January 21, 2026 • 18 mins
Andrea Soltis of GrandEvents knows how to turn “overwhelming” into effortless. Based in the Pittsburgh area, Andrea brings 10+ years of event-coordination experience, helping clients plan everything from weddings and private celebrations to professional business events. Her style is personal and flexible—whether you need full-service planning or just support bringing your vision to life, she’ll meet you where you are and make every detail feel handled. Andrea’s passion started with organizing a community fundraiser—and it’s grown into a business built on creating unforgettable moments.
https://grandeventsplanning.com/
https://grandeventsplanning.com/
Listen
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
And welcome man. This is the CEO's You Should Know podcast.
I'm your host, Johnny Hartwell, let's say hello to Andre
Soltis of Grand Events. Thank you for joining me, Thank
you for having me. So tell us everything we need
to know about your company.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
My company is Grand Events, and I do event planning
for social events like weddings, graduation parties, bridal showers. And
I also do corporate events like holiday parties, fundraisers for corporations,
and also trade shows.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
What's the history? How did you start doing this?
Speaker 2 (00:40):
About thirteen years ago, My oldest daughter was in second
grade and one of her friends was seven years old
at the time and had a brainyaneurism. The dad is
a high school teacher and the mom was a stay
at home mom of five kids. So when Gabby had
her brain aneurism, the family was in a hard spot
(01:04):
financially trying to pay all the medical bills while neither
parent was able to work while they were taking care
of her. So I wanted to help in some way,
So the best thing I could think of was to
organize a fundraising event. So I put together a five
K fundraiser in White Oak, and what I thought was
(01:27):
going to maybe gather fifty or sixty people, ended up
bringing hundreds of people from the community together and I
was able to raise thousands of dollars. So I did
that for about four or five years and really just
fell in love with the planning aspect, the details, and
I realized how good I was at executing this when
(01:48):
other people just felt overwhelmed. They wanted to help, but
nobody could put all the pieces of the puzzle together.
But that's where I was able to find my talent
in my niche.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Now what you do. You have one shot to get
it right.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
That's correct, yep, one shot, So one small detail can
bring down the entire event. So I have to be proactive.
I need to think ahead. I need to consider every aspect,
what needs to go right, what could possibly go wrong,
and what can I do. That's above and beyond that.
My clients aren't even expecting to happen to make them
(02:24):
leave that event and think I need to hire her again.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
And if somebody wants more information, what's your website?
Speaker 2 (02:30):
My website is www dot grand events Planning dot com.
Speaker 1 (02:35):
All right, so you started with this fundraiser, that's right,
And first of all, what was the result of the fundraiser.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Gabby is doing exceedingly well right now. As a matter
of fact, she is twenty two years old at the
end of this month. She is living with her boyfriend
and hoping to get an engagement ring soon and has
already asked.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
Are you going to handle her wedding?
Speaker 2 (03:02):
She has already asked me to help start planning her wedding.
I did a fundraiser for another local family just back
in September, and Gabby and her sister donated a basket
to help raise money. So it was a very full
circle moment.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Cut that's cute. So when did you decide to do it? Hey,
I'm going to do this full time. This is going
to be my profession, this is my career.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Right after COVID, I made it through COVID with my
regular job as my career that I was doing at
the time. And after COVID, my company did a bunch
of layoffs and I took the first round of layoffs
voluntarily because I was looking to do something different, something
that I felt I really enjoyed, and I could still
(03:44):
be able to take care of my kids and be
at all of their activities. So I knew I was
really good at this. I knew I had a talent
that a lot of other people weren't able to do.
So I thought, I'm going to take a chance, and
I did, and about four years ago I started my
own company and it's been doing really well. I'm actually
(04:04):
surprised at the amount of events that I get. Sometimes
I can't believe it's actually happening.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
So what's the difference, maker, what's your secret, sauce?
Speaker 2 (04:12):
I believe the difference is I handle all of my events.
I don't find the client and pass them off to
somebody else. I handle every event from the first meeting
to the last follow up meeting and everything in between.
