>> Kim Armour: Hi, I'm Kim Armour.
I'm the wedding coordinator at the
Annapolis Marriott Waterfront Hotel.
>> Kim, can you tell us a
little bit about your story?
How did you get into this career field?
>> Kim Armour: I've always been interested in
planning events and kind of being in the middle
of all kinds of craziness that
comes along with planning events.
I went to college and I majored in corporate
communications and I basically took classes
in marketing, event planning, public relations,
basically all sorts of aspects of communications
and I really started getting
more interested in events.
So that's what I kind of focused on once I
graduated and it's worked out really well.
>> Can you describe to us what your job
consists of like on a daily, weekly basis?
What do you do?
>> Kim Armour: Basically, I am the point of
contact for all the weddings at the hotel.
So I'm the main contact when brides, you know,
first email me with interest
in having their wedding here.
Then I handle the sales so I basically sell the
space to them, you know, I give them site tours.
I explain the packages and
then once they do decide
to have their wedding here,
I am their main contact.
So I'm helping them pick their menu and
working out room diagrams and layouts for them
on how they want to set the ballroom up.
I am giving them kind of a
timeline scheduled their reception
and then I'm here during the event as well
to basically set everything up for them,
make sure the event is running smoothly and
perfectly and really just overseeing everything
and making sure the event
goes off without a hitch.
>> What do you love about your job?
>> Kim Armour: The people.
I am never bored at my job.
I always am meeting different people.
We probably do about between 50 and 60 weddings
here a year and since I'm the main contact,
I'm pretty much dealing with all of them.
So there's always interesting people to talk to.
I also get a really great feedback from brides.
I mean, it's the happiest day of their life.
I usually get -- I have a whole
file of like really lovely letters
that brides have written me after the fact.
So it's just really -- you feel good at the
end of the day because you've helped a bride
with literally the most special day of her life.
So it's very rewarding.
>> What are some of the challenges?
>> Kim Armour: It's a lot of work.
The hours are pretty crazy.
I mean, in the summer I'm
working 70 hours a week easily.
So you just have to be prepared
for being here all the time.
I feel like it's kind of my second home.
And there's definitely, I mean, some
personalities I don't always get along
with so you just have to kind of
remain calm and if there is a bride
that I don't necessarily get along
with, I kind of have to just put
on a happy face and work with it so.
>> What does it take to be successful?
>> Kim Armour: Mainly being organized.
You have to just stay on top of it because
I am dealing with 60 brides in a year,
I have to treat them all like they
are the only bride that I have.
So I have to stay on top of their files,
make sure I know exactly what they want.
How they want the ballroom set up.
What their flowers are going to look like.
What they've picked for their menu.
So organization is the -- probably
the biggest part of my job,
just making sure that I don't get
anything confused or get mixed up
and just kind of keeping everything in order.
>> Any kind of personality type you
would recommend for this career?
>> Kim Armour: Anal.
I don't know.
You just have to be easy going.
If something comes up in the middle of
a wedding, I've had wedding cakes fall
on the floor before in the middle of the
reception, you just to have keep a calm head.
You have to kind of go with the flow.
Try not to get upset if something does go wrong
because you obviously don't
want your personality
to affect how a wedding is going to go.
>> What could somebody do to prepare
themselves for this career field?
>> Kim Armour: Try to get an internship even
if it's unpaid shadowing an event planner,
shadowing a wedding planner,
just so you can see how it is.
I mean, when you help with one wedding
you'll know if you like it or not.
I mean, I interned right after college for
a wedding planner and I knew right away
that I loved it, but she said some people know
right away they don't love it and if it's not
for you and you're not kind of a type
A personality then you really just need
to see if you like it so.
>> Any kind of major somebody could
do in college to get in this field?
>> Kim Armour: I believe you can major
in event planning at most colleges.
You can also take certification courses if
you want to kind of focus on certain things,
corporate events versus weddings.
So yeah, any sort of communications, business,
marketing any of those types of fields.
>> You had talked earlier about your hours.
Do you ever get -- have to travel
or are you mostly just onsite?
>> Kim Armour: I don't travel
really hardly ever.
So it's mainly just here.
Because I do work all the weddings
I'm here pretty much every weekend.
So I work -- there's definitely
weeks where I work seven days a week
so it's a sacrifice, but it's worth it.
>> Any final advice for somebody
interested in being a wedding planner?
>> Kim Armour: Just stay
focused, even if you're starting
to feel discouraged because
you are working so much.
It's definitely worth it in the end.
I mean, talking to brides and having
someone give you a hug and tell you
that you made their day perfect
is I think worth it in the end.
So just stay organized.
Stay focused and it'll be
definitely worth it in the end.
>> Kim, thanks so much for you time.
>> Kim Armour: Thank you.