Welcome to The Forever Bride Show. Today, we are talking about brunch receptions. Yes, you heard that right. A wedding and a reception earlier in the day, typically on a Sunday. Brunch reception, how much fun is that?! And I’m so excited, I have two wonderful guests with me today. This is my first time having two guests in the studio. Dos Goats full service wedding management, Adam and Christina.

[Ashley] Welcome you guys.

[Christina & Adam] Hi! Thank you for having us!

[Ashley] Absolutely. So now you guys have been with Forever Bride almost a year now. Christina, you and I have known each other for years in this industry, where you and I are both very connected. I was so excited when you guys came together and started this company, Dos Goats. Tell me about Dos Goats, and that spell d o s, like two in Spanish, and goats.

[Christina] So it was kind of a brainchild of my brother. We’re thinking of company names and we didn’t want to go the normal route and there’s two of us which is kind of unique. And so he said how about Dos Goats. We love goats.

[Adam] We’re fun, loving, energetic people.

[Ashley] Yeah. And then in the wedding industry you need something fun and whimsical, like right away your brides know that you guys are laidback and fun.

[Adam] Yeah that’s kind of what we exude. So then they understand that there is somebody relax that’s going to be there. Calm under pressure.

[Ashley] There’s definitely an ideal bride out there for you. And now you don’t call yourself wedding planners or day of coordinators, you call yourself a full service wedding management. I love that terminology. How did you come up with that?

[Ashley] I heard it from more West Coast wedding planners saying, you know we’ll do full service and we do day of coordination, but we like to call it wedding management because we all know it starts weeks before the actual wedding, and we’re there collecting all the information, and collecting the vendors, being that main contact for your vendors, regardless of if you just hire us the day of or full service. We want all of that encompassed in your experience. We still stay day of coordination and then we give them a rundown of what wedding management actually means.

[Ashley] Well that’s very cool. And now when did you guys officially start Dos Goats?

[Adam] We launched in late July. Late July, early August.

[Ashley] So awesome.

[Christina] Yeah. The last place I was working for he’d come help me kind of set up and he knew my dreams of wanting our own thing and so we decided to jump in and do it and then we started! We get a lot of focus from you know West Coast, Arizona, boho type stuff, and so I started seeing all these arches. I’m like, “Can you make these?” And so that’s kind of how the arch rental came into the situation.

[Adam] Yeah. So I figured out that I really like to make that kind of stuff. I know how to. I mean you know she told me to make arches. So she went and left for the day and I didn’t work that day and she came home and I had three arches made.

[Ashley] And those were the arches that were at our Forever Bride Market last November. Right? Oh they were beautiful. We should post some pictures! We put all of our show notes up on our website on the blog. So I’ll see if we can link some of those pictures. They were beautiful. And you are this skillful see a picture on Pinterest and throw it together kind guy.

[Christina] Yep. His Pinterest is insane. We just recently merged them all together. But he’s a crafty guy. And then on the planning aspect of it too, which is nice, because you don’t see a lot of couples planning your wedding for you. So it’s nice that you get both of us.

[Ashley] You guys are a very unique combination. I love it. A powerhouse! So let’s jump in to brunch weddings. This is something I’m so excited about. Why was this not around years ago?! This is brilliant.

[Adam] People want to do something that is going to set them apart. It’s not just going to be the same old thing.

[Ashley] Now is this a newer trend or have people been doing this but we don’t talk about it as much?

[Christina] I think people have been doing it and we don’t talk about it as much and it’s becoming more popular because there’s certain aspects, food wise, maybe you want to be different. Our main jam is that you can do a breakfast wedding and you can have an omelet station, you can have a waffle station, and you can have both!

[Adam] Pancakes! The possibilities! We were talking this morning and talking about what you could do with food and we had to stop because then we’re like we’re going to literally sit there and talk about breakfast foods all day, which is fine. I’m okay with that, but there’s other aspects about it that really highlight how you can make it your own.

[Ashley] For those that are listening and are going, “Okay how do we make our wedding a little bit different? How do we do something that that it creates a different experience?” I mean why would someone pick a brunch wedding?