I'm at your event, and I'll bring assistance with me,
but they are truly my assistance. I am there running
(04:32):
the show.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
So you do weddings and holiday celebrations and birthday parties,
engagement parties and baby showers and so a lot of those.
You know, probably people don't realize how much planning is
involved when it comes to one of these os.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Yeah, there's a lot that goes into it. I'm doing
a really big fundraiser for the Bridges' Hospice Foundation in June,
and we are taking over the Monroeville convention Center. So
for one person to come up with a concept of
what type of fundraiser we're going to do, how much
(05:09):
money are we going to be able to raise, and
who's going to fill that convention center as far as
vendors and guests, it's a lot of work. There's a
lot of aspects that go into it.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
So when it comes to a fundraiser, for example, where
does it start. Do they come with an idea or
they go, we would like to raise money and then
you brainstorm with ideas of yes, so how does that work?
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Both of those things are true. I've had people come
to me and they've wanted me to put together specific fundraisers,
maybe a golf outing for their company, or I do
a lot of local fundraisers for families in need, and
they might come to me with an idea and I
just move forward from that. Or I come up with
(05:54):
a unique idea and I try to make it different
than anything else anybody has been to to pull a cross.
I want everybody to experience something different.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
Do you ever come up with an idea than find
the charity is that you know you have? Like, hey,
I've got this brain storm this idea who would like
to utilize that.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
That's exactly what I did with the Bridges' Hospice Foundation.
I've worked with Kristine Kelly for a little while now,
and I had an idea which I'm not going to
talk about quite yet. Oh it's a surprise, but I
had an idea of something I've wanted to put together
for a couple of years. And I knew with the
(06:35):
size of their foundation and what they need to do
with the funds that they raised, that this is going
to bring in a lot of money. This is going
to be a success, and I'm going to pull people
in from all over the Pittsburgh area with it.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
All Right, So when it comes to let's say, professional
business events, what are some of the things that you that
you have have done.
Speaker 2 (06:53):
I have been able to put together different trade shows
and different meetings and what.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
Be more specific, what kind of trade chose Deavy.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
I like putting together small business trade shows. So I
feel the larger companies have the marketing budget that they
can go out and they can advertise on TV, they
can advertise on the radio. But some of these local businesses,
the mom and pop businesses, they just don't have that,
and they're striving to succeed in an economy that's not
(07:23):
really super great right now. So if I can put
together events for them, like night market. I used to
sit on the board for the Squirrel Hill night markets.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
I don't I'm not familiar.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
These started about ten years ago, and I worked in
Squirrel Hill at the time, and I go.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
To bed at seven o'clock anything.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Yeah, So, like I said, it was ten years ago,
so I was much younger and I was up later
than too. But a lot of the small businesses in
Squirrel Hill they just needed more recognition, they needed more
traffic moving through. So a bunch of the business owners
and managers of some of the larger companies in Squirrel
(08:05):
Hill got together and we put together a night market.
So the vendors line up once a quarter on the
streets of Forbes and Murray. They set up tents and
they set up tables, and they're just open and available
for people to walk through. It's a free event. The
community and surrounding communities attend. I think I read in
(08:27):
the newspaper last year one hundred thousand people have attended
this event. And I was one of the first people
to help start this up.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Okay, and where did that idea come from? Did that
come from you or is that from like the business
district is saying, hey, we need help, or yeah, this
idea a little bit of both.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
So working in that community, if you're familiar with Squirrel Hill,
like most of the neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, they're all very
tight with each other. So we were at a business
lunch one day and we thought, how can we drive
more people into this area and we all just kind
of were tossing ideas around and came up with this
idea to get it started. And that's where that came from.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
So before you kind of started testing the water thirteen
years ago, it was a little fundraiser for Gabby. Yeah. Yeah,
And so what did you do prior to that.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Well, I started my career as a Walmart manager and
I was really really bad at that job. Retail was
not for me.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
So well, sometimes it's nice to know what you don't
want to do. That's a job. Yeah. I used to
work at a loading dock and I was in high
school and I was like, oh, I don't want to
do this.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
Yes, yes, it was a very good jump from college
straight into managing four hundred people, but it was a
little over what I wanted to do with my life, right.
