Rebecca Grinnals and Kathryn Arce, the wedding industry veterans for more than 20 years, met at the beginning of the 90s at Walt Disney World Resort, where Disney’s fairy tale weddings have grown to $ 100 million a year. “It was a bit like a flash in the shoe for the first time we had a chance to work together,” tents Grinnals tents Businessman. “We had a chance to work together on some really great projects and it was a really formative time.”
Picture Credit: Conducting ENGAGE! Summit. Kathryn Arce, left and Rebecca Grinnals, right.
After Disney, Grinnals and Arce began to consult, they help hotels, resorts and tourist councils around the world to develop their wedding and honeymoon. In this way, the duo discovered an important gap in the field: there was an element that ran to various buyers, suppliers and sellers focused on luxury weddings.
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What if we were able to put them all together in the room and have these truly incredible and meaningful conversations that help support entrepreneurs and small companies that drive the wedding industry? The co -founders thought.
So Grinals and Arce created a conference to do it just: Join! Summit, now a brand with more million dollars.
Credit picture: Corbin Gurkin. Participated! In Paris, 2023.
It was April 2008, when the co -founders decided to proceed forward with their idea on Engage! Summit – and their first conference would be in June. Grinnals and Arce with only six weeks withdrew a one -day event in Orlando’s Delatertion Hotel and leaned on their industrial contacts. Seventy -five people are waiting.
“We were able to invite (celebrity wedding planners) Preston Bailey and Marcy Blum to be our VIP speakers,” recalls Arch. “We also invited Harmony Walton, the founder of the wedding bar to come and provide a certain view of the trends she saw. And then the editor of Target weddings and honeymoon. ”
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This event was a hit. Over the years, Bailey and Blum have opened up about building their own successful and challenges – a relative experience for all in waiting. In the morning after the conference, blogs were waiting for how valuable it was, and said she could wait to wait again.
At that time, Grinals and Arch knew they were the right track. They continue their consulting work and stand up! Summity as a kind of “side dense” for the next decade and organizing one or two events every year to get to know their brand in 2018.
“In many cases (we had one company) to serve the other in a very organic and natural way.”
The co -founders naturally relied on their experience with the industry and took advantage of the possibility of crossover whenever possible to chrp! Summit to Powerhouse, which is today. For example, the Ministry of Tourism on the Cayman Islands was a long -term customer and is hosted! Summit on the Cayman Islands five times.
“In many cases (we had one company) to serve the other in a very organic and natural way,” explains Grinnals. “I think many people who have their business will find ways to do it, so they are absolutely different, but they are able to converge and support each other.”
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The following events held in Mexico and the Caribbean are hired! In 2016, the summits stood up at their first European event in Italy, Puglia, which attracted its most international audience and started years of hosting around the world. Participated! The upcoming event of the summit in Tuscany will mean 48.
During his 17 -year run he hires so far! Summits hosted 43 sold out events for 50 five -star luxury property, with more than 7,500 expectations of 45 countries and 35 countries. The brand also boasts more than 100 million impressions of social media and media.
Picture Credit: Anya Kernes. Participated! In Boca Raton, 2023.
“In principle, the owners of small businesses and need entrepreneurs in the community.”
The conference continues to cultivate an environment in which business owners can personally connect, an opportunity that can be difficult to come in today’s digital time. Virtual connections and social media relationships can be used by network tools, but they are not compensation for those personal conversations, especially for entrepreneurs, they say collaborators.
“Being an entrepreneur is really exciting, but it can also be very isolated,” says Grinnals, “especially when you are sitting in your office all day at zoom, it is so easy to think that everyone else is doing better than you or no one else. Essentially, small, small. Owners of businesses and need community entrepreneurs.
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Wiring! The Summits Event in Tuscany can host a seller from 22 different countries and combine them in one place to speak through challenges and support each other. Because despite the fact that the company owner has expertise, they share one goal: to serve their couples as best they can.
“Being able to go through different scenarios personally with (other business owners are something), we have found that you can replicate and is really invalid in building a successful and strong beneficial business,” adds Grinnals.
“We wanted to dream bigger and better with every event.”
Co -founders encourage aspirating entrepreneurs who have an idea for their own business based on events to maintain their great ambitions, although they seem to be daunting in the first days.
“We are not afraid to ask for things,” says Arce. “We wanted to dream more and better with every event. If you have an idea, map it to your best skills and see how things go. Continue learning, making changes and moving forward. Surround yourself with love and positive people who believe in what you do. There is no limit you can create and dream. ”
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Grinnals agrees and adds that networking networks to create informal “advisory advice or boards” outside your particular business can help you cope as an entrepreneur.
“It’s easy to stay really focused on a person who makes your business type,” explains Grinnals, “but it is really strong to create a network of different people who understand the nuances of your business, but also in a different way and understand (call specific challenges).
This article is part of our Nail Nail Entrepreneur® series that emphasizes stories, challenges and triumphs of the company as a woman
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