Listen to the Podcast About Modern Love Events
Podcast Summary
In a recent Eventful Endeavors podcast, Matt Loewenstein sat down with Ginger Slisher, a young dynamos in the Indiana wedding planning industry and the new owner of Modern Love Events. The discussion started off with Ginger sharing her excitement about her new role within the company.
After three and a half years of working with Erica, the previous owner, Ginger seized the chance to purchase the business when Erica adopted motherhood and pursued different endeavors. Ginger spoke about the thrilling challenge of managing the already booked weddings while planning to expand Modern Love Events to her hometown area, Rochester, South Bend, and other locales within a two-to-three hour drive.
The unique aesthetic of the Modern Love Events brand is what caught Matt’s attention – a visual charm that stood out from other wedding planning websites. Ginger shed light on how Modern Love Events established their distinctive style during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic. She noted how the pandemic inadvertently offered a new perspective for wedding celebration, diverging from the traditional norms.
Ginger emphasized the company’s commitment to becoming more than just wedding planners to their clients. Their approach is establishing a personal rapport with clients to guide them in making decisions, becoming their wedding day besties for a memorable celebration.
From the energetic discussion, it’s evident that Modern Love Events under Ginger’s guidance is prepared to introduce an invigorating vibe to the Indiana wedding planning scene, providing unparalleled customer-friendly services.
Learn more about
Modern Love Events
This interview was provided by
Felix and Fingers Dueling Pianos
Podcast Transcript
Felix And Fingers (00:24)
All right, what’s going on everybody? Welcome back to Eventful Endeavors podcast. I’m Matt from Felix and Fingers and today we’ve got Ginger Slisher from Modern Love. Ginger, what’s going on?
Ginger (00:40)
excited to be here.
Felix And Fingers (00:42)
Sweet. So with a little bit of my research, saw that you are new to your position. Can you tell me about some things that you’re most excited about in terms of what you’ll be doing to make your own personal impact on the Indianapolis and Indiana wedding planning scene at large? We’re getting right into it. No warmups.
Ginger (01:06)
Yeah. Yeah. So, I worked for Erica for about three and a half years, and then she ended up having a baby and decided she wanted to pursue some different endeavors. So I had the opportunity to purchase the company. So very exciting. Been through a lot of different changes over the past month, trying to get everything situated, but, this year keeping things pretty much the same as how she was doing them. we already had several weddings booked, so.
I’m continuing on with those clients and then definitely just looking to expand. So Erica was based out of Indianapolis. I did a ton of weddings in Indy. I’m still doing weddings in Indy, but I’m actually from Rochester. So about an hour and a half north of Indy. So I’m also open to kind of expanding into like that South Bend.
L car area, I guess, if you will, and anything in between. do Fort Wayne, Lafayette, pretty much anything that’s in like a two to three hour drive.
Felix And Fingers (01:56)
Yeah.
Awesome, that’s exciting. That must be really exciting for you and congratulations.
Ginger (02:07)
Thank you.
Felix And Fingers (02:08)
So yeah, 100%. So when I was sort of scrolling the internet, feeling out different wedding planners and places that I might want to reach out to, what immediately jumped out about your brand was the aesthetic of the website and sort of the vibe of the atmosphere you’re trying to cultivate for your clients and the weddings you’re trying to put on. I was immediately like,
drawn in by that and interested in that and it just felt unique and different to everything else I saw in the scope of the wedding planning world. So could you tell me a little bit about how you carved out that kind of style and vibe and what that means to you and what maybe sort of that means for your business and the type of people you work with?
