Planning the biggest day of your life is only the beginning of your adventure. You simple can not have a wedding without the vendors who team together to make it possible. This is #BeyondThePlanning a series to shoutout the individuals that are making it happen! We interviewed the super talented Nicki Mesenburg founder of Events By Nicki. Very professional and confident, we enjoyed catching up with Nicki, and soon find out why!

When did you get started in weddings?: I started in the event industry as an Event Coordinator for a small restaurant chain back in 2005 - California Cafe in Palo Alto. After that I moved around to different restaurant always in charge of their Business and Social Events.

What were the early days like?: Weddings are timeless. The base model is still the same we just now have so many more was to go when planning!

When did you know you wanted to be a wedding planner?: I knew I wanted to plan events as soon as I completed my first solo wedding! So, around 2006.

Why do brides choose you over others?: I believe you need to hire on how well you get along or “click” with your coordinator. Yes, of course experience and price factor in but if you are not "feeling" it then it's not a good fit.

What questions do you think brides should ask when looking for a planner?: Before they are looking for a planner: They should consider how much help they want and what their budget for a planner/coordinator is.

When interviewing:
Ask what is included and get it in written format.
What is the preferred method of communication?
What is a normal response time to said preferred communication style?

What would you tell brides who don't think they need a planner? What are they missing out on?: Some couples do not need a coordinator. Those couples normally go to the courthouse and out to dinner.

Most couples need at least a day of coordinator to make sure their day runs smoothly. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes things that happen that most people are very unaware of that is until the vendors start coming to the couple to ask them what they should do or how to fix it.

Couples that don’t have a day of coordinator are really missing out on a stress free, fun and organized day!

What's your favorite part of working with brides and grooms?: I love my first-time consultations with my couples. Normally i've only interacted with the main planner until this meeting. I really get to see them in a relatively stress-free meeting and get to see how well they work together. You learn a lot about a couple in 60mins!

What's the most interesting wedding moment you've witnessed?: One wedding went over time and the Italian String lights were running on generators due to the venue being a historic site. The generators ran out of gas and the courtyard went pitch black! At this time, the father of the bride runs (in the dark) to the gift table so no one would steal the money and trips on a brick planter box. That event ended with firetrucks and stitches. I will now always make sure a generator vendor has plenty of extra gas.

15 years later I still have no idea why he thought the guests would steal the card box.

What are the traits of a good planner and what should brides look for?: You need to listen to your clients wants and needs and then you need to be organized!

I always ask my clients to describe to me what their perfect day looks like. I ask them to share their vision boards with me. It is important that I execute what they want, not what I want. We all have different styles and as a planner/coordinator we need to be able to adapt.