There’s a moment in every wedding planner’s career where you realize that saying yes to everything isn’t a growth strategy, it’s a survival trap.
This week’s guest knows that moment well. She’s the founder and CEO of a nationally recognized luxury wedding and event design company, and over 17 years she’s built a brand that is as bold and unapologetic as the events she creates. She’s been published in Martha Stewart Weddings and Brides, spoken on panels alongside the top names in the industry, and cultivated a client roster where people come in as couples and leave as lifelong friends.
But none of it came easy or cleanly.
She launched her business while pregnant, grieving the loss of her mother, and freshly let go from her day job – all within the span of a few months. She rebranded away from national press coverage because she was too embarrassed to say her company name out loud. She’s cried against a venue window over a box of glass blobs. And she’s sat across from clients she knew were wrong for her business and said yes anyway and paid the price every single time.
What she’s built on the other side of all of that is something worth paying attention to.
In this conversation, we get into the business lessons that only come from doing this work at the highest level for nearly two decades – from the client red flags she now catches on the very first call, to the financial habits she wishes she’d started from day one, to the personal boundaries that took years of missed birthdays and lost weekends to finally put in place.
If you’re a wedding planner who wants to build something lasting, something that actually reflects who you are, and something that doesn’t cost you your life in the process, pull up a chair.
This one is for you.
ABOUT OUR GUEST
Laura Ritchie, Principal Designer of Grit & Grace Inc, has over 15 years experience in luxury event design and wedding planning with an emphasis on envelope pushing, experience based wow moments. At the helm of a nationally recognized company, this principal designer loves color, pattern and ensuring that the events are truly a reflection of the client’s story and relays the vibe they are wanting to share with their guests. Leading with kindness and honesty in the first, Laura is a force in the industry and speaks often as a panelist amongst some of the top publications and boards in the industry. This self proclaimed “Make It Happen Captain” is unapologetically herself, designs to the beat of her own drum but prides herself on having people come in as clients, but always leave as friends.
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IN THIS EPISODE, YOU WILL LEARN
05:42 — Working behind the scenes of DC fashion shows in high school and the moment that lit a fire
07:22 — Watching TLC’s A Wedding Story between college classes and the realization that changed her career path
08:17 — Writing a wedding planning company as her senior college business project — and getting an A+
09:58 — What she thought being a business owner would look like versus the reality
10:35 — The three-month window that forced her hand: her mother’s passing, her pregnancy, and losing her day job all at once
12:43 — Why she’s grateful to the person who made her pull the trigger on going full time
13:09 — Networking through an entire pregnancy in sequined dresses and why blind ambition actually worked
16:08 — Finding the words “grit and grace” in her late mother’s diary and what that moment felt like
17:06 — Why she was embarrassed to hand out her original business card — even after national press coverage
18:40 — The decision to rebrand and what it meant to finally have a name she was proud to say out loud
20:40 — The full rebrand rollout: a hot chocolate food truck, gold scissors, and a nine-square Instagram countdown
22:50 — On being your own biggest fan and why apologizing for your website or Instagram is a red flag
23:37 — How her signature maximalist aesthetic evolved and why she stopped second-guessing her creative voice
26:38 — The escort card installations that put her on the map and why she’ll never repeat a single design
28:15 — Why copying a design misses the point — every installation comes from a client’s real story
29:34 — Making the shift from creative to CEO and why delegation is non-negotiable
30:35 — Recognizing what you’re not good at and hiring people who are better than you
31:42 — The employee who stayed for 10 years and what that kind of loyalty actually looks like
33:29 — Building a network of “frienders” — vendors who are also trusted friends — and why it makes every event better
34:56 — Sharing credit with your entire team and why she tags everyone down to the Etsy napkin ring maker
37:13 — What happens internally when something goes sideways on a wedding day
38:45 — The blob story: a Nicaraguan Casablanca wedding, 200 missing glass domes, and a breakdown against a venue window
42:08 — How she solved the blob crisis in real time — and why she still has the box in her office as a reminder
43:18 — Telling the bride the truth after the honeymoon and why honesty is always the right call
46:34 — The business mistake she wishes every new planner could hear before they make it themselves
47:12 — Get a bookkeeper from day one — even when the numbers are small
47:43 — The client red flags she now catches on the very first call — and why she immediately says she’s unavailable
49:55 — Going to therapy over a client relationship and why no contract is worth that cost
50:09 — Don’t let your life pass you by while you’re celebrating everyone else’s milestones
51:16 — The weekends, birthdays, and fifth birthdays she can’t get back — and the boundaries she now holds fiercely
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