[Adam] Morning people. Young people, who like to get stuff done during the day. Late night isn’t for everybody because a lot of the times there are a lot of aspects. Like timeline, for instance, it’s really rushed, like you got to get the speeches done, you have to get the dinner done, you have to get the dance done, because most people want to leave by 9:30PM. When you have a brunch wedding, you don’t really run into that problem. So everybody can enjoy the entire time.

[Christina] They’re more casual.

[Adam] Let’s be honest, it’s way more fun going somewhere and being able to feel relaxed and not have to wear a suit or something like that.

[Ashley] Mm hmm. I was just on the phone this morning with someone and they were talking to me about trends and I said, “Actually I don’t want to talk about trends because I think in the feedback we’re getting from from our brides – we have this Forever Bride Facebook group just for our brides, so brides if you’re listening it’s called Forever Brides, it’s a private group on Facebook, it’s a really nice safe place for people to talk and ask questions – I don’t think that brides are into trends right now. I think they’re really spending time on trying to figure out how to make their special day unique and reflect them as a couple and really make it special for their guests. In doing something like this, like you said, if you are mourning people and you love breakfast foods and that’s that’s more your style, why not have a wedding to completely reflect your style?

[Adam & Christina] Exactly.

[Ashley] People are going to be so excited about it! Especially if they know you well, like oh my gosh they met at brunch!

[Christina] Yeah! Plus, with the bar you can get really creative. You can do a bloody mary station or a really nice mimosa station with different syrups and stuff. I mean if you’re not a late night partier you might not want to stay out till midnight dancing. You might want to dance at 4:00 in the afternoon.

[Ashley] I love it.

[Adam] And that’s okay, because a lot of the people might get pushback from their friends or something along the lines of like, “oh there’s not the late night party or we’re not gonna be able to do this”¦” it’s like no you can still fit everything into a brunch wedding!

[Ashley] I didn’t even think of the bloody marys and mimosas stations. That is such a great idea because it’s an activity! It’s something fun for your guests to do. I can imagine you guys could probably work very closely with the caters to have all kinds of fun things!

[Adam] The possibilities are endless. The station aspect of it all is really cool because it’s more interactive. It gets people out of their seats.

[Christina] I always try to push for stations. I think you can do a bloody mary station, where they can do endless pickles if they want to and you can have different types of vodka. It can get really fun. Just thinking outside the box and I think too with the decor. Typically, if it’s a late night venue you’re gonna have uplighting and you’re gonna have candles and everything and if you want that you can still do that but you also could keep it light and airy with balloon installations and more floral because you don’t have to spend it on the lighting because it’s daylight outside.

[Adam] Photography doesn’t become a thing.

[Ashley] The pictures are going to be more light and airy because you’ve got that natural sunlight. I love it. And we were talking about this too, the price point! Not only the venue, but a lot of your vendors are actually going to be much more affordable.

[Adam] Yes. And one of the things too about when you do the mimosa or the bloody mary station, you’re typically going to get a discount because the bartender doesn’t have to bring a full bar. So they’re going to look at that as a benefit versus doing yeah like a full bar.

[Ashley] Yeah, beer, wine, the whole thing. That costs a lot more. You’re just doing the champagne for the mimosas and you’re doing vodka. Yeah I didn’t even think of that. That’s a really great point.

[Christina] And I know us, in general, we give a discount for brunch weddings, because we’re not there for 14 hours that day we’re only there for seven. So you’ll get a discount from certain vendors. Your photographer is not going to have to be there all day, your venue can possibly do two weddings that day if you’re ending yours at 4:00, so you can get discounts on that. And I think it’s really nice. You probably won’t save on floral, but you’ll have those discounts so you can do that extra floral if you want. So if you want that floral backdrop you can get it now, because you saved thousands of dollars and everything else.

[Ashley] And it doesn’t have to be a Sunday. I think most people assume that a brunch wedding would be like a Sunday morning. But I imagine if you do a nice Saturday and you wrap up the day by 4:00 or 5:00. Trust me, my wedding I was exhausted. Like we’re tired! So yeah I can imagine like going back to the hotel room being snuggled in a bath or in bed by 8:00. Brilliant.

