Episode #66
Julian Leaver on Hospitality, Client Advocacy, Feedback, and Pricing Transparency in Wedding Planning
Host Michael Coombs interviews event planner Julian Leaver, who started by planning sorority parties at the University of Oklahoma, nearly pursued a State Department career, worked in hotels including Rosewood, and now runs Julian Leaver Events with offices in Dallas and Paris. Leaver explains how low-budget college events taught scrappiness, tight logistics, and prioritizing guest experience, and how hotel systems, data, and collaboration shaped his firm while he left behind high-volume repetition. He discusses saying no based on fit and budget, educating clients on costs (including a budgeting method based on venue and food-and-beverage estimates), and managing 3,000+ micro-decisions through phased planning and recorded calls. He details post-event surveys for clients and vendors, using feedback to improve systems and understand buyer types, emphasizes client advocacy and direct communication with vendors, shares his 10-year sobriety, describes his “Mind Over Matrimony” podcast for transparency, and outlines clear, commission-free pricing practices. 00:00 Service Is the Product 00:19 Meet Julian Leaver 00:42 From State Dept to Events 02:42 Sorority Parties to Hospitality 04:24 Origin Story and Referrals 06:32 Guiding Clients on Experience 08:17 First Year Lessons Saying No 10:16 Budget Fit and Education 12:51 Wedding Budget Rule of Five 13:51 Hotel Systems vs Creative Freedom 17:06 Client Capacity and Team Structure 18:12 Paris Office and Global Planning 19:32 Local Teams Matter 20:19 3000 Micro Decisions 22:15 Recording Calls For Clarity 23:03 Post Wedding Surveys 24:15 Using Feedback To Improve 25:51 Buyer Types And Messaging 27:09 Why Vendors Avoid Surveys 30:18 Client Advocacy First 31:51 Handling Vendor Misalignment 33:09 Mind Over Matrimony Podcast 36:23 Pricing Transparency Explained 38:58 Closing Thanks And Subscribe