I was a lot of holidays and a lot of weekends.
So from Walmart management, I went into bank management and
I was a bank manager for a couple different Pittsburgh
(10:03):
banks for about ten years. And then, Yeah, like I said,
I just really needed to take a step back and
figure out what I could do to enjoy my work more,
feel like I was accomplishing more, but still be around
to participate in my kids' activities and be a mom.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
And do you love doing this?
Speaker 2 (10:27):
I love doing this. I'm very good at what I do.
I love the details, and I love the way it
pushes me out of my boundaries. I never know how
much I can do until I see the full event
come together. And honestly, the best part of my job
(10:48):
is when that event is over and a bride comes
up and thanks me for having a beautiful wedding, or
a family wants to get their picture with me because
I helped bring awareness to the community oftruggle they're going through.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
Like I said, you have you have one shot to
get it right, and when it happens, it can be
very rewarding. It is so rewarding, and if you work hard,
they all turn out really really they do.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
But it is you shoot.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
You shoot for perfection, and even if you get close,
it's a great event. All right. So you you kind
of launched Grand Events four or five years ago, just
after COVID. Do you remember your first quote unquote first
official event as the CEO of Grand Events?
Speaker 2 (11:35):
Yeah, I do, but they were a lot of fundraisers,
which I was used to anyway. But I do remember
my first event that really really, I was so nervous
for it. I was raised Catholic and I was asked
to do a bar mitzvah. So I joke and I'm
(11:58):
actually doing another bar mitzvah for the same family later
this year. But I joke and say I'm the Catholic
bar Mitzvah planner. My own wedding was at P and
C Park, and that was a huge undertaking. But because
I worked in Squirrel Hill, and because I was familiar
with the venue of P and C Park is more
(12:19):
than just a baseball stadium. The family hired me because
I was familiar with a lot of the Jewish faith,
and I was also familiar with the venue they wanted
to have their bar metzvah, So that was a big
stressor to me, but it went off without a hitch.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Wow. You one of your first events was a bar
mitzvah at P and C Park.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
That's correct.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Yes, about one hundred and fifty people there, and I
was on site from going to the synagogue for the
actual ceremony until the end of the night when everybody
left and there was nothing left to do but clean up.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
All right, So let's talk about the future. What are
some of the plans that you've thought about that you'd
like to expand or grow, or what would you like
to see happen over the next year or two years.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
I do a lot of events right now that are
concept to finish. I think of the events, I execute
the event, and I clean up the event, and I
do it start to finish. What I would like to
do is actually more day of event management. I think
(13:32):
a lot of people really enjoy planning their own events,
but they don't realize how much work it is when
the day comes.
Speaker 1 (13:40):
That's true.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
A bride shouldn't be worried about what time she needs
to cut the cake. The parents at a graduation party
shouldn't be worried about replenishing the pasta on the table.
They need to sit down and visit with their recent graduate.
They need to visit with their family. So I would
really like to start getting into more day of management
(14:03):
and allow families to just enjoy their moments a little
bit more.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
Can you tell me a little bit about Give me
an example of maybe Andrea's crowned jewel, something that you
on an event that was just spectacular. Give me a chance
to brag a little bit about your company.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
Yeah, I'm going to go back to actually my own
wedding at panc Park. My husband and I were just
talking about this the other day. I actually wanted to
get married at the courthouse and not do a big thing,
and he really wanted a big wedding. So I had
(14:50):
heard that Hinsfield was doing weddings at their stadium. And
we are actually really big Heartbreak Pirates fans. We love
the Pirates and every year our heart is broken. But
I thought, well, if Hinesfield is going to do a wedding,
(15:12):
maybe panc Park will do a wedding. I had never
heard of a wedding at panc Park before, so I
called panc Park. I got our name on a list.
