Speakers
We are thrilled to share our esteemed speaker line up for the event filled with the top industry thought-leaders. Click below to learn about each speaker and their impressive accomplishments!
- Imoni Events
- imonievents.com
Imoni Events is known for planning intimate affairs, for destination clientele with classic taste and charm. With an eye for sophisticated design and an inherent love for organizing logistics, Imoni Events has been honored with awards from many online and print publications, but their favorite accolade is getting that grateful hug from their clients at the end of their event. Clients have always been the motivation for Imoni Events’ existence and by 2005 the company had made its mark on the wedding industry in Arizona. Imoni’s mission is to provide a high-touch customer experience while also providing exceptional design aesthetics. This vision, paired with a passion for carefully crafted event design aesthetics, have earned the Imoni ladies’ national recognition as one of the best event planning companies in the United States.
Todd Fiscus, head of the highly acclaimed design team at his namesake company, Todd Events, has become synonymous with extraordinary events around the globe. From exquisite weddings, to corporate affairs, to charity galas to intimate occasions, the company has been the premier source for special events for over twenty years in locales from Maine to Mexico. Known for creating contemporary “life excursions” that capture the client’s personality, Fiscus has established himself as the expert authority to ring up when you want to celebrate with style. He never fails to provide a unique and memorable experience through artful detail and ‑flawless orchestration—from concept to completion. With an impressive client roster that includes the likes of powerhouse brands such as Tom Ford, Salvatore Ferragamo, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, the Dallas Cowboys, amfAR, Audi, and Neiman Marcus – just to name a few – it’s no wonder Fiscus has received major accolades in the event industry. He has been named one of the Top 35 Event Designers (2013) and a Top Innovator (2012), by special event industry giant, Biz Bash. His work is so revered, he was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal for his creative work and as a leader in the field. He also speaks at numerous wedding and event industry events around the country each year. Fiscus’ clients also include prominent private individuals around the country, a bevy of noteworthy professional athletes, and several distinguished civic organizations. He is unquestionably the “man with the plan” when it comes to unparalleled events. Fiscus and his work have been featured in numerous publications including Elle Décor, Town & Country, Better Homes and Gardens, Wall Street Journal, Southern Living, Gourmet, Vanity Fair, The Robb Report, The London Times, InStyle Weddings, Western Interiors, Condé Nast Brides, Veranda, and Texas Monthly. He is also a member of The Knot’s Luxe List, an exclusive circle of top celebrity wedding and event designers.
- Founder, Mind in Motion
- getyourmindinmotion.com
Leigh Weinraub is the founder of Mind in Motion, a movement and lifestyle brand committed to helping people win on the court, field, office and in life. As an internationally acclaimed speaker, I view the world as a philosopher, think like a coach and execute like an athlete.
Armed with a Masters in Counseling Psychology from Northwestern University and a background playing competitive tennis, I developed a unique approach to help people access their potential for greatness. I pioneered Walk-and-Talk therapy with the belief that there were more effective ways to help clients than on a couch.
This unique methodology became Mind in Motion and, today, I work with individuals and organizations, delivering keynotes, interactive workshops, walk-and-talk sessions and a product line of carefully curated messages. Some of the organizations we’ve inspired include NIKE, NBC, UPS, Canyon Ranch, John Deere, Army West Point, Deloitte, Walmart, and Verizon.
At Mind in Motion, we design products and programs that instill confidence and action. We seek to bring out the champion inside of everyone. We believe that small actions executed with consistency over time is the formula for success.
With dozens of programs and 40 products carried around the world our hope at Mind in Motion is to generate a movement of motivation and health.
His framework is based on his 30 years’ of experience in the hospitality industry, including serving as sales director for Disney Institute, based at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL. He is a prolific author and Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker that has worked with Signet Jewelers, SalesForce, T-Mobile, Stanford Healthcare, General Mills and Hilton Hotels just to name a few.
An experience with Simon goes beyond feel-good content. He delivers practical strategies and impacts real lives. He connects with any audience on many levels with a relevant message that resonates beyond the stage.
