5 minute read
The Entertainment Expert
Planning the perfect event can be a daunting task, but luckily, with help from Lexington Event Company, you can take all the stress out of planning and sit back and enjoy yourself with friends and family!
Kaelyn Query, founder and CEO of Lexington Event Company as well as My Wedding Planner KY, has been working in the hospitality industry since high school, when she started her first business through an internship at Henry Clay. Since then, Kaelyn has been producing events across the country, from conferences to trade shows, festivals, and fundraisers, to weddings, social events, and more.
More than just social events, Lexington Event Company also works with clients to produce corporate events. Ranging in scope, scale and size, LEC works with clients across the U.S. to plan, promote and produce events of any kind. Conferences, meetings, trade shows, internal events, sales kick offs, experiential events, incentives trips, whatever your business needs! Additionally, My Wedding Planner KY works with clients to plan and produce weddings and wedding related events.
When Kaelyn’s not planning fabulous events, you can find her engaging in the Central Kentucky community, where she sits on the board for Commerce Lexington, the Fayette Education Foundation, Lexington Children’s Theatre, College of Communications Dean’s Leadership Council at UK, and many more. Kaelyn may be kept on her toes most of the time, but she always makes time for the things she loves, like her wife Molly, and their son, as well as traveling, cooking, and of course, entertaining guests and loved ones.
Now, join us as we learn Kaelyn’s tips and tricks for planning the perfect party!
5 Expert Tips When Planning an Event:
Budget - This is true with any event of any size. Creating your budget document in the beginning is crucial to a successful event. That way you don’t feel “pinched” as the event draws near, and you can identify what areas are most important and should get a bigger chunk of your budget. You should give heavier weight to things like venue (if applicable), food & beverage, entertainment, and decor.
Theme - Once you have the budget nailed down, the theme should be the next step. This really determines a lot of things, and the creativity involved is what gets me most excited! You can theme your menu, your decor, request for guests to dress in theme, and so much more! This can carry through from the moment you invite your guests (in whatever way that happens) through the last bite during your event.
Keep it Simple - When planning an event, you want to keep as much of it as simple as possible. That doesn’t mean that you don’t pay attention to the details - but every single detail can’t be the most intricate “thing”, it’s a recipe for disaster. Keep things simple... flawless execution goes a long way.
WOW Factor - If everything else is “keeping it simple”, we always encourage our clients to have one “wow factor” within the event. Whether it be a really nice invitation suite, unexpected entertainment, over-thetop decor, or an interactive tasting menu that is exquisite - think about your event and your guests, and pick one thing that gives your attendees that “wow” effect.
Trust Your Team - We always tell our clients to hire professionals, and trust them to do their job. If you hire the right people, they can take the heavy lifting off of your plate which makes the planning and execution process so much less stressful. I am a professional event planner and I put together elaborate parties for our son’s birthday. Each year, I hire a team of professionals to help bring our vision to life. I give them the theme parameters, a loose idea of what I am looking for, and a budget - and I let them make magic happen. And they do, every single time.
When planning an event, Kaelyn and her team pride themselves on their philosophy of the 5 E’s, to ensure a flawless experience for all.
Entertain our guests, and their guests. Our clients get to show up, mingle and enjoy their event, and leave when it’s over. We do the rest.
Exceed clients’ expectations. Our clients have a budget, a vision, a mission – and it’s our goal to bring that to life, and then some.
Enhance the community around us. We always seek to give back to the community that helped us grow into the company we are. We are very engaged with local non-profit groups and try to do our part to contribute to the fabric of Lexington and central Kentucky.
Engage the community. We do this by supporting and sourcing local, striving to make events as waste free as possible, and more. No matter the city we are working in, we always try to make our impact big, and our footprint low. Effect everyone around us through our events, or theirs. We always want to leave a lasting impression, and we hope to create and provide that for our clients and their guests.
Kaelyn Query, Founder + CEO