Once the season schedule was released, they called me and
they let me pick my date. I tried to do
it during a Pirates game and they wouldn't allow me,
So we rented out. The entire stadium was ours for
(15:34):
the day. You want to talk about filling a venue,
I had to fill an entire baseball stadium.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
That you doubt it. Really.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
We stood on top of the dugout, our guests sat
in the seats going up, and we just had the
best time. Our picture was up on the big screen,
so when you drove out of the four pit tunnels,
you could see our picture up there. I wanted it
to be a really unique experience and it was. It
(16:07):
was just everything I wanted from start to finish that day,
and we have been featured on the Not Wedding website. Actually,
the Post Gazette just ran an article last year about
my wedding, which was in twenty thirteen. So the fact
(16:28):
that they're still talking about my wedding at P and
C Park all these years later, that's really cool. Yeah,
it was just everything I wanted from start to finish,
and people still talk about it, not just the guests,
like I said the post Gazete just ransliting on it.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
Well, we talked a lot about a lot of different things.
Is there anything that we missed in something that you
want people to know about Grand Events?
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Yeah, I really just want people to know that I
do care about each of my clients, and it's not
just a line that I use to try to get
more business. I make sure that I get to know
each of my clients. I did a fiftieth wedding anniversary
for somebody about a year and a half ago, and
(17:12):
I still have lunch with those clients today. I don't
foresee any business coming from them in the future, but
I really got to know them. I got to know
my bar Mitzvah clients enough that they trust me to
come back again. I've done weddings for people that I
still keep in contact with. I go to their baby
(17:33):
showers whenever you know they decide to expand their family.
I truly care about each of my clients.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
Awesome. What is your website again?
Speaker 2 (17:42):
Grand Events Planning dot com.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
Andrea Solstice of Grand Events Once again, the website is
Grand Events Planning dot Com and a CEO you should know.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
This has been the CEOs you Should Know podcast, showcasing
businesses that are driving our regional economy, part of iHeartMedia's
commitment to the community ease we serve. I'm Johnny Heartwell,
thank you so much for listening.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
H
And welcome man. This is the CEO's You Should Know podcast.
I'm your host, Johnny Hartwell, let's say hello to Andre
Soltis of Grand Events. Thank you for joining me, Thank
you for having me. So tell us everything we need
to know about your company.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
My company is Grand Events, and I do event planning
for social events like weddings, graduation parties, bridal showers. And
I also do corporate events like holiday parties, fundraisers for corporations,
and also trade shows.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
What's the history? How did you start doing this?
Speaker 2 (00:40):
About thirteen years ago, My oldest daughter was in second
grade and one of her friends was seven years old
at the time and had a brainyaneurism. The dad is
a high school teacher and the mom was a stay
at home mom of five kids. So when Gabby had
her brain aneurism, the family was in a hard spot
(01:04):
financially trying to pay all the medical bills while neither
parent was able to work while they were taking care
of her. So I wanted to help in some way,
So the best thing I could think of was to
organize a fundraising event. So I put together a five
K fundraiser in White Oak, and what I thought was
(01:27):
going to maybe gather fifty or sixty people, ended up
bringing hundreds of people from the community together and I
was able to raise thousands of dollars. So I did
that for about four or five years and really just
fell in love with the planning aspect, the details, and
I realized how good I was at executing this when
(01:48):
other people just felt overwhelmed. They wanted to help, but
nobody could put all the pieces of the puzzle together.
But that's where I was able to find my talent
in my niche.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Now what you do. You have one shot to get
it right.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
That's correct, yep, one shot, So one small detail can
bring down the entire event. So I have to be proactive.
I need to think ahead. I need to consider every aspect,
what needs to go right, what could possibly go wrong,
and what can I do. That's above and beyond that.
My clients aren't even expecting to happen to make them
(02:24):
leave that event and think I need to hire her again.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
And if somebody wants more information, what's your website?
Speaker 2 (02:30):
My website is www dot grand events Planning dot com.
