Yes, you read the blog title correctly. This post is all about a Peperami wedding! Some of you may be wondering what Peperami is, it's the meaty snack sticks that you would have had if you were a kid growing up in the 90s - the ones in the bright green packaging. The next question that you probably have is - why on earth would someone have a Peperami themed wedding?! Food is my life, but even I wouldn't have a wedding themed solely on my favourite snack, so how did this come about? Why