[Adam] And everybody wants to do that anyway. Let’s be honest, right?!

[Ashley] Well and another thing I was looking through your notes and I saw yard games! This is a daytime thing so more activity for your guests!

[Adam] The whole aspect changes because you can be outside all day, it doesn’t get dark.

[Christina] We were talking the other day, there’s a venue that we work wit, they’re gonna have a petting zoo! Because they’re gonna do an earlier in the day wedding and we were like yes!

[Ashley] The bride is hiring a petting zoo or the venue provides a petting zoo?!

[Christina] They’re hiring a petting zoo.

[Ashley] Oh that is awesome. Yeah”¦ We need a petting zoo at our Market. Ok so whoever’s listening we’ve got a Market coming up February 17th at Radisson Blu Mall of America. We got to have a petting zoo. That’s it. We’ll have it at your booth. I’m sure they have no problem with us bringing goats to the Mall of America.

[Adam] No no. We’ll keep it under wraps.

[Ashley] Oh my gosh. Okay! So why do you think people are hesitant to this this new idea of brunch weddings? I mean it’s definitely against the norm, it’s against the tradition. You think about how many things are very rooted in tradition in weddings.

[Adam] You said it it’s tradition. So that obviously comes from, let’s say financially. Who are you getting that money from? If they’re not onboard with it, like right away, stick to your guns. But that’s like one of the things, if Mom and Dad are footing the bill you know..

[Christina] They might want their dream not your dream. If parents are paying for it they might have this whole other vision and it’s kind of just wrangling everyone together and letting them know, hey this is our vision though and this is going to be fun I promise.

[Adam] Yeah. People thinking that it’s not gonna be fun because it’s during the day.

[Christina] They might think there’s no dancing but who says you can’t have a DJ come and dance at two o’clock in the afternoon?

[Ashley] Absolutely. I am all about that. So fun! Ok, so the other thing is, what are some things that guests should be excited about? I mean we talked about the bloody mary station, we talked about the yard games, like what else is there an advantage to your guests?

[Adam] I mean we mentioned breakfast food but the whole thing: logistics.

[Ashley] I would think a brunch wedding would also be more kid friendly.

[Christina] And it’s not so formal. So you can definitely let your guests know it’s gonna be a little bit casual and dress accordingly. I think they enjoy the day a lot more.

[Adam] That is one thing that we said on here, is like let your guests know through your invitations that it is gonna be something that’s gonna be a little bit different and like what to expect so then they know.

[Ashley] Thinking back to dealing with the parents and different people’s expectations. I can imagine if a couple was really dead set on some sort of brunch wedding or reception and they’re just hitting a lot of roadblocks, what a great idea for a groom’s dinner. What a great idea for your engagement party. Like yeah, you know what mommy and daddy are paying for this whole thing. We’re just going to smile and say thank you, we’re going to do the golf course. But the groom’s dinner, they’re becoming events all in themselves. We see brides hiring wedding planners, we see brides getting their hair makeup done for the rehearsal dinner. What a great fun day, especially it’s just going to be your core people, to play some some yard games and to do some of those more intimate toasts and to get great pictures.

[Christina] Yeah and to have it wrap up early, because that’s I’m always so hesitant about our couples that have late night rehearsal dinners and I’m like you guys have to be well rested the next morning.

[Ashley] There’s no amount of gel masks that can help for that!

[Adam] You’re gonna wake up looking rough.

[Ashley] Yeah. We had we had some some wonderfully rowdy people in our bridal party so we decided to do the the groom’s dinner two nights before. Just to give a little buffer.

[Christina] I always recommend that and kind of branching off of that”¦ One thing we always say, you might want to keep your wedding party a little bit smaller because you are gonna be getting ready earlier in the day. So if you have six bridesmaids that’s a 3 a.m. call to start hair and makeup. Instead, maybe just have one or two close friends. (check out our blog about the Pro’s and Con’s of having a large bridal party here!)And I think the older the coupe getting married the more they’re realizing they don’t need the big wedding party. But I love big wedding parties because they’re always fun. Yeah. So it’s kind of going with your gut though and what feels good to you.