Speaker 1 (02:35):
All right, so you started with this fundraiser, that's right,
And first of all, what was the result of the fundraiser.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Gabby is doing exceedingly well right now. As a matter
of fact, she is twenty two years old at the
end of this month. She is living with her boyfriend
and hoping to get an engagement ring soon and has
already asked.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
Are you going to handle her wedding?
Speaker 2 (03:02):
She has already asked me to help start planning her wedding.
I did a fundraiser for another local family just back
in September, and Gabby and her sister donated a basket
to help raise money. So it was a very full
circle moment.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Cut that's cute. So when did you decide to do it? Hey,
I'm going to do this full time. This is going
to be my profession, this is my career.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Right after COVID, I made it through COVID with my
regular job as my career that I was doing at
the time. And after COVID, my company did a bunch
of layoffs and I took the first round of layoffs
voluntarily because I was looking to do something different, something
that I felt I really enjoyed, and I could still
(03:44):
be able to take care of my kids and be
at all of their activities. So I knew I was
really good at this. I knew I had a talent
that a lot of other people weren't able to do.
So I thought, I'm going to take a chance, and
I did, and about four years ago I started my
own company and it's been doing really well. I'm actually
(04:04):
surprised at the amount of events that I get. Sometimes
I can't believe it's actually happening.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
So what's the difference, maker, what's your secret, sauce?
Speaker 2 (04:12):
I believe the difference is I handle all of my events.
I don't find the client and pass them off to
somebody else. I handle every event from the first meeting
to the last follow up meeting and everything in between.
I'm at your event, and I'll bring assistance with me,
but they are truly my assistance. I am there running
(04:32):
the show.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
So you do weddings and holiday celebrations and birthday parties,
engagement parties and baby showers and so a lot of those.
You know, probably people don't realize how much planning is
involved when it comes to one of these os.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Yeah, there's a lot that goes into it. I'm doing
a really big fundraiser for the Bridges' Hospice Foundation in June,
and we are taking over the Monroeville convention Center. So
for one person to come up with a concept of
what type of fundraiser we're going to do, how much
(05:09):
money are we going to be able to raise, and
who's going to fill that convention center as far as
vendors and guests, it's a lot of work. There's a
lot of aspects that go into it.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
So when it comes to a fundraiser, for example, where
does it start. Do they come with an idea or
they go, we would like to raise money and then
you brainstorm with ideas of yes, so how does that work?
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Both of those things are true. I've had people come
to me and they've wanted me to put together specific fundraisers,
maybe a golf outing for their company, or I do
a lot of local fundraisers for families in need, and
they might come to me with an idea and I
just move forward from that. Or I come up with
(05:54):
a unique idea and I try to make it different
than anything else anybody has been to to pull a cross.
I want everybody to experience something different.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
Do you ever come up with an idea than find
the charity is that you know you have? Like, hey,
I've got this brain storm this idea who would like
to utilize that.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
That's exactly what I did with the Bridges' Hospice Foundation.
I've worked with Kristine Kelly for a little while now,
and I had an idea which I'm not going to
talk about quite yet. Oh it's a surprise, but I
had an idea of something I've wanted to put together
for a couple of years. And I knew with the
(06:35):
size of their foundation and what they need to do
with the funds that they raised, that this is going
to bring in a lot of money. This is going
to be a success, and I'm going to pull people
in from all over the Pittsburgh area with it.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
All Right, So when it comes to let's say, professional
business events, what are some of the things that you that
you have have done.
Speaker 2 (06:53):
I have been able to put together different trade shows
and different meetings and what.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
Be more specific, what kind of trade chose Deavy.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
I like putting together small business trade shows. So I
feel the larger companies have the marketing budget that they
can go out and they can advertise on TV, they
can advertise on the radio. But some of these local businesses,
the mom and pop businesses, they just don't have that,
and they're striving to succeed in an economy that's not
(07:23):
really super great right now. So if I can put
together events for them, like night market. I used to
sit on the board for the Squirrel Hill night markets.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
I don't I'm not familiar.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
These started about ten years ago, and I worked in
Squirrel Hill at the time, and I go.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
To bed at seven o'clock anything.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Yeah, So, like I said, it was ten years ago,
so I was much younger and I was up later
than too. But a lot of the small businesses in
Squirrel Hill they just needed more recognition, they needed more
traffic moving through. So a bunch of the business owners
and managers of some of the larger companies in Squirrel
(08:05):
Hill got together and we put together a night market.
