Behind The Scenes: A Life of a Vendor

Quite a while ago, I wrote a post about what it's like to be on the vendor side of the fence when it comes to wedding planning and executing. Since that time, my career path has changed pretty drastically. I am now a full-time Wedding and Event Coordinator for a local catering company. The account that the company is contracted for is one of the larger colleges in the Pittsburgh area and the venue at the college holds between 50-70 weddings a year. If you're thinking, "but there are only fifty-two weeks in a year, you dope," I am here to tell you that Friday and Sunday weddings are definitely A Thing in this region. 

I love my job and it's kind of a dream come true for me. When my friends will ask me what all my job entails, my short, jokey answer is, "I plan shit and tell people what to do." The response is almost always, "that is perfect for you." It wasn't until fairly recently though, through communication with BM Y, that it hit me: I'm a vendor. 

Since that thought took place, I've been sort of writing this post in my head. I thought that it might be helpful for those in the planning stages to have a sort of behind-the-scenes glimpse into what a vendor does for your wedding. Mr. Palm Tree consistently comments that he would never think to inquire about so many of the things that I handle on a daily basis, but he would expect them to be done. 

Advice from the Other Side

I currently hold down a part-time second job with a local catering company - we'll call it ABC Co. for the purposes of this post (so original, right?). ABC Co. is contracted for events throughout the city, even though it's exclusive to some main large venues.

I don't really have a title at this job - I kind of do everything. Set-up, tear-down, bartend, serve, clean, labor. . .the works. This company is fierce and I freaking love it.

I was really excited to start this job as a bride-to-be because I knew it'd allow to me to firsthand witness a ton of behind-the-scenes goodies. The planning, the execution, the delivery, all of it. This might sound a little Captain Obvious but folks, so.much.work goes into even a basic happy hour-styled networking event. Weddings, as you might imagine, are a whole other ballgame.

Maybe I'm the only one who borderline obsessively ponders the behind-the-scenes action? (Like, are they touching my food with their bare hands right now? Are they cursing me for my specific instructions or are they thanking me for being so thorough?), but working on the other side of events has provided me with a wealth of clarity and knowledge. Granted, I am event- and planning-minded, so I'm sure that helps keep my interest piqued. Also, prior to my first Big Girl job post-college, I had put in about 7 years of experience within the food service industry, so I'm sure that's a factor, too. Regardless, I figured it couldn't hurt to share a few tips. . .of course, these are my personal tips and in no way am I speaking on official behalf of ABC Co. and of course, every event, company, individual, etc. is different. These are just general things I've picked up on during my time as a Catering Assistant (has a nice ring to it, right?).

personal photo | I'm super proud of my skillz as a dessert arranger (another hat I wear at this job) so I'll show these pictures throughout the post. Although I do not bake the desserts, I work Ze Magic and get them to look this awesome.