Location: The Columns Hotel New Orleans

Season: April 2015

Theme: "Bond & Bombshells" 

Event Vendors

Catering, Rentals, Venue: Columns Hotel 

This event was for my own sorority where I served as Social Chair for two years, I planned more than a dozen different events but this was perhaps my favorite. 

This event unlike others I had planned was done on a very, very small budget. This is where my creative problem solving skills really came into play. 

In New Orleans, even as a sorority social chair, I have had quiet a bit of experience with various professional venues. One of my personal favorites is the Columns Hotel on Saint Charles Avenue, an elegant venue that often hosts cocktail parties and weddings. 

It was not possible to afford this hotel, on my budget so we made a few adjustments. After speaking with Adam Miller, the Columns Event Manager, together came up with a solution.

The hotel did not charge a room fee, but rather a per person fee based on catering. Due to many restrictions and requirements, as per sorority bylaws and Loyola University’s policies I was limited to only Friday or Saturday nights - the most expensive. Also my only date was already booked for a meal earlier in the night. 

What I suggested to Adam was this... let me pay for a dessert starting at 9pm and having a cocktail until midnight. My reasoning being that he had already made his nightly event quotient, through the previous event. I helped him see that my event was just a bonus to his night. I got the room at a 60% discount from the original dinner price. 

The theme was lovely, and the event was extremely popular with my sorority.