Simon’s viral video posted by Goalcast to Facebook has 90 million views and LinkedIn Learning features three of his online courses that reach professionals in 100+ countries. Recently, Simon became a certified Caritas Coach, leading with heart-centered intelligence. His approach is grounded in Caring Science that focuses on preserving human dignity, wholeness as the highest gift to self, systems, and society.
His wisdom and expertise enabled an Orlando-based healthcare system to be acquired and a division of a hospitality company to be ranked No. 1 for customer service by Expedia.com. Simon serves on two unique boards; U.S. Dream Academy and Orlando Health Foundation where he is a five year board member that has 20,000 employees and over $1 Billion in revenue. Recently, Cleary University, a 138 year old institution in Holland, Michigan, rewarded him with a Doctorate of Science in Business Adminis- tration for his global impact.
- Owner & Chief Story Officer, Raw Strategy
- rawstrategy.net
Lindsay Rogers is the founder of Raw Strategy, a positioning, brand story, and messaging company based in Colorado. Lindsay works with high-achieving athletes, leaders and entrepreneurs, helping them design meaningful messaging and story-based content that create premium brands centered on loyalty, trust and impact.
In addition to working with individuals, Lindsay has also worked with large national and global brands such as NBC Olympics, The North Face, Twitter, Toyota, Competitor Group, Challenged Athletes Foundation, National Restaurant Association, Pella, The Red Cross, and countless startups creating complex messaging programs that leverage storytelling at its core.
- Founder and Executive Producer, AJ Events
- ajwevents.com
With over 25 years of experience, AJ Williams is the creative visionary behind AJ Events’ experiential design, execution and fundraising. Named BizBash 500 Most Influential Event Pros in the US, AJ, masterminds cutting-edge experiences for corporate and luxury weddings, and she exceeds expectations with PR & fundraising for her non-profit clients. AJ has raised over $74MM for nonprofits and recently $6MM during the pandemic. AJ‘s work is always ambitious —and often unconventional —her work reflects a bold, can-do attitude, she was one of few planners in the US that successfully executed multiple LIVE hybrid fundraisers with a live auction to a live audience in 2020. AJ credits a background across multiple disciplines as key to her creativity, production savvy, and innate flexibility. After Mass College of Art, she worked in publishing, catering, fashion, and eventually marketing—before launching AJ Events. AJ’s ability, unique talents and outstanding reputation have made her a tremendous success. AJ executes press worthy fundraisers with celebrities Jennifer Hudson, Queen Latifah, Anthony Anderson, Wyclef, Vanessa Williams, Earth Wind & Fire, Danny Glover, Common, President Bill Clinton, Michael McDonald, The Eagles, Run DMC, and many more. “Creating energy is a big part of my success. I give my clients event strategy, smart events.” In short, AJ simply throws a great bash.
One of the earliest team members at Over The Moon, Shayna Seid has been covering weddings for more than three years with over 650 features published and has seen the blog through a complete redesign as well as been involved in the expansion to include the ecommerce platform and registry. During her studies at The New School, where she obtained a major in Journalism + Design and a minor in Fashion Communication from Parsons, she cold-emailed her way into an internship with Vogue.com Contributing Editor and OTM Founder Alexandra Macon and became an integral part of the company. In addition to running the real weddings section, Shayna also manages OTM’s fast-growing Instagram account, where #OTMBride takeovers and monthly digital covers are showcased. Although not engaged (yet), she would describe her wedding aesthetic as “English garden meets Atlantis.”
- Founder & Creative Director
- Anna Luçia Events
Anna Luçia Events is a premier event planning and design company that develops curated design solutions uniquely tailored to every client. Anna Luçia Events works with a full range of corporate, private, and public art clients to create intimate elevated environments that seem effortless and make our clients feel at home wherever they are. We are committed to providing consistent high regard for detail, professionalism, and dedication to our clients and partners to create timeless, one-of-a-kind, complete guest experiences that never go out of style. For more information, visit https://annaluciaevents.com.