So the vendors line up once a quarter on the
streets of Forbes and Murray. They set up tents and
they set up tables, and they're just open and available
for people to walk through. It's a free event. The
community and surrounding communities attend. I think I read in
(08:27):
the newspaper last year one hundred thousand people have attended
this event. And I was one of the first people
to help start this up.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Okay, and where did that idea come from? Did that
come from you or is that from like the business
district is saying, hey, we need help, or yeah, this
idea a little bit of both.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
So working in that community, if you're familiar with Squirrel Hill,
like most of the neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, they're all very
tight with each other. So we were at a business
lunch one day and we thought, how can we drive
more people into this area and we all just kind
of were tossing ideas around and came up with this
idea to get it started. And that's where that came from.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
So before you kind of started testing the water thirteen
years ago, it was a little fundraiser for Gabby. Yeah. Yeah,
And so what did you do prior to that.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Well, I started my career as a Walmart manager and
I was really really bad at that job. Retail was
not for me.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
So well, sometimes it's nice to know what you don't
want to do. That's a job. Yeah. I used to
work at a loading dock and I was in high
school and I was like, oh, I don't want to
do this.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
Yes, yes, it was a very good jump from college
straight into managing four hundred people, but it was a
little over what I wanted to do with my life, right.
I was a lot of holidays and a lot of weekends.
So from Walmart management, I went into bank management and
I was a bank manager for a couple different Pittsburgh
(10:03):
banks for about ten years. And then, Yeah, like I said,
I just really needed to take a step back and
figure out what I could do to enjoy my work more,
feel like I was accomplishing more, but still be around
to participate in my kids' activities and be a mom.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
And do you love doing this?
Speaker 2 (10:27):
I love doing this. I'm very good at what I do.
I love the details, and I love the way it
pushes me out of my boundaries. I never know how
much I can do until I see the full event
come together. And honestly, the best part of my job
(10:48):
is when that event is over and a bride comes
up and thanks me for having a beautiful wedding, or
a family wants to get their picture with me because
I helped bring awareness to the community oftruggle they're going through.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
Like I said, you have you have one shot to
get it right, and when it happens, it can be
very rewarding. It is so rewarding, and if you work hard,
they all turn out really really they do.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
But it is you shoot.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
You shoot for perfection, and even if you get close,
it's a great event. All right. So you you kind
of launched Grand Events four or five years ago, just
after COVID. Do you remember your first quote unquote first
official event as the CEO of Grand Events?
Speaker 2 (11:35):
Yeah, I do, but they were a lot of fundraisers,
which I was used to anyway. But I do remember
my first event that really really, I was so nervous
for it. I was raised Catholic and I was asked
to do a bar mitzvah. So I joke and I'm
(11:58):
actually doing another bar mitzvah for the same family later
this year. But I joke and say I'm the Catholic
bar Mitzvah planner. My own wedding was at P and
C Park, and that was a huge undertaking. But because
I worked in Squirrel Hill, and because I was familiar
with the venue of P and C Park is more
(12:19):
than just a baseball stadium. The family hired me because
I was familiar with a lot of the Jewish faith,
and I was also familiar with the venue they wanted
to have their bar metzvah, So that was a big
stressor to me, but it went off without a hitch.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Wow. You one of your first events was a bar
mitzvah at P and C Park.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
That's correct.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Yes, about one hundred and fifty people there, and I
was on site from going to the synagogue for the
actual ceremony until the end of the night when everybody
left and there was nothing left to do but clean up.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
All right, So let's talk about the future. What are
some of the plans that you've thought about that you'd
like to expand or grow, or what would you like
to see happen over the next year or two years.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
I do a lot of events right now that are
concept to finish. I think of the events, I execute
the event, and I clean up the event, and I
do it start to finish. What I would like to
do is actually more day of event management. I think
(13:32):
a lot of people really enjoy planning their own events,
but they don't realize how much work it is when
the day comes.
