Listen to the Podcast About It’s Kee Events
Podcast Summary
In the latest installment of the Eventful Endeavors podcast, host Matt Loewenstein welcomes special guest Kaitlin Carriger Krouse from It’s Kee Events. Kaitlin shares how she fell into hosting weddings at the well-known Indianapolis venue. Originally hailing from Indianapolis, Kaitlin’s career in event planning began with an event tourism course and later internships with the Indianapolis Colts and Indians – a journey that eventually led her to fall in love with the adrenaline of orchestrating a perfect wedding day at It’s Kee Events.
The lively conversation dives into the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on organizing weddings and other special events. Kaitlin reveals that there’s been a considerable shift in cost and demand stemming from COVID-19 complications. She discusses how clients at It’s Kee Events are navigating these changes. The pandemic brought on smaller backyard events and a reduced guest count. However, as society returns to a sense of normalcy, Kaitlin has noticed larger wedding sizes and, in turn, higher costs.
Turning the conversation towards the plans that lay ahead, Kaitlin provides insight into an upcoming summer filled with unique weddings. Each of these special events pushing boundaries on design, making collaborations with vendors all the more exciting.
In light of these changes in the wedding scene, Kaitlin expresses how It’s Kee Events clients are now shaping the traditional wedding to fit into their unique personalities and desires. The trend now leans towards customizing their wedding day to reflect their personal preferences while ensuring that it’s a memorable experience for the attendees.
Concluding the interview, Kaitlin accentuates the importance of music in current wedding trends. She hails music as the ultimate entertainer, playing a crucial role in enhancing the ambiance and ensuring a lively atmosphere at It’s Kee Events.
Learn more about
It’s Kee Events
This interview was provided by
Felix and Fingers Dueling Pianos
Podcast Transcript
Felix And Fingers (00:24)
Alright, what’s going on everybody? Welcome back to the eventful endeavors podcast I am Matt with Felix and fingers and today we’ve got Kaitlin from its key events What’s up, Kaitlin? Yeah, yeah, thank you. Thank you so much for joining us so start by telling us if you would
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (00:40)
Hi, thank you for having me. Super excited.
Felix And Fingers (00:50)
What inspired you to get into doing weddings?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (00:53)
I actually kind of fell into it. So I studied event tourism down at IUPUI here in Indianapolis and pivoted to more of the sports side and really enjoyed doing internships with the Indianapolis Colts and Indianapolis Indians. And then for our last internship, we went and ran a venue that specialized in weddings. And that’s kind of how we fell in love and
Comparing it to sports, it’s the adrenaline one day you have to get it right. And from there on out, we ran that venue for about three years and then created its key event shortly after and never turned back.
Felix And Fingers (01:37)
Very cool. Are you originally from the Indianapolis area?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (01:42)
I am born and raised in Indianapolis. So it’s been really fun, not only to already be involved in the community, but being able to do a lot of family weddings and friends and people I went to high school with and those connections. It’s been a lot of fun.
Felix And Fingers (01:59)
Cool. What do you have coming up this summer that you feel most excited about?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (02:05)
Good question. I would say we kicked off our wedding season on 4-4, which was so much fun. It was actually final four weekends, so we had to pivot a lot there, but the client was really fun to work with. And then we have a few special events this summer, and we actually just booked another wedding in August, and then we have a few falls. Every single wedding’s different.
And a lot of them are pushing boundaries on design, which is super exciting to collaborate with lot of vendors on that.
Felix And Fingers (02:41)
Cool. So what would you say the biggest shift has been in just sort of generally what you see and what couples are looking for in maybe the last couple years?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (02:53)
I would say the shift has been cost. I think the cost and the demand from COVID has been pretty tricky for a lot of people to navigate. When COVID happened, people put a pause, people went to smaller backyard events and smaller count. And then as the years have gone by, we’re getting bigger and bigger wedding count again. But with that,
we also have higher cost. And so I think there’s a mix of that on the planning side for clients. It’s a little bit harder to budget and plan for a wedding now versus a few years ago. But then on the design side, I feel like a lot of my clients are becoming more
and personable with how they’re gonna plan their day and what they want to do with their day, whether it is a smaller medium guest count or spending more time with their guests or even pausing and taking a moment to have dinner just the two of them. I think people are pushing away the traditional A, B, and C, D and creating a wedding to really fit
their personality and their ones, which is, I think great on their aspect because then they can enjoy their wedding and not feel so rushed and feel like they are just doing it to keep it the standard or believe that they have to keep it that way.