About Anna Luçia Richardson
Anna brings a ceaseless love and passion to planning and designing, for any type of event imaginable. She has more than eighteen years of experience in event planning and design and team management. Her scope of work ranges from Weddings to Corporate Events and any type of Social Event one can dream of.
Because each client is unique, she has strived to create a custom team of experienced professionals to best meet their client’s specific planning and design needs. Everyone on the Anna Luçia Events team is dedicated to one goal — a successfully curated event designed just for the client.
Anna, along with her husband and two children, resides in Tampa, Florida. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Stetson University with a major in Marketing. She currently sits on the Board of Directors for The Above and Beyond Foundation and the Engage! Foundation and is also currently involved in a number of initiatives within the Arts Community in and around Tampa Bay. More recently, she has been actively assisting in the efforts for Hurricane Ian relief in the Southwest Florida Community.
- Planner, Designer, Podcast Host - Kelly McWilliams Celebrations, Weddings & Parties
- KellyMcWilliams.com
Kelly McWilliams has been producing destination, weddings, social events and celebrations since 2002. Her company has been a leader in the destination wedding industry of southwest Florida. She was intent on giving back to the community by sponsoring over 40 college student internships. Her goal was to put SWFL on the map for destination weddings through social media and press & publish. Her intention has always been to bring what was big and happening in the major metropolitan cities back to the small region on the Florida gulf coast. In 2018 her business expanded beyond Florida to formally include Nevis, West Indies, Dominican Republic and Punta, DeMita Mexico.
Kelly’s most known for her designs with your side of the statements for goals of the events hours, equal in Beauty as they are an outstanding experience no guests will ever forget, and that they are personalized as they are traditionally elegant. Kelly was recognized as a top planner by Martha Stewart, Weddings and her weddings have graced the pages and websites of most national wedding publications of the last two decades. She and her work have been quoted and featured on CNN, NBC, Fox. She has spoken at industry conferences around the globe. 2020 brought new challenges and opportunities to her, and she answered back with her multi award-winning podcast for engaged couples “This vs That Wedding Planning Decisions with Kelly McWilliams” and a new branch of her company – “A last-minute wedding” , for a couples looking to have a wedding planned A-to-Z in 90 days or less.
- Owner, José Rolón Events
- joserolonevents.com
A nuptial maestro for almost a decade, José has made a name for himself with his chill vibe and generous command, with his planning and design aesthetic making him one of the top rising wedding planners in NYC. He is frequently sought for his expertise on The New York Times, Brides, The Knot Wedding Pro and more, as well as his work featured with Martha Stewart, Essence Magazine, Sophisticated Weddings Magazine, New York Weddings, the Best of The Knot, and was named one Biz Bash’s Most Influential Event Professionals.
José is currently the co-host of new wedding series Wedding Talk with Tara Lipinski and Jove Meyer.
José lives in Brooklyn Heights with his three children, and as a single dad during COVID, José and his family chose to take TikTok by storm during quarantine! As a result, he has been featured and had appearances on the TODAY Show, NowThis News, Ellen’s Game of Games, Univision Se Habla USA, PEOPLE, and The Drew Barrymore Show. Was named Tiktok’s 2021 Latinx Trailblazers. If that wasn’t enough, José and his family graced the cover of Parents Latina Magazine being the first gay dad to ever do so.
José has been an Engage speaker both for breakout and main stage and is excited to bring back his 2017-2019 wedding series, The Wedding Buzz, but this time live on the main stage at Engage.
- Owner/Creative Director, Brooke Keegan Special Events
- brookekeegan.com
Brooke has more than 19 years of experience designing, planning, and producing spectacular events for some of the world’s most ambitious and exacting clients.
Named a top wedding planner by Harper’s Bazaar, she has established a reputation of excellence and consistency for producing unique, beautiful, and innovative events that far leave a lasting impression.