[Ashley] I love it and I love all these trends right now. I was very careful with that word, but trends of making the weddings more special and more unique to the couple.

[Adam] Yes. And it’s not trending. It’s changing. Things are changing. Like we talked about 10-15 years ago it’s like where do you get married? You get married at a golf course, a hotel, or a church, like that was your thing. Now, we’re driving two and a half hours and we’re okay with it because we get to this very whimsical venue and it’s great! And that’s something that’s changed. Brunch weddings or something that’s coming about. And that wasn’t the thing before. It’s not trending it’s just that there’s more options than there has ever been. People are just now seeing it as, we don’t have to do that. That’s not our thing. Then your dress choice can also change for the bride specifically, they don’t have to go with something that’s gonna make them not breathe for four hours. I hear it every single time when they take it off. You know what I’m talking about.

[Christina] Yeah…

[Adam] Don’t laugh at me.

[Ashley] Don’t make me laugh I’m getting over a cough! We know getting he laced all in there.

[Adam] It’s a thing where it changes a lot of stuff and people are, I feel a little bit more like laid back stuff, because like everybody just likes to hang out and have a good time and not try and like have to be somebody that they’re not.

[Ashley] One of my favorite quotes is, “A wedding is a party not a performance.” think sometimes people can get so caught up on the speeches have to happen, and then we walk here, and then everybody has to stand here, and then we go in and everybody claps. No, this is a party! Not only celebrating you, but just showing your guests how grateful you are for them because you’re grateful of your family for everything that they’ve done and your friends that brought you together. It’s thanking them. That’s why you do the open bar. That’s why you do the fun things. It is for them so that they have a great experience!

[Adam] Touching on that real quick. For the people that give you the push back like, “Oh man you’re not going to be party late into the evening?!” Say you have those party, your sendoff can be a party bus that’s going to take them around to different bars let them go do them. That’s fine. Send the party people on their so you can go home.

[Christina] So I mean like there’s different things that you can do to make it a great experience for them.

[Ashley] This is why you hire someone like this because they have these ideas! I didn’t think about years ago. I mean working with someone like you guys that does wedding management, you guys are thinking about all those different options, and all the things that are available. One of the questions I have with brunch weddings, how does that work with catering companies? Are you finding that a lot of catering companies are offering some of these meal items and are are open to do like Bloody Mary things?

[Christina] Yes. You’ve got to find the right ones, but almost anybody will give you a custom menu if they want your business. And a waffle station or pancakes and omelets, it might still cost about the same. I mean it’s the cost of food and what they’re willing to do. But I find you can do pretty much anything you want. I mean if you want to have a chicken dinner too you could do it at 2:00 in the afternoon if you wanted to! There’s nothing really stopping you.

[Ashley] Oh my gosh we’re at a restaurant recently and they did chicken breaded in waffle batter. It was at a dinner place and oh my gosh I would’ve never ordered it. It sounded ridiculous. My husband ordered it, but that would be really fun because you’re getting your protein and things like that. Oh and they served it with a little side of maple syrup.

[Adam] Yes! You could also bacon pancakes on a stick. Just take the bacon and do the pancake thing and then you just dip it and you could do that. Or do little shooters!

[Christina] A majority of our client consultations because we do free consultations but we’re always like, “Let’s get pancakes!” And they’ll be like, yes let’s do! That’s our jam.

[Ashley] I love it. And even late night snacks. Doing like a little breakfast bar as a late night snack if you don’t go to the brunch route but brunch is still your jam.

[Christina] You can still do like a mini chicken and waffles!

[Adam] We were just at our favorite coffee shop, Fletcher’s.

[Christina] It is in northeast Minneapolis. They have the best cold brew. We are cold brew fanatics and their cold brew is the best!

[Adam] So we were just talking to him and he’s talking about getting into it. We were going over his first wedding that he is doing for quoting and whatever and gave me a couple of pointers as far as like industry standards for certain things. But yeah, waffle stations from that guy is gonna be amazing.