Speaker 1 (13:40):
That's true.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
A bride shouldn't be worried about what time she needs
to cut the cake. The parents at a graduation party
shouldn't be worried about replenishing the pasta on the table.
They need to sit down and visit with their recent graduate.
They need to visit with their family. So I would
really like to start getting into more day of management
(14:03):
and allow families to just enjoy their moments a little
bit more.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
Can you tell me a little bit about Give me
an example of maybe Andrea's crowned jewel, something that you
on an event that was just spectacular. Give me a chance
to brag a little bit about your company.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
Yeah, I'm going to go back to actually my own
wedding at panc Park. My husband and I were just
talking about this the other day. I actually wanted to
get married at the courthouse and not do a big thing,
and he really wanted a big wedding. So I had
(14:50):
heard that Hinsfield was doing weddings at their stadium. And
we are actually really big Heartbreak Pirates fans. We love
the Pirates and every year our heart is broken. But
I thought, well, if Hinesfield is going to do a wedding,
(15:12):
maybe panc Park will do a wedding. I had never
heard of a wedding at panc Park before, so I
called panc Park. I got our name on a list.
Once the season schedule was released, they called me and
they let me pick my date. I tried to do
it during a Pirates game and they wouldn't allow me,
So we rented out. The entire stadium was ours for
(15:34):
the day. You want to talk about filling a venue,
I had to fill an entire baseball stadium.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
That you doubt it. Really.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
We stood on top of the dugout, our guests sat
in the seats going up, and we just had the
best time. Our picture was up on the big screen,
so when you drove out of the four pit tunnels,
you could see our picture up there. I wanted it
to be a really unique experience and it was. It
(16:07):
was just everything I wanted from start to finish that day,
and we have been featured on the Not Wedding website. Actually,
the Post Gazette just ran an article last year about
my wedding, which was in twenty thirteen. So the fact
(16:28):
that they're still talking about my wedding at P and
C Park all these years later, that's really cool. Yeah,
it was just everything I wanted from start to finish,
and people still talk about it, not just the guests,
like I said the post Gazete just ransliting on it.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
Well, we talked a lot about a lot of different things.
Is there anything that we missed in something that you
want people to know about Grand Events?
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Yeah, I really just want people to know that I
do care about each of my clients, and it's not
just a line that I use to try to get
more business. I make sure that I get to know
each of my clients. I did a fiftieth wedding anniversary
for somebody about a year and a half ago, and
(17:12):
I still have lunch with those clients today. I don't
foresee any business coming from them in the future, but
I really got to know them. I got to know
my bar Mitzvah clients enough that they trust me to
come back again. I've done weddings for people that I
still keep in contact with. I go to their baby
(17:33):
showers whenever you know they decide to expand their family.
I truly care about each of my clients.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
Awesome. What is your website again?
Speaker 2 (17:42):
Grand Events Planning dot com.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
Andrea Solstice of Grand Events Once again, the website is
Grand Events Planning dot Com and a CEO you should know.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
This has been the CEOs you Should Know podcast, showcasing
businesses that are driving our regional economy, part of iHeartMedia's
commitment to the community ease we serve. I'm Johnny Heartwell,
thank you so much for listening.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
H
Popular Podcasts
Betrayal Season 5
Saskia Inwood woke up one morning, knowing her life would never be the same. The night before, she learned the unimaginable – that the husband she knew in the light of day was a different person after dark. This season unpacks Saskia’s discovery of her husband’s secret life and her fight to bring him to justice. Along the way, we expose a crime that is just coming to light. This is also a story about the myth of the “perfect victim:” who gets believed, who gets doubted, and why. We follow Saskia as she works to reclaim her body, her voice, and her life. If you would like to reach out to the Betrayal Team, email us at betrayalpod@gmail.com. Follow us on Instagram @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com