With her outstanding organizational skills and love of design, she has established a reputation of excellence in event management, flawless execution and visually stunning events. Brooke’s clients can trust with confidence that they will experience an exceptional planning process whilst exceeding their expectations. She has solid relationships with premier creative partners both nationally and internationally, ensuring that anyone she refers is at the top of their respected field. Her past events are testaments of the quality, detail and experience that make her successful.
A Division 1 volleyball player at San Diego State University, Brooke graduated with dual degrees in Marketing and Management. Prior to running her own business, she pursued a professional career in the restaurant and hospitality industry, a combination that gives her an edge when producing top-notch events for world-class clients.
- Founder, Oda Creative
- odacreative.com
Folasayo & Ndidi Ayoola are the founders of Oda Creative, a nationally acclaimed creative design agency established in 2011. Oda Creative specializes in creating innovative luxury stationery for events and developing strategic brand identities for businesses, including eye-catching packaging and web & print designs.
Whether for notable clients such as Google, MIT, AT&T, The Lakers, or SMBs, this husband and wife duo champions the notion that intelligent branding powered by great design and a people-first approach creates game-changing business opportunities and results.
Armed with this notion, they use their combined three decades of business experience in tech and design to help others succeed and stand out in their niche.
Oda Creative’s innovative approach has been featured in major publications and media outlets such as NBC, The New York Times, Vogue, People Magazine, Brides, Essence, and Inside Weddings, amongst others.
When not living out their love of design, Folasayo enjoys creating digital art, and Ndidi is a passionate reader. They can often be found at home in Houston with their two young children, playing video games, or a giggle-filled game of tickle-monster.
- Founder, Oda Creative
- odacreative.com
Folasayo & Ndidi Ayoola are the founders of Oda Creative, a nationally acclaimed creative design agency established in 2011. Oda Creative specializes in creating innovative luxury stationery for events and developing strategic brand identities for businesses, including eye-catching packaging and web & print designs.
Whether for notable clients such as Google, MIT, AT&T, The Lakers, or SMBs, this husband and wife duo champions the notion that intelligent branding powered by great design and a people-first approach creates game-changing business opportunities and results.
Armed with this notion, they use their combined three decades of business experience in tech and design to help others succeed and stand out in their niche.
Oda Creative’s innovative approach has been featured in major publications and media outlets such as NBC, The New York Times, Vogue, People Magazine, Brides, Essence, and Inside Weddings, amongst others.
When not living out their love of design, Folasayo enjoys creating digital art, and Ndidi is a passionate reader. They can often be found at home in Houston with their two young children, playing video games, or a giggle-filled game of tickle-monster.
- Co-Founder, Le Rêve Films
- lerevefilms.com
As the Co-Founder and Lead Cinematographer for Le Rêve Films, Lindsey has enjoyed capturing luxury and destination events for celebrities, professional athletes, and high-profile clientele. Le Rêve Films’ reputation and award-winning work has earned them a spot among Harper’s BAZAAR’s list of The Top Wedding Videographers in the World. Prior to making waves in the wedding industry, Lindsey was an executive for an internet company where he utilized his passion for relationships and marketing to help the business become one of the fastest growing private companies in America.
Lindsey is a dreamer, a perpetual optimist, and someone who will attempt to find the good in just about any situation. He’s also a procrastinator and takes an average of 45 minutes to write a single email. That’s why, when asked, he will always attribute any of his success to the fact that he gets to work alongside his incredible business partner and wife, Cherish, who keeps him on track and serves as one of his biggest motivations and inspirations in life.
- Managing Partner, Master Connection Associates
- masterconnection.com
They call her the ‘Radical Mentor’ for a reason. She never stops and she says it like it is. Throughout all the ups and downs of the crazy hospitality, events, and travel business, she was a source of positivity and inspiration who helped many people not only survive but thrive.
As the founder of Master Connection Associates (MCA), Cindy Novotny is an icon in the hospitality industry. Her specialties are leadership, sales, and customer service excellence. She built MCA into one of the leading training and consulting firms in the world.
Her experience is vast in the hospitality and travel industry and is well established in other industries including professional service firms, automotive, real estate, healthcare, retail and more.
