Interviewed By Sukhmani Sadana: May 2021
Preston Bailey is Hollywood Wedding Planner who is known for his extraordinary ability to transform spaces into theatrical environments by using the most recent technologies in the marketplace.
What is the best advice you have for newlyweds?
Hire the right vendors like a florist, planners, etc. Be clear in what you want, and make sure they show you precisely what you’ve asked from them. On your wedding day, do not micromanage. Just enjoy your day, and allow them to do their jobs.
What was the most unique wedding you ever planned?
For me, the most unique wedding is the next wedding that I am working on. For the simple reason, most of our weddings are one-of-a-kind designs that I have never done before. So I find it very exciting because I have never seen it before.
What is your greatest strength? How does it helps you to be the best Hollywood Wedding Planner/ floral couturier?
My greatest strength is to listen with an open heart to my clients’ needs. My designs and weddings are not done for me; they are done with my clients’ sensitivities. I try to walk in their shoes to please them. Always keeping in mind that I am ultimately in the business of service.
What challenge excites you the most when Does it come to wedding planning?
My brand is based on creating designs that are never seen before. After 40 years, that is what excites me the most.
What was your biggest challenge when you were starting your business?
My biggest challenge was not charging properly. For the first ten years in business, I made zero profit. I was so insecure and eager to please that I practically gave away most of my weddings. But as God would have it, I was smart enough to photograph all my work. Eventually, I was approached to make my first book (Designs for Entertainment) that eventually became a bestseller, exposing me to my first royal wedding and many luxury clients. It reminds me of prayer or St Francis: “Is in the giving that we receive.”
What would your perfect Sunday afternoon look like?
Binge-watching NETFLIX. I eat whatever I want on that day, mostly sweets and ending with a 90 minutes massage.
Can you please tell our readers more about your PB education program?
I started the PB Live program a few years back, with the only purpose of sharing many of my mistakes with others for them to learn and not repeat the same. From there, it grew into a very powerful hands-on educational platform. I try to do a 3-day PB live at least once or twice a year because of my schedule. Hoping to do the next PB live on Jan 2022, exact date to be announced shortly.
You set the bar for event designers worldwide. As an author of multiple
books, a personality, a tutor, and running a big core staff at Preston Bailey
Entertainment Design, how do you find the time to create yourself?
Like anything of value, one needs to also put the time aside to create. For the last 30 years, I have followed the advice of a book by the name of “The artist way” by Julia Camaron. She
suggests that every morning one should write at least three pages, in what it’s called “the morning pages.” This has helped me tremendously to get in touch with my creative side. She also suggests that at least once a week, we should take ourselves to what’s called “an artist date” For my artist date, I usually go to a few New York art galleries or an amazing Broadway play, Or I watch some kind of science fiction movies. It is incredible the amount of inspiration one can get.