Ginger (02:57)
Yeah, so when Modern Love events started, it was kind of in the heart of the COVID pandemic. So having a wedding was a little bit different than what people were typically used to. Moods were kind of down in the dumps. We weren’t able to celebrate with as many people as what we wanted. So I think that definitely kind of put a different vibe to the business and the services that we offered. But as we’ve kind of moved through the COVID pandemic and we’re back to like more of a traditional wedding setting, if you will,
it’s just, we’re finding with our clients that having a wedding now is very different than what it was when their parents were getting married. And so it can be very difficult to kind of navigate that. you go to your mom for everything. She’s always full of great advice, but she doesn’t get it. When she got married, they had mints and peanuts and that.
that was what they did. They might not have even had a full dinner. So we’re really cultivating that culture of like, we are your wedding day besties. We are here for you. We’re more than just a planner or coordinator. Like we want to be your friend. We want to be on the same page. We want to help you make those decisions. And that just helps us make your day that much more special because then when we run into issues on the day of
We already kind of know how to anticipate those. know what your gut reaction would be or what your suggestion would be to fix the problem without having to bother you.
Felix And Fingers (04:28)
Pretty sweet. Thank you for sharing that. So now I want to kind of get into some more specifics. Can you tell me about some of your best and worst experiences with live entertainment and music for your weddings and also sort of what it is that you look for when a couple is leaning on you to help them navigate their music?
Ginger (04:51)
Yeah, definitely. think music is probably the number one, like most important piece of the wedding. Like when you get all of these people there, you’re spending all of this money to feed them, to have the beautiful decorations. But if people don’t feel the vibe, they’re not going to stay. And the music is what kind of draws people in and keeps them there all night. So I definitely put a focus on, like, if you’re trying to figure out what to do with your budget.
definitely put an emphasis on your DJ, your music provider. We have seen live music at several of our events and it really is like, it’s an elevation. Like the DJs are great, but live music, just, I don’t know, like having somebody there that’s kind of doing it with you, it just kind of brings a different ambiance, I think.
It makes people more engaged. I think it’s more fun and exciting because it’s different. Like you can go, you know, anywhere and play music or go to a bar that has a DJ. But kind of having that live music is just, it’s a different culture.
Felix And Fingers (06:01)
Cool. Yeah, I mean, of course, coming from the music side, I naturally feel the same way, but it’s cool to see the type of impact that music, live music especially, will have at these weddings, especially for me and my background of just being a musician. And then in the last couple of years, getting into the wedding space and event space and seeing it’s just a really, it’s a really different animal. You know, you have to treat it differently. And, but it is amazing the reaction you can get and how memorable it can help to make.
the experience.
Ginger (06:32)
Yeah, definitely.
Felix And Fingers (06:34)
So how do you feel now that you’re branching out to South Bend, that type of area from just in the, do you feel like it’s the same across the board? Do you feel like the clients are sometimes different? Do feel like you have to sort of present yourself and what you’re doing in a different way or is it just all the same across the board?
Ginger (06:56)
I think it’s pretty similar across the board. I feel like in the indie area, even just being such a diverse community, like we have had all kinds of different couples. And so I think the clientele that we’re running into are definitely similar. the most like different or exciting thing, I guess, is to see the different venues because every venue is different.
And obviously we have ones in Indy that we’ve worked at several times. And so it’s kind of fun to branch out and get to see the different spaces and with different spaces, you can have different event flows and just all kinds of things that make the experience unique.
Felix And Fingers (07:37)
Do you feel, just in your own personal preference, because Indianapolis and Indiana at large has so many different avenues you could take for how you wanna do your wedding, do you have one you specifically feel like is always best? Like a barn wedding, a downtown building, like you know, could go so many routes in the greater Indianapolis area with how you wanna do a wedding. So do you have sort of one that’s your?
go to that you feel like you just crush it the best at or are you down just for all of them?
