Philadelphia Wedding Planner Caitlin Fulton Kuchemba
Fulton Events is known for putting together a polished and sophisticated event all while maintaining a stress-free planning process for their couples. This woman-owned business has a keen eye for design and a talent for staying ahead of the latest trends, making your wedding feel both modern and timeless.
How did you get into wedding and event planning?
How long have you been planning events?
“I started in the industry shortly after receiving my undergrad from the University of Delaware in 2010. The fall after graduation, I enrolled in wedding planning certificate program that at the time was offered through Temple University. After completing that, I quickly began working with other wedding planners in the Philadelphia area. After working under another planner for a few years, I launched my own business under our first brand, Clover Event Co, in 2015. We now produce weddings with over a decade of experience under our new brand, Fulton Events.”
What types of services do you offer — full-service planning, part-time planning, month-of coordination?
“We exclusively offer full-service planning and design services for couples who value high-end, curated experiences. Our team plans and produces weddings in chic city venues along the East Coast, including Philadelphia and New York, as well as mountain destinations in the Hudson Valley, Catskills, Vermont, and beyond.
Exclusively offering full-service allows our team to fully invest in the limited number of weddings we take on in a year and be able to provide the level of design and service we are known for.”
What’s your favorite part about working weddings in Philadelphia?
“The wedding community in Philadelphia really is an incredible one. Beyond that, working in a historic city like Philadelphia means that we often get to work in venues with unique histories, architecture and more. We’re also lucky to be in a city with world class museums like the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Barnes Foundation along with a city that is always expanding and building new spaces like the Four Seasons Philadelphia in the Comcast Center.”
Are you looking to get into more destination weddings?
Where would be your ideal destination?
“While our work has always been mostly regional (between Maryland and Maine), much of our town has been focused in Philadelphia, New York and upstate in the Poconos, Hudson Valley and Catskills. While we love these areas, we are eager to expand our reach into other mountain destinations across the US including locations in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and more.”
What are your favorite – and least favorite – wedding trends at the moment?
Least favorite trends that I am ready to phase out officially
- Disco balls
- Wedding hashtags
- Matching bridesmaid dresses and a standing wedding party
- Dogs on napkins
- Large escort walls
Trends we would love to continue to see
- Large welcome parties
- Ceiling installations – fabric, unique lighting or floral installations
- Custom bars
- Custom colors and custom wallpaper
- Mini bouquets
- More specific guest dress codes – think about providing a mood board for guests
Describe your ideal client.
“We specialize in planning weddings for what we like to call the effortlessly cool. Our usual clients have a very distinct but laid back fashion sense and want to prioritize the guest experience as part of the planning process. They care most about food, entertainment and unique experiences for their guests. As far as design, most of our couples are looking for us to design something unique and personal to them. They tend to me more modern versus traditional in their design preference.”
What’s something you wish people who are not in the industry understood about wedding planning?
“While it can often look fun and glamorous on the outside, wedding planning often ranks as one of the most stressful jobs in the US. Wedding days are often 16+ hours and full wedding weekends can be 30-40 hours total. Beyond the hours, there is also a lot of physical labor involved that is not so obvious to those on the outside as well.”
What would be your biggest piece of advice to couples?
“The biggest thing to consider at the beginning phase of your planning is what your overall investment is and then consider how much that equals per guest you are considering inviting. We often see couples have a set investment range and a set guest count in mind, but they don’t understand how the two relate. You can invest what you’d like and have the guests you want, but you need to consider the experience that is creating for your guests.
For instance, to have a well curated and well designed wedding, it’s typical to allocate a minimum of $1,000-$1,500 per guest on the low end and $2,500-$3,500+ on the higher luxury end. If you have $100,000 to invest, consider inviting 75-100 close friends and family and giving them an experience to remember versus inviting 200 guests and having to pull back on your investment in many categories to accommodate your larger guest count.”
Finish the sentence – I/We work in weddings because ______
“There are very few times in life when the closet people to you are gathering in one place to celebrate. It’s so fulfilling for us to be to play a small role in such an important life event.”
How would you describe your style and/or approach to planning a wedding?
“We are very hands on during the wedding planning process and work closely with our couples to walk them through the planning, design and production phases.”
What is your secret to staying calm under pressure?
“With over a decade of experience we like to think we’ve seen it all (or at least most things). Our secret to staying calm under pressure is just having confidence in our experience. In the event something does go wrong on a wedding day, we’ve likely seen it before and can quickly act to rectify the issue while keeping cool, calm and collected. We often have other vendors comment on how relaxed our team is on wedding days. Rest assured our minds are moving a million miles a minute. It’s similar to a duck swimming under water. All you see is us gliding on the surface while underneath the water we are paddling quickly.”
Fulton Events
Finding a wedding planner who understands your vision is one of the best investments you can make. With Fulton Events, you will have the wedding of your dreams and remain confidently calm throughout the entire process. To contact Caitlin’s team, you can reach out to them at hello@fultonevents.com.
The other important investment for a successful wedding day? Hiring an experienced photographer whose style you align with and work you love – but also someone who feels like a friend. If you’re looking for that best friend who will be by your side all day to capture all of your unforgettable memories (and know all your best angles), contact me today to find out more about wedding photography.
For more Philadelphia Wedding content, check out the links below.
Wedding, Portrait and Boudoir Photographer serving Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Worldwide
pronounced kiss - en - ya
Currently based out of both Philadelphia and Los Angeles, Kseniya's work brings her all over the globe to document beautiful memories for stylish couples who want to make a statement.
Recently named one of the top 100 Wedding and Boudoir Photographers in the world, Kseniya puts her artistic and vogue-style aesthetic into every image.
© Copyright 2024 Kseniya Berson Photography | Brand and Website Design by With Grace & Gold