Her popularity has no boundaries, and she is ‘a force to be reckoned with’. Cindy’s natural charisma, high energy, drive, humor, and passion guarantee her targeted message captivates the audience leaving them with reality-based skill take aways and actionable items.
Having logged over 10 million miles, Cindy is the epitome of the term ‘road warrior’ and jokes that she loves the smell of jet fuel in the morning. Her bags are always packed ready to embark on her next journey! Cindy authored a book ‘Living with No Balance…and Loving It’ that provides insight into her life on the road and how to create personal balance. Coming soon, her next book, ‘My Secret to Stamina’ provides helpful tips on how to deal with life’s exhausting issues.
- Founder, Legally Set
- legallyset.com
Kunbi Odubogun is an industry leading Business Attorney, Speaker and Digital Media Expert with over 12 years experience in the Legal and Events industries.
Her strong desire to see passion-fueled entrepreneurs legally protected and empowered led her to create Legally Set – an online shop offering legally sound, attorney-drafted contracts for entrepreneurs, event pros and creative business owners.
Her obsession with details in contracts mirrors her passion for extravagant events as is apparent in her celebration centered publication, Perfête. With over one million monthly views across platforms, she continues to inspire other detail-obsessed event lovers to throw a “per-fete” celebration.
A frequent Engage! speaker, Kunbi has shared her unique knowledge of Events and Law across several prominent platforms including The Knot, Wharton, CNN, Cosmopolitan, Bridal Guide, Bella Naija and more.
She continues to inspire entrepreneurs with easy to digest legal and business nuggets to ensure they are legally set to succeed.
When she is not Lawyering or Publishing, She’s juggling life as an over-caffeinated mother of two and binging Criminal Minds, because life is about balance.
Angela Desveaux is the founder of WedLuxe, one of the world’s leading luxury wedding media brands. With ultra-luxury keepsake magazines, digital, social, and live events, WedLuxe reaches over two million consumers AND event professionals annually. In 2022, @WedLuxe social achieved over half a billion social media impressions, with the USA accounting for over 70% of viewership, followed by UK, Italy, and Canada as key user markets.
In addition to her role as CEO of WedLuxe, Angela has won national awards for consulting, design, marketing, and content creation services provided to entrepreneurs, venues, five-star hotels, and tourism boards worldwide. Notable clients (via Engage introductions!) include The Venetian Hotel (Las Vegas) and The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, who commissioned Angela to ideate, produce, and publish Cayman Vows, an international magazine to promote romance and wedding tourism in the Cayman Islands. The project subsequently won a 2017 Impact Award for Best Content Marketing Strategy and the top prize, The Gold Award at The 2018 Adrian Awards for Best Integrated Content Marketing.
A full-time resident of Florida since 2016 (where WedLuxe is now based), Angela was most recently honored to be asked to serve on the Advisory Board for the Executive Digital Marketing Program at the University of South Florida.
No stranger to the event planning side of the wedding industry, as a proud Canadian expat, Angela served as the guest creative director of Engage! Banff in 2018. She’s also been executive event producer of The WedLuxe Show, an annual consumer event that has attracted 1500-2000 guests per year since its inception over ten years ago. The event was named a finalist for “Best Consumer Tradeshow” by Bizbash in 2018. After a LONG three-year Covid-induced hiatus, the show FINALLY returns on January 28 and 29, 2023 to Toronto, Canada. A special note to Engage planners and venue attendees: if you’re interested in co-hosting a WedLuxe Event in YOUR market, please reach out to Angela for partnership opportunities for 2023 and 2024!
- Event Planner and Designer, Michelle Norwood Events
- michellenorwood.com
Known for her tenacious spirit and warm personality, Michelle Norwood is a sought-after destination wedding planner based in New Orleans. Her bespoke planning and design approach is to start with her clients–to uncover their unique stories and backgrounds and let their stories inspire the celebration. When she’s not planning and designing signature spaces, she’s trying out new cuisines and traveling the world.