Ginger (08:11)
down for all of them. think it really depends on, on the couple and even more so like your guests, like the day is about you as the bride and groom, but you also want to make sure that your guests are having an enjoyable experience and that they’re going to want to stay all night long. and so with that, like, if you have a lot of guests that are traveling from out of town, then having one at a hotel so that way people can just stay there and they don’t have to worry about getting a drive.
like a ride home is super nice. I’ve seen the barn weddings, the Elkhart area has like a ton of barns, like that’s like all that’s up there. So that is definitely beautiful for fall weddings. If they’re not AC, not great for summer weddings, you don’t want your guests to be out there sweating. But then there’s a lot of like the more industrial and like modern and classic
type of venues that are becoming a lot more popular. And there’s just, yeah, there’s so many things you can do. You can have an outdoor ceremony, indoor ceremony, just all kinds of things. So it’s really up to what vision I think the bride and groom have and then what kind of venue accommodates their guests the best.
Felix And Fingers (09:25)
Cool, that’s awesome. think in what you described as the way things are sort of post-COVID in the wedding world, you have to be flexible to do whatever the couple in the situation calls for. So like you said, wedding day bestie. I think that’s a cool lane you guys have chosen. And it’s just really exciting. So from, I don’t know, five, 10 years ago,
Did you see yourself here now?
Ginger (09:54)
I mean, it was always something that I wanted to do. Did I ever think that I would be here? Not necessarily. I don’t know, like growing up, every girl, you know, dreams about their wedding and, yeah, I always thought it would be cool like to work in a bridal store or something like that. And then,
When I went to college, had seen like one of my friends had been doing the social media for Modern Love and she had shared something on her story. And I was like, my gosh, like, do you work for somebody that does that? And so she kind of connected me and I got to do my first wedding and I just fell in love with it. I’m a very type A person. So some people are like, like, why would you want to do that? Like, isn’t that so stressful to like be in charge of somebody’s
perfect day that they’re probably only going to have one time in their life. And it is stressful, but it’s also like, it’s so cool. Like there’s just nothing like it. It’s, it’s the best day of people’s lives for the most part. And so being able to be part of that and to help them bring their vision to life is just such a unique opportunity.
Felix And Fingers (11:01)
That’s a great perspective. Do you have any specific memories of times where there were hiccups or curve balls that caused potential problems, but you thought on your feet and saved the day?
Ginger (11:14)
Yeah, definitely with outdoor ceremonies, they can be very tricky, but we have a lot of brides that are like very dead set, like I’m getting married outside. So I know last year we had one and it just like, absolutely like the radar looked terrible. We were like, it’s going to rain. It’s going to be terrible. Like what do you want to do? And she was like, no, like I want to get married outside. And we were like, okay, let’s pivot.
So we had the cocktail hour before the ceremony and that like hour of cocktail time was just long enough to kind of let the rain pass. The lightning stopped. We were able to run out, get the ceremony done in like 30 minutes and then get everybody back inside before it cut loose. So there’s just all kinds of things, whether the table linens came in and they’re squares instead of circles. And we got to improvise or
The decorations broke on the way there. There’s just all kinds of things, but we try to make it as seamless as possible and the least amount of stress as possible.
Felix And Fingers (12:22)
So what type of impact would you say your specific role and modern love at large has made or is making on the Indianapolis and Indiana market? what would you say is your specific thumbprint on that sort of scene?
of wedding events and planners.
Ginger (12:48)
I would just say like making, making our bride and grooms feel the best that they can, like going into their wedding day. you just see like so many couples that are like stressed out going into their wedding day or it’s like, like I need to decorate the venue before I get my hair and makeup done. Or they have family that are like setting out the cupcakes and things like that. And so like we’re able to just like kind of do those things behind the scenes so that.
everybody is able to enjoy the day. And we’re also like a LGBTQ friendly vendor. And so I think that’s been a really big thing for us too. Because when you’re in that community, it can be very difficult to kind of navigate, especially if you’re not planning on having a traditional wedding. It can be difficult to find vendors that are able to kind of adjust to that.
because they’re used to doing the bouquet toss and the garter toss and things in a specific way in a specific order. But we are open to clients, all clients, and that’s helped us to have a lot more unique experiences as wedding planners. I think, I know we haven’t seen it all, but it feels like we’ve seen it all. Like everyone is different. There’s always a curve ball. There’s always a different way of doing things. And so,
That’s so cool for us, like to be so open-minded and to be able to just roll with whatever’s thrown at us and figure out how to incorporate it into the day to make everything still run as smoothly as possible.
