to learn everything I could in the special needs field and become her advocate. I bought a monogramming machine and started making baby items which led me into that boutique.

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One day, I noticed there was an empty space in the boutique and I asked the owner what she was going to do with that space. She told me that she was thinking of having girls come into the store and have tea parties and celebrate birthdays there. That is what gave me the idea initially, but my idea was to go to the customer’s party location and host parties there myself. I started searching online and found a company in California that was selling their business and I ended up purchasing it from them. It didn’t have everything I needed but a nice portion. I did learn that I needed so much more and started researching extensively trying to find the best deals at the highest quality. I wanted to set myself apart from the competition and have my parties very detailed and upscale, but at an affordable price to the customer.

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This way of thinking along with my excellent customer service were essential for the success of my business year after year. I became the top provider for princess parties in my area and as my business grew my party options did as well. I first launched the princess party theme, which has always been my number one party option. Shortly after, I added glamour parties, spa parties, fairy parties, stuff-a-bear parties, Girl Scout program parties, Mops’ teas, baby showers, and lastly, the Glam-To-Go Mobile party option.

It was so rewarding to see all these girls so excited to meet a princess and when they said to their mom, “Can I have a party just like his?” It put a smile on my face. I truly loved my job!

You won’t believe this, but I actually hosted the parties all by myself when I first started. That entailed packing for the party, setting it up, hosting it, cleaning it up and then cleaning it more when I got home. When I finally did hire an assistant I told myself, “Why didn’t I do this long ago!” You need help! Trust me.

IM000631.JPGSo, getting back to my daughter. This job was perfect for my needs at the time. I was with her working from home during the week and then went to the parties on the weekends while my husband was home. It started off as a great part-time job. As she got older and most everything I could do for her was in place, I had more time that I could spend in the business so I expanded. I hired more employees and I had enough party items where I could do two parties at one time. Doing the princess visits worked well, too. I just had to purchase more costumes. I was doing anywhere from 3-5 parties a weekend then. This job really is what you put into it. At the end, I had hosted over 850 parties!

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You can make a lot of money and in my e-book I go into detail about all my secrets that I learned as I started and grew my business. All the hardwork is done for you and I tell you step-by-step what you need to do with the minimal amount of money to start and run this business. I give you money making ideas that I implemented and also ideas for your marketing plan. I knew exactly where I needed to advertise for the least amount of money to get the leads you want.

If you have been thinking of starting your own children’s party planning business this is the e-book for you. I focused on general business practices you need to know and then went into detail on my princess party option. In my next e-book I will go into detail on my other party options I had. I am working on it right now and can’t wait to share it with you.

If you would like to purchase this e-book please go to my e-book page on my website and click on the buy button. If you need a one-on-one consultation about your business please feel free to contact me for more information. I would love to help you! Trudy Scott, 210-595-9263 or Trudy@RoyaltyEventsPlanning.com.