- Visionary, Banga Studios
- bangastudios.ca
We may recognize Gurminder, better known as “Banga”, for his versatility as the founder of Banga Studios. What you may not know is that he is deeply committed to spirituality and has chosen to live a focused life in a noisy world. A student & teacher of several mindfulness practices, ranging from breathwork, mantra, visualization & silent meditations. Banga is on a journey to uncover more of his inner world, so he can live by them in the outer world. Waking up at 5am, meditating for 1-2 hours, working out, journaling and reading is a daily morning routine. Banga lived as a digital minimalist with no social media for over a year, learning how to draw the line with technology and build upon activities that supported his personal and business objectives. Banga believes that quick fixes and life hacks might prompt a healthy new habit, but not a lasting lifestyle change. He has designed and led programs for entrepreneurs, leaders and organizations as an expert in sustainable life design, productivity, and intentionality. The results speak for themselves; more grounding, less anxiety, more love, less fear, more conscious choices, and less impulse decisions.
- Director of Partnerships, Carats & Cake
- caratsandcake.com
- Head of Social, Carats & Cake
- caratsandcake.com
- Owner and Creative Director, Diamond Affairs Weddings & Special Events
- diamondaffairs.com
Considered one of the top wedding planners in the country and founder of Diamond Affairs Weddings & Special Events, Mary Wright Shah is dedicated to providing the highest level of service, detailed perfection and flawless execution of her events. With over 25 year’s experience in hospitality, consulting, planning, designing, producing luxury weddings and events in the country and around the world, she is one of the most respected and sought-after event planners.
Mary has the ability to offer an extensive knowledge in design, access to world-class locations, venues and vendor collaborations. Known for her heightened attention to detail to texture and interiors, she creates a one-of-a kind experience for her clients and their guests. With her leadership even the most complex wedding or event is able to unfold with style and perfection.
Mary is Founding President of Wedding Industry Professionals Association (WIPA) for the Dallas Chapter. A devoted wife and mother of three boys, Mary loves interior design, inspired by amazing food and wine, and traveling the world. She continues to invest in her ability to innovate and enjoys coming up with new trendsetting ideas with her current and future weddings & events.
- Owner / Editor in Chief, Destination I Do
- destinationido.com
When Jennifer and her business partner began Destination Media 18 years ago, it was with the intent to report on all things destination wedding, honeymoon and romance travel related and to fill a gap in the wedding industry. One that would show real couples around the world celebrating their destination weddings. Jennifer’s love of the beautiful cultures and colors around the world has been central in everything printed and shared through DestinationIDo.com. Her goal has been to bring readers helpful information to plan their weddings wherever it is in the world with whomever it is with – regardless of race or gender.
Since then, the media outlet has grown from a small, glossy publication sold around the U.S. to a sought after brand, known for serving the destination wedding reader wherever they are – from the airwaves to Pinterest and everything in between.
Connected to readers and industry experts on all fronts, Destination I Do creates helpful daily content through their growing website and social media network. Destination I Do is also releasing season three of their podcast with Jennifer as the host.
With more than 23 years of business and publishing experience, Jennifer has seen her international business thrive and grow. She was recognized as one of the “Top 35 Entrepreneurs Under 35” and is a chosen speaker at several prestigious industry conferences and business summits. With a substantial client list, talented contributors and a growing following – Destination I Do is an icon in both the wedding and travel industries.
- CEO & Co-Founder, PartySlate
- partyslate.com
Julie is the CEO and Co-Founder of PartySlate, a photo-rich website where leading event professionals share their work and build their brand. With over 20 years of digital marketing experience with some of the biggest brands in the world, Julie is excited to bring this expertise to the events industry. After she planned 50+ large-scale galas and corporate events, Julie became increasingly frustrated while planning a high-profile cancer research gala, spending hours online looking for ideas and venues, only to find wedding blogs, sterile vendor listing sites, and Pinterest dead-ends. Julie was inspired and set out to create a Houzz-like website to address the $143 billion events industry. Since its founding in 2015, over 15,000 of the country’s top event professionals and venues have uploaded over 1 million event photos to their beautiful profile pages.