[Christina] Back to trends too, coffee carts. Having a custom espresso blend for you guys! We love coffee. And so you can do it, especially if it’s in the morning. You can have a coffee cart there for the ceremony so everyone gets a nice warm cup of coffee, or an iced coffee, and sit down have your ceremony.

[Ashley] And do the station still! I’ve seen that at a networking event. They had like some little chocolate shavings you can put in there. They had some fresh whipped cream. Peppermint sticks, some cinnamon. That would be great! Like my husband doesn’t drink for example, and with our wedding we didn’t want to make alcohol a big focus, so we we brought in a lot of different coffee and stuff. So that’s really great for maybe the couple that isn’t big into the whole alcohol thing. We want to make sure, or in our case, we had a lot of friends that also didn’t drink. So making sure there’s other options for those people and that they’re not feeling left out if they’re not at the mimosa bar.

[Christina] That’s something we like to do, because we don’t drink. So like, infused lemonade, like lavender lemonade would be amazing at a brunch wedding.

[Ashley] That would be beautiful for pictures! Big beautiful glass container. It’s all about the Pinterest pictures.

[Adam] I love Pinterest!

[Christina] I think back to the catering. Catering companies want to do something different too. When I worked in catering, I loved doing stations. I loved thinking outside the box. Someone would call me with an idea and I’d be like, let’s talk, let’s figure it out. So I think they’re more open to it, especially waffles, pancakes, that kind of stuff. It’s easy to make.

[Adam] It’s cheaper for them to make too. So like it could cost about the same, but like with the different days; Thursday, Sunday, days that they normally don’t book, you might be able to get a big discount. Maybe not a big discount. But you know what I mean. An industry discount because it’s on a day that they’re not going to book or they can do two events because they’re done by 2:00 o’clock in the afternoon. Right. They don’t have to be set up and serving until 6:30 later that evening.

[Ashley] My dream would be to have a guy like that make-your-own-omelet station, where you fill up all your veggies and I give him the bowl and just have him in his nice little white chef coat. Everybody loves that. We should do that for our next Christmas party! I think we should have a make your omelet station.

[Adam] Well don’t forget we have to have the puppy Mingle too! Oh yeah. Now it’s recorded too!

[Ashley] Yes. We were talking about doing a puppy Mingle and then we could partner with, like second hand hounds or something like that, yeah. Oh man. Totally getting off topic but I love it. That’s what we do. Oh you guys, this is great. As wedding planners, I don’t want to use day of coordinators, as wedding managers (love that term), what is your best piece of advice for new brides right now?

[Christina] Stay calm and research, research, research. And if you don’t feel like you want to stress out about it, really contact somebody, because I think there’s so many people out here who think wedding planners are so expensive and we just can’t fit it in our budget and they think of it as an afterthought, not as a necessity. And we’re trying to make it so it’s a necessity. And you will 100 percent be thankful that you did it because at the end of the day you’ve spent a down payment on a house to have this party and you didn’t have to worry about a thing because you had us there.

[Ashley] That is wonderful. You guys thank you so much for being here. You guys are able to follow Dos Goats on Facebook and on Instagram. Is it Dos Goats Plans and again we’ll have links on our show notes page. Make sure that you guys, if you have not already, subscribe to The Forever Bride Show on iTunes, hit SUBSCRIBE, give me a quick little five stars. I will appreciate it so much as a new podcast.

[Ashley] I love having you guys in here and being able to talk about these unique things and being able to just provide insight on something that can be very stressful or can be some of the best months of your life. So thank you guys so much for being here.

[Christina] Thank you. We had so many topics! Like when you said, what did you want to talk about. I’m like I don’t know, I have five things I want to talk about!

[Ashley] Keep them coming, keep sending them my way. And we can always put it on the blog to our brides. For those of you that don’t know Forever Bride has an amazing blog. We publish about two to three different blogs a week and it’s all specific to wedding planning and not just here in Minnesota but all over.

[Christina] I’m starting to get more on the blogs. I was nervous at first but now I really like doing it! It’s awesome.

[Ashley] Thank you guys and thank you for listening. I’m Ashley Hawks and this is Forever Bride.

https://youtu.be/b31IVk73orU