Felix And Fingers (04:28)
And how important would you say music is now in these current wedding times?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (04:34)
I think it’s still very important. I think it’s not only giving the guest and the wedding party and the couple that hype up that they need, but it’s the entertainment. We are a society that needs to be entertained. If we’re not entertained, we get bored, we wanna leave, we don’t wanna do anything.
Felix And Fingers (04:56)
Thank
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (04:57)
And it’s truly setting the tone for an event. You want to walk into a room and you want to hear that music. You want that music to not be broken up, whether it’s on a speaker system. You want that clear quality because it, one, changes the way people feel right when they walk in. And two, it’s giving them something to watch and to enjoy if it’s live as well. So I still think it’s…
It’s always important, but I believe it’s a different level because weddings are a little bit more of an entertainment now.
Felix And Fingers (05:32)
Yeah, that makes sense. Are you seeing most of your couples coming to you with music already kind of figured out or are they looking to you to take care that for
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (05:42)
I think it’s a 50-50. I think every couple has a vision and it really depends. We have couples that have gone to weddings and they’re like, we really didn’t like how that focused, so we’re gonna focus on how that was kind of like sounding or hearing. And so we wanna focus more on making it, again, that entertainment where we wanna make sure that we have something different that people will remember.
One of our weddings actually in November, we have live music that will wander around cocktail hour because they want that entertainment feel, that high buzz, that energy. Because in November, of course, it gets dark earlier. So everyone kind of gets a little bit more, okay, it’s dark. I want to chill. But bringing in the live music for cocktail hour kind of awakens everyone and gets everyone super excited for.
the live dancing later and the entertainment. So we have people going like that, or we have people that are like, we just want the traditional DJ and keep it simple, but we want them to play our songs. So it just kind of depends on the client.
Felix And Fingers (06:52)
seeing more DJ or more live lately.
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (06:57)
I’ve actually been seeing more mix. I’ve
been seeing a lot of live music during cocktail hour and dinner and then a switch to DJ, or we’re going to do a DJ for a certain amount and then we’re going to switch to live music for open dance, which has been really fun to mix it both ways. So then the crowd also gets a mix of both.
Felix And Fingers (07:19)
Yeah, I see how that could be good for the way things are now. What would you say is something that you are doing that you feel like is unique that you’re bringing to the Indianapolis wedding market? That’s kind of your thumbprint on the scene, if you would say.
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (07:39)
That is a great question. I would say my background being from here, but also being in every position before I created my business. And as I’m still in my business, I, like I mentioned, worked for the sports, but I also did a side of decorating. I worked for a florist, I worked for a caterer. And so being able to see essentially every side.
of a vendor that is collaborating on a wedding. One, I know what they’re dealing with on their side, but then at the same time, I understand pricing a little bit more just because I’ve been on that side. I’ve put up the hanging greenery from the ceiling. I know the ups and downs on the ladder. I’m able to truly talk about a quote and say, I’ve been here, done that. This is why the cost is here. And so when I’m breaking down things,
with my clients, I truly understand why the cost is that way. But I’ve also know how long it’s probably going to take for setup because I’ve also been on that end. I would technically say my well-rounded ability to be in all of those positions before I decided to transfer into wedding planning gives me the ability to.
work with more vendors, easier, understand where they’re coming from and how to solve a problem pretty quickly.
Felix And Fingers (09:09)
Have your clients ever requested dueling pianos or have you ever seen that at a wedding before?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (09:14)
Yes, so I actually had my first wedding with Just It’s Key Events after I stepped away from the venue management side was a dueling pianos. Yeah, it was amazing. It was one of those things I put on my list like this is what I want at my wedding. So yeah. Yeah.
