We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Michelle Norwood a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Michelle, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you share a story that illustrates an important or relevant lesson you learned in school
My school journey is an odd one, however, one that has definitely shaped my into the person that I am today. I attended 11 different schools over 12 years, insert shock and aw.
I met and experienced many different people of different, cultures, races and economic background. I can converse with everyone and that is because, I was forced to early in life. Truly the best life lesson I could have every learned.
While people often ask was it sad, I honestly knew no difference, so it was normal to me.
This forced me to to be an extrovert as I was always the new girl in the class. This while strange to other taught me many life lessons that definitely assisted in growing a successful career, brand and business. .
Michelle, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Who I am and what I do are really one and the same. Professionally, I am a destination wedding and event planner and designer, and luxury travel ambassador. Personally, I am a romantic, oenophile, and culinary connoisseur. I have an insatiable appetite for life; celebrating all stages of it from the little things to the grandiose.
With twenty years of building out bespoke intimate affairs and boisterous celebrations with an eclectic clientele, I am honored to be named in Harper’s Bazaar “Top Wedding Planners in the World” list, featured in Vogue, the New York Times, Martha Stewart Weddings, and BRIDES. However, the most heartwarming reviews come from my clients.
I take only six to eight weddings per year to assure my services are truly wraparound: from the first phone call to the last sip of champagne. I get to know my clients. We are kindred spirits and often share a zest for food, music, art, cocktails, culture, style and all things intrinsically good. Above all, we believe love is worth celebrating.
As a NOLA native, authenticity and passion have been my greatest influence. The city thrives on it. Jazz echoes through French corridors of every street, friendly smiles meet you from each direction, and the smell of culinary genius fills the air. Senses are tantalized. It’s entertaining and it’s real. That genuine nature is something I wanted to translate to my work.
When cultivating relationships or designing signature spaces, I do not strive to differentiate myself. Instead, I lean into who I am and who my clients are. I uncover their stories and background to inspire the celebration and, together, we build a custom experience. While my personal touch is identifiable, each event is unique. At the end of the day, what I really do is get to know people on a soulful level, listen wholeheartedly, and reflect what I see back to them through experiential design.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
I was fortunate enough to self fund my business. Coming from corporate America, I had a substantial 401K to fall back on and went straight from my desk job to running my own business full time.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
The ability to feature past events in main stream media. Which lead to some pretty big media sources naming my company as the top planner in the world. It has been and exciting journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://michellenorwood.com/meet-michelle
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michellenorwoodevents/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michellenorwoodevents/
- Linkedin: https://www.pinterest.com/michellenorwoodweddings/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/michellenevents
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/michellenorwoodweddings/
Image Credits
Mo Davis Photography