Today we’d like to introduce you to Shay Ramsee.
Hi Shay, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve always had a passion for event planning ever since I was 13 years old. I planned my own sweet 16, 18th, and 21st birthday celebrations. I also became the event planner for friends and family. I really enjoy the process of turning an idea into a spectacular event. Since I had such a passion for event planning, I decided in 2011 to become certified in it.
April 2012, I launched my first wedding planning company and when I planned my fist wedding, I felt like I found my place within the industry. Being able to be a part of a couple’s love story and a part of a once in a lifetime event, is a huge honor but also a lot of responsibility. A lot of people assume it’s a stressful job but it’s actually a lot of fun.
July 2020, I created a wedding planning community for DIY brides who wanted some guidance on planning their wedding but didn’t have the funds to hire a wedding planner. I spent a year helping as many couples as I could as I took a break from physically planning weddings because for the last 2 years, I was planning weddings all over the West coast from Washington to California.
June 2021, I launched Moxie and Luxe and I have been non-stop busy planning weddings and be a part of so many couple’s love stories. I’ve been blessed to expand my business to Dallas while still planning events all over the West coast with hopes of touching the East coast in 2022.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’ve been planning weddings for the past 9 years now. When I first started planning weddings in 2012, it was really hard to get started. With any business, if you don’t have any experience or reviews, no one will take you serious. At the time there wasn’t any internships available for me to gain experience as a wedding planner after I became certified so I had to offer my services for free to a few couples willing to hire me.
As I began to gain experience planning weddings, I have learned a lot of lessons that courses or books won’t teach you. Like there may be some couples who will blame me for another vendor’s actions even though I didn’t hire them or referred them. Actually, if anything goes wrong some couples and even guests will blame the wedding planner. Another lesson is there’s no such thing as a perfect wedding day because something always happens. Now it doesn’t have to be something big as a vendor not showing up but something as small as a bride leaving her charger at home and her phone dies, can be a huge issue for some couples.
I’ve had one couple who almost made me want to stop wedding planning after a couple of years of being a wedding planner. The couple, their parents, and some of their guests were really rude. They told me that I did a terrible job and ruined their special day because of a vendor they hired didn’t show up on time. Experiencing these situations has taught me to be flexible, adaptable, and don’t take anything personal.
Through everything I went through, it hasn’t stopped my passion for wedding and event planning. I’m so thankful that I didn’t give up! Now I try to collaborate with other vendors and women who want to become a wedding planner to give them opportunities or help them gain experience like I didn’t have when I started.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Moxie and Luxe meaning courageous luxury is a wedding planning company that caters to the couples who are bold enough to want a non-traditional wedding or include non-traditional elements. Who don’t care to follow trends and want to design a wedding that’s a true reflection of their love. Love for music? Love for foods? Most importantly their love for each other!
I specialize in non-traditional luxury weddings and what sets me apart of other wedding planners is that I encourage my couples to follow their heart and dreams for their wedding day. Their wedding day is a once-in-a-lifetime type of moment so I want them to not waste it by not including everything they want and love. What I’m most proud of my brand is what we stand for and the experience we give to every couple who hires us. I always say we are more than a service, we are a whole experience.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs, or other resources you think our readers should check out?
The podcasts that keep me motivated are The Jasmine Star Show, Therapy for black girls, and The Tony Robbins Podcast.
The magazines that keep me inspired are the knot, munaluchi bride, and mindful magazine,
Apps I love using are Pinterest, Day One (for journaling), Skyscanner (for traveling), and calm for mediation.
It’s so hard to choose my favorite books but I do love books by Tony Robbins, Jackie Collins, any self-help books.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@moxieandluxe.com
- Website: www.moxieandluxe.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/moxieandluxe_
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/moxieandluxe
Image Credits:
Lupe Juarez Photography
TDM Productions
