Today we’d like to introduce you to Yvonne Wolf.
Yvonne, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born on a ship to immigrant children-of-Holocaust parents on their way to Montreal, Canada. My first languages were Romanian and Hungarian, and I learned English and French when I started attending school. My earliest childhood memories are of me coordinating tea parties for my Barbies and stuffed animals and pretending to be a McDonald’s server! Balloons and cake made me happy as did shopping for presents. After enduring too many cold Canadian winters, my sister and I moved to Beverly Hills where my first job was in banking. Although I was on the trajectory to become the youngest female branch manager in the company, I found myself volunteering more and more on coordinating my friends’ and families’ celebrations from beginning to end. That gave me joy! By pure chance, I saw that a recruiting company was looking to fill a “Special Events Coordinator” position in Beverly Hills. I got the job and ironically, it was for Telefilm Canada, the Federal Canadian Government entity, promoting Canadian Film and Television in the United States! For several years I coordinated Telefilm’s participation at film festivals such as Sundance, Oscar Receptions at the Canadian Consulate and designing exhibit booths at television and film markets. When my sister died suddenly at an early age from complications of Diabetes, I looked at my two young children at the time and knew that the phrase “life is too short” was not a cliché.
Event Planning and making people happy with creativity, hard work and dedication to providing the best of memories became my mission! After a few bumps along the way including a divorce, a failed first-attempt with a service-based strictly on shopping for events and financial setbacks (starting your own business as a single mom is brutal with no income coming in!), Yvonne Wolf Events is now recognized as a boutique events company with care, where the Owner/Creative Director (me!) is hands-on and works diligently on behalf of its diverse clientele, including transgender, same sex, corporate, royalty, celebrities, single moms (yes!) and more! My passion and energy has never wavered over the years and tens of hundreds of events in! My team and I give 110% attention to each client’s needs and vision. It is my pleasure and honor to work in sunny Southern California with wedding couples, bar/bat mitzvah clients, on corporate events, book signings, nonprofit galas/fundraisers, real estate open houses and more as if each of these events were my own! I love what I do and do what I love… THIS is not a cliché!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has not always been a smooth road. I started Yvonne Wolf Events when I was going through my divorce and when everyone knew me as a “stay-at-home” mom. Although I always received rave review for my kids’ birthday parties, starting a brand new “party” business during a financially and personally challenging time and when I thought people doubted that I could make this work, left me wondering if I should continue pursuing this dream of event planning. Being a Cancer Survivor has given me enormous strength in not giving up! I offered free services for many clients for quite some time in order to build my portfolio of photos and experiences and that’s how I really started! I’ve been very fortunate not to have made serious mistakes along the way – always applying new experiences and knowledge to the next event!
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Yvonne Wolf Events story. Tell us more about the business.
With Yvonne Wolf Events, my passion, creativity and personal dedication has allowed me to connect with a unique and diverse clientele; from engaged couples and families with milestone celebrations to single parents, celebrities, high-level executives, government officials, nonprofits, corporations and more. Each coordinated event is infused with enthusiasm, style, versatility, attention to detail and organization, along with educated choices based on years of varied and storied experiences. I am fortunate to have cultivated a wonderful repertoire of quality, professional vendors and enjoy exclusive relationships with an eclectic array of venues in Los Angeles.
Everyone on my team is extraordinary and an integral part in producing and executing creative and successful events, big or small. I think what sets me apart from other Event Coordinators are three things; 1) the way I look at my clients’ special events as one large puzzle made up of very small, detailed puzzle pieces. Each piece is carefully evaluated creatively, logistically and financially to make sure it fits with my clients’ vision. My background of producing all kinds of events allows me to be an expert equally in wedding coordination as in producing live concerts. 2) I always find a genuine connection with my clients because I genuinely care. I recognize that their day/evening is incredibly important to them and thus, it is incredibly important to me! Many past clients are now my friends! 3) I fly under the radar and don’t like/need to be in the spotlight! My work has been featured in New York Times Weddings, People, Inside Weddings, Hollywood Reporter and California Homes magazines.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love how Los Angeles makes me FEEL! I am grateful for the sunshine – that makes me feel warm and like I can walk anywhere (Yes! I actually WALK to places!). I love how Los Angeles makes me FEEL welcomed as a female-owned, small business owner where I never have to explain why I do what I do. Creativity is a part of our culture! Like most people, I don’t like L.A. traffic and hate that I turn down social opportunities because I know it will take me hours to get there or hours to get back even when the events are not that far away! I also don’t like that Spanish is not taught in schools starting in Kindergarten and people don’t walk the city like they do on the East Coast!
Pricing:
- We are a full-service event planning company with packages starting at $3,500 but I believe everyone should have the opportunity to work with an experienced and creative Event Planner so I started the exclusive “DIY with Yvonne Wolf Events” See below link.
- https://www.yvonnewolfevents.com/diywithyvonnewolfevents
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.yvonnewolfevents.com
- Phone: 323-356-2698
- Email: [email protected]
Image Credit:
Karina Pires Photography, Gloria Mesa Photography, Wild Whim Photography
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