Felix And Fingers (09:28)
Wow, how did that go?
Wow, how about that? Cool.
That’s so great. Yeah, I’m so excited to get the Felix and Fingers thing really going in Indianapolis.
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (09:41)
Yeah.
I
think it’s a perfect spot. I think indie is entertainment and we’re transforming into such a great hype culture that you guys will find a perfect spot here.
Felix And Fingers (10:00)
Yeah, no, that’s really, really exciting. So, do you have any advice you might give yourself to when you were starting from now, from what all you’ve seen?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (10:10)
Patience. I don’t have patience. I don’t think anyone does. Yeah, especially nowadays. I think it’s patience and understanding. I really enjoyed the fact that I took time to understand every single vendor’s eye point as well as networked with lot of vendors to
Felix And Fingers (10:13)
Me either.
Yeah.
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (10:32)
see one how they run their business, but essentially their why and how they go through a wedding day has been able to make me a better planner for my clients because I can speak on every single vendor and back up why I’m suggesting them or why they are a preferred vendor of its key events.
Felix And Fingers (10:54)
That’s so cool. How far would you say you typically go outside of the city? Like, you brought on to do stuff, you know, not just locally or is it pretty much just Indianapolis?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (11:08)
It’s pretty much Indianapolis in the surrounding areas. We’ve done a few out of state and we’ll let the other wedding planners that are great at destination weddings to take those over because it’s just not our cup.
Felix And Fingers (11:23)
Yeah, that’s awesome. Do you have some favorite venues that you get most excited about or that you recommend most to your couples?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (11:33)
That’s a trick question. feel like I think Indianapolis and the surrounding areas have amazing venues and a wide range of venues to pick from depending on size and style and budget. But I do think in the upcoming years, Indy has a lot of really cool opportunities because we have two new venues popping up, the Westwood and Westfield as well as
is the Gable, that Mustard Seed on Mustard Seeds property and Noblesville. Those two venues are just launched actually this year and there’s a few others that are launching. And so I think you never don’t have an option at the end of the day because there’s so many venues getting built or being redone and Downtown Indie is always popping up.
So I know that doesn’t answer your question, but I think it just depends on what the client’s looking for.
Felix And Fingers (12:33)
do you have a preference when you’re working in that, you know, could be this, could be that. Like do you lean one way just in your own personal preference with what you do or you like them both the same?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (12:49)
I think I like
them both the same.
Because it really depends on the client. It’s not my, I’m not picking a venue for my client based on my wants and needs. I think it is a big bonus when I know that vendor or that venue is easy to work with, great at communication, offers a lot. That’s always a win-win for my client because I know they’re going to have a smooth process, but I can, I started running a barn venue, but.
Last week or in April we were downtown, saw the city skyline, so we really can go both ways.
Felix And Fingers (13:28)
Yeah, cool. That’s definitely something I feel like that’s cool about Indianapolis as a wedding market.
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (13:35)
I never thought of that that way. And I think that is a great quality that we do have, but I’ve never thought of it that way.
Felix And Fingers (13:42)
Yeah, cool. So I think that’s about all the questions I have. Is there any advice or input you’d like to share with anyone who might be listening in terms of event planning, things like that?
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (13:54)
I think my one major advice to all my couples and anyone that I run into that’s getting engaged and going through the planning process would be one, be kind to yourself. It feels like you only talk about the wedding once you have a ring. It’s the only thing people ask you about, but you have to enjoy a few nights not stressing over it and not talking about it. But two,
things do happen at weddings and.
There’s some things that we can’t control, but at the end of the day, you have to remember that you are marrying your soulmate, your best friend, and if you hire a very good vendor team, you’ll never know what happened and you’ll never see it or feel it. So it doesn’t matter.
Felix And Fingers (14:39)
Well thanks so much for your time Kaitlin. I appreciate you coming on the podcast and hopefully we’ll be Felix and fingers one of your weddings real soon.
Kaitlin Carriger Krouse (14:42)
Yeah.
I’m looking forward to it. Thanks for having us. Bye.
Felix And Fingers (14:50)
Awesome. Later. See you, Kaitlin.