- Founder, The Bridal Bar
- bridalbar.com
Harmony Walton is the founder of The Bridal Bar, a creative marketing and public relations agency for luxury event professionals and a concierge service for couples to connect with those companies. With over 18 years of marketing and editorial experience in the wedding industry, Harmony’s passion is connecting couples with brands and brands with opportunities to increase their market share. She has helped launch dozens of successful wedding businesses, re-positioned older companies within the changing market and supported countless wedding industry clients both online and offline across the globe. Her company has been recognized around the world and featured in 100+ media outlets, including The Associated Press, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Entertainment Tonight, People Magazine, Martha Stewart Weddings and many more.
In addition, Harmony is the host of Bridal Bar Radio on iHeartRadio and the editor of Jet Fete by Bridal Bar, a destination weddings and honeymoons blogsite. Harmony also writes for and contributes to several wedding media outlets throughout the year and works with many celebrities for coverage on their weddings.
Emily Campbell has been planning spectacular weddings and special events since 1997. Over the course of over two decades, she has created celebrations in over 40 countries and on five continents, from Africa and Asia to Europe, Central America, and the Caribbean. Emily founded GoBella Event Design and Planning in 2002. It is her mission to create an environment where style is timeless and all love is cherished.She is the past-president of the Colorado chapter of WIPA, serves on the advisory council for the VOW for Girls and is the Executive Director for the Engage! Foundation.Emily has been featured in Vogue, Martha Stewart, The Knot, BRIDES, Style Me Pretty, PartySlate, Carats & Cake and Vanity Fair.As Executive Director of the Engage! Foundation, a 501(c)3, Emily Campbell dedicates months out of the year to raise funds and raise awareness for foundations such as VOW for Girls to End Child Marriage and The Birthday Party Project to give parties to homeless children across the nation. She is a speaker at each Engage! Conference and leads onsite excursions to rally help and gather resources for the local communities in which the conference is held. Examples include bringing supplies to Ukrainian refugees in Ireland, Christmas presents and supplies for children at orphanages in the Bahamas and raising funds for those hit by natural disasters in Florida.
- Co-Founder of Engage! Luxury Wedding Business Summits + Managing Director of Engaging Concepts
Kathryn Arce is the Co-Founder of Engage! Luxury Wedding Business Summits and Managing Director of Engaging Concepts. Her command of flawless event execution is second to none. She focuses on exacting event service performance and detailed operations and provides clients with clear and strategic industry best practices. She has been instrumental in developing powerful wedding and event service tools that result in increased business revenues. Additionally, Kathryn creates dynamic and functional wedding and event sales & service processes and standard operating guidelines.
A logistical maverick, she and Rebecca Grinnals created an innovative series of luxury wedding business summits in 2008 called Engage! which twice a year bring together 350 of the wedding industries key influencers and tastemakers from around the world to exchange ideas, network and be inspired to take their businesses to the next level of success. All sixteen engage! events have been complete sell outs and met with rave reviews from attendees and speakers alike.
Kathryn brings over 25 years experience in the wedding industry. Her career began as a Wedding Event Manager for Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings, where she personally planned and executed hundreds of weddings and related events. With an unyielding penchant for phenomenal customer service, Kathryn was instrumental in developing the high standards of service Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings is known for today. She stepped away from the wonderful world of weddings and was the Manager of Guest Services for the flagship Disney Store on Fifth Avenue in New York City where, for two years, she facilitated all VIP Programs & Events.
Kathryn’s extensive guest service training and vast real-world wedding and event planning experience is an invaluable resource for clients looking to “raise the bar” of their wedding programs. She has penned numerous articles on destination weddings and honeymoons which have been published in several travel magazines throughout the US and Caribbean. Kathryn has interviewed scores of wedding couples to capture the essence of their “Real Weddings” for promotion of various hotel and resort destinations and venues alike.
