We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Arianna Peffer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Arianna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

One of the most meaningful projects that I’ve worked on was a wedding that I coordinated this past April. It was one of my first weddings that I started planning after I moved from California to East Tennessee, and little did I know that it was not only going to be the start of an amazing planning experience, but a life long friendship as well!

I took the wedding about a year out from their date, and we jumped into weekly planning meetings. Throughout our meetings we also bonded over our crazy work schedules, and quickly became each other’s support system. They would even send me sweet notes over Venmo to get a coffee during the wedding season!

At the end of their perfect wedding day we all shared some tears over the thought of not having our weekly meetings, but promised to keep in touch over Instagram. Now I get to watch their life together as newlyweds unfold, as they are now expecting their first baby next year! While their wedding itself may have only been one day, the memories and the life that they had planned together started on that very day that I helped plan. Which is just a sweet little reminder of why I chose this career in the first place.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

I first started my career in the event industry 6 years ago as a banquet server for a winery out in Temecula, California. Within a few months I was able to move up to Event Sales Coordinator, and the rest is history!

I think what has set me apart from others in the industry is the time that I have spent behind the scenes with different vendors. I’ve worked in kitchens, bars, photography / videography offices, venues and now personal coordinating. I also went to California State University San Marcos to become a certified wedding coordinator. It was during these classes that I was given the opportunity to work one-on-one with the best Planners, Venue Owners, DJs, Caterers, Photographers and Rental companies in the business. This really opened my eyes to the needs of each vendor on event day, and how to best serve them and my couples throughout the planning process.

I think what I am most proud of is my ability to jump at every opportunity that has come my way, even when it scares the day lights out of me. If you were to have told me at 22 years old that my days of washing dishes would turn into becoming a featured wedding coordinator in East Tennessee, I would’ve never believed you!

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My particular goal or mission that drives my creative journey is to help continuously improve upon the experience that I provide for my clients and fellow vendors.

They say that you need to spend 10,000 hours doing something before you can become an expert at it. Which I’m sure is scientifically accurate, however, I truly believe that we can never stop learning and growing in our professions.

In fact, I think the moment that we stop taking the opportunities to learn is the moment that we start to fail, not only ourselves but our clients as well. If you truly want to be the best, then you need to continuously learn and evolve to offer the best to those around you.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson that I had to unlearn was my mindset of wanting to do it all, all the time. When you’re just starting out in any career I feel that you have this natural desire to be able to say yes to everything. In doing this, it caused me to experience a major burn out within my first 2 years.

So I had to unlearn this desire of doing it all and teach myself that it was ok to say no. It was ok to set healthy boundaries with my clients, and set aside time for a life outside of my career.

In turn I noticed that in the designated times I gave to my clients I was able to give them the best of myself, and my experiences and events became much more successful and enjoyable.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.customlovegifts.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arianna_customlove/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arianna-peffer-914738153

Image Credits
Brittany Sloan Photography, Jennifer Cody Photography, Josie Brooks Photography, Lions Creative Media, Nelya Photography, Within The Pines Photography and Bethany Repress Photography