Today I'm chatting with the co- owner of The Granary at Fawsley - Donna Newman. We talk about how she ended up owning a wedding venue, the highs and the lows along the way and how she builds relationships with wedding pros that she recommends. We also talk about her experience of the Wedding Business Retreat that she attended last year and why she thinks you should book to join us in 2023.

Want to join this years Wedding Business Retreat? Book your room now:

https://go.beccapountney.com/retreat23

Find out more about the Granary at Fawsley:

Website

Instagram

Want to meet other likeminded wedding pro's so that you can share ideas, network and help each other out? Then why not go ahead and join my free Wedding Pro community over on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/weddingprosreadytogrow/

Find out more about how I can help you grow your wedding business over on my website or Instagram page:

www.beccapountney.com

www.instagram.com/beccapountney

Time stamps:

Sharing experiences with other wedding businesses [00:00:00] Donna and Becca discuss the benefits of networking with other wedding businesses and learning from each other's experiences.

Donna's journey from civil service to wedding venue director [00:02:15] Donna shares how she went from working in the civil service to becoming the director of a wedding venue, and how her husband's background in hospitality played a role.

Growing the wedding business at The Granary at Fawsley [00:05:09] Donna talks about how they started doing weddings at The Granary at Fawsley, from starting with a bare agricultural barn to investing in it and getting all the proper licenses to become a wedding venue. They also discuss their approach to keeping the number of weddings they hold each year small and manageable.

Struggles of running a wedding venue [00:08:53] Donna talks about the challenges of running a wedding venue, including finding the right staff and dealing with the pandemic.

Establishing a successful wedding venue [00:10:01] Donna discusses how they have established themselves as a successful wedding venue and the recognition they have received.

Working with a partner [00:13:01] Donna talks about how she and her partner have made it work by separating their roles and keeping boundaries, and how their children are involved in the business.

Supplier Relationship [00:15:59] Donna and Becca discuss how they navigate the supplier relationship in the wedding industry, including how they find people to work with and how they build reciprocal relationships.

Benefits of Attending a Wedding Business Retreat [00:19:02] Donna talks about her experience attending a wedding business retreat and the benefits of being in a room with other wedding businesses, sharing experiences, and learning together.

Takeaways from the Wedding Business Retreat [00:21:13] Donna shares her biggest takeaways from attending the wedding business retreat, including the importance of consistency, time-blocking, and narrowing down priorities.

Taking a break [00:24:02] Becca and Donna discuss the importance of taking a break and having fun, especially for self-employed individuals.

Quality over quantity [00:25:21] Donna talks about their approach to keeping the number of weddings they hold each year small and manageable, while focusing on maximizing the quality of each booking.

Working on the business, not in it [00:27:00] Donna shares her realization about the importance of prioritizing working on the business side of things from day one, and not just focusing on the day-to-day operations.

Mentioned in this episode:

Wedding Business Retreat 2023

Want to join us for the 2023 Wedding Business Retreat?