She has produced events and live remotes for The TODAY Show, CBS’s The Early Show and “LIVE with Regis & Kathie Lee.” While living in NYC, Kathryn worked with renowned wedding and special event planner Marcy Blum on high profile events at The Rainbow Room, The Metropolitan Club, The St. Regis and The Pierre.Kathryn worked on such notable weddings as those of Billy Joel & Katie Lee, Donald & Melania Trump, basketball legend Horace Grant, famed novelist Tom Clancy and television writers & producers Jennifer Philbin & Michael Schur.
She was named as a BIZBASH Event Innovator 2014: Most Innovative People in Events and Meetings.
- President, Engaging Concepts Inc and Co-Founder Engage! Summits
Rebecca Grinnals is widely regarded as one of the foremost experts on the business of weddings & honeymoons. She is the founder and President of wedding and honeymoon industry consulting firm, Engaging Concepts based in Celebration, FL. Rebecca is a sought after industry consultant, speaker, trainer and business trend expert. She has been a featured guest on CBS’ “The Early Show,” CNN, Entertainment Tonight, CNBC and hundreds of other national and international television & radio programs. She was named as a BIZBASH Event Innovator 2014: Most Innovative People in Events and Meetings. She serves as the Chairperson of the Leadership Advisory Board of WIPA (Wedding Industry Professionals Association) and was recently named as one of the “Top Ten Social Media Influencers in the Wedding Industry” by WedBiz Journal.
Prior to creating Engaging Concepts, Rebecca co-founded Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings & Honeymoons for The Walt Disney Company, and spent ten years developing the concept into an unprecedented success. She directed the complete branding strategy, development and implementation of the program, building it into almost a $100 million per year business for Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and the Disney Cruise Line. These efforts resulted in over 20,000 weddings and the coveted status for Disney as the # 1 Domestic Honeymoon Destination.
She has been quoted in scores of wedding & honeymoon related articles including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Forbes, Cosmopolitan & BRIDE’S to name just a few. She has directly produced wedding events and remotes for, among others, “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “The TODAY Show” and “Good Morning America.”
Rebecca has orchestrated some of the industry’s most innovative wedding related promotions and partnerships including the Sandals & Beaches Resorts groundbreaking partnerships with Celebrity Wedding Designer Preston Bailey and Cake “Diva” Sylvia Weinstock, the Guinness World Record setting “World’s Largest Vow Renewal” for Harley-Davidson, The Travel Channel’s 6-episode series featuring The Cayman Islands (“Weddings Away-Cayman Islands”), My Destination Wedding with The Knot on the STYLE Network and promotions with top industry brands such as Ritz-Carlton, Martha Stewart Weddings/MSLO, BRIDE’S Magazine, The Knot, the Platinum Guild, American Express, Crate & Barrel and many more.
In 2008, she and Kathryn Arce created an innovative series of luxury wedding business summits called engage! which twice a year bring together 350 of the wedding industries key influencers, thought leaders and tastemakers from around the globe to connect and exchange ideas, innovate and be inspired to take their successful businesses and, in turn, the wedding industry to the next level. All sixteen engage! events to date have been complete advance sell outs with top wedding professionals participating from over 45 states and 30 countries and have met with rave reviews from attendees and speakers alike.
Clients of Engaging Concepts include :: The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, Hilton Worldwide, Sandals & Beaches Resorts, InterContinental Hotels Asia-Pacific, Loews Hotels & Resorts, Palace Resorts, Hard Rock Resorts International, the Tavistock Group, Graceland/Elvis Presley Enterprises, Harley-Davidson, the Kessler Collection, Disneyland Resort, various developers and venture capital firms as well as hotels & resorts in China, Japan, Singapore, Australia, Barbados, throughout the US & Caribbean and many leading luxury wedding and event professionals worldwide.
Rebecca worked with renowned wedding planner Marcy Blum on Billy Joel’s wedding and also with wedding design guru Preston Bailey on Donald & Melania Trump’s wedding.
She speaks and consults around the world on the business of weddings.