Felix And Fingers (14:17)
Yeah, that’s cool. And I could kind of just pick up on that from, you know, us talking and what I saw on your website. I think you guys do a really good job of, you know, making that clear just off the jump with your sort of branding and everything. So getting back to music a little bit, you had mentioned that, you know, it’s very important and it can really uplift the event. So how often are couples coming to you?
saying what should we do for music.
Ginger (14:46)
honestly, I don’t think that we get that question a lot just because I think everybody is starting to realize that music is super important. And so like the venue is the number one thing you have to have the venue, you have to have the date. And then I feel like the second service provider they’re going to is finding their music. And then after they get those two things secured, then I feel like they come and find a planner to help them figure out.
the rest of the stuff.
Felix And Fingers (15:16)
So most people who are getting in contact with you, most couples, they’ve already got their music figured out.
Ginger (15:21)
Yeah, I would say like 75 % of them already have their music figured out.
Felix And Fingers (15:27)
Wow, and you’re seeing mostly DJs.
Ginger (15:29)
Yeah.
Felix And Fingers (15:29)
but some live bands.
Ginger (15:32)
Yep, we’ve had a couple of live bands down in Indy and then we also get a lot of
like small orchestras, we’ve had that a lot for like cocktail hour or for music processing down the aisle. We’ve gotten that quite a bit, like smaller bands.
Felix And Fingers (15:39)
Mm.
and they’ve all got that figured out before they come to you, generally speaking.
Ginger (15:53)
Yeah, I feel like they’ve gotten, I feel like, I think a lot of the couples that do the live music or have like an orchestra are doing it because they saw it done somewhere else and they really loved it. And so they’re getting that referral and they’re going straight to them.
Felix And Fingers (16:11)
Yeah, wow, that’s an interesting perspective. yeah, well, hopefully we’ll be getting a lot more dueling pianos things going for these people and they’ll see it and they’ll see it. And it’s definitely a great wedding celebration type of type of thing to have. So it’s exciting to be bringing that to Indianapolis for sure.
Ginger (16:30)
Yeah.
Felix And Fingers (16:31)
So we’ve talked pretty much at length. Is there anything you want our people to hear, people to know, words of wisdom from Ginger and all your experience?
Ginger (16:41)
Words of wisdom would be, I would say, not a plug for us, but I do think a wedding coordinator is very important. I think a DJ is very important. I think a wedding coordinator is very important. Before I started this job, if you would have asked me if I was going to have a wedding coordinator for my wedding, I would have said, absolutely not. That’s such a waste of money. Like, I can plan it myself. Why do I need somebody else?
But since like working in the industry now and like being at so many weddings, a coordinator is so important. think not only just like for the help and support that you get like leading up to the day, but to have that reassurance like that on your wedding day that you’re not going to have to do anything. A lot of times we see couples that want to save money. so like,
and uncle will light all the candles and mom and dad are gonna clean up at the end of the night. And that’s great. And if you’re on a budget, that’s an awesome opportunity, but it just makes it so much more fun when like your guests are able to be guests and nobody has responsibilities that they have to be worried about at the end of the night. And you can just truly enjoy the day the way that it was intended to.
Felix And Fingers (17:57)
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. mean, it’s a hopefully once in a lifetime experience. You want to enjoy it, Awesome. Cool. Well, thanks so much for hopping on this call with me, Ginger. It was awesome to talk to you and hope to be seeing you real soon.
Ginger (18:04)
Yes, definitely.
Awesome, looking forward to working with you.
Felix And Fingers (18:17)
Awesome, thanks for taking the time. Have a great day.
Ginger (18:20)
You too, see ya.
Felix And Fingers (18:21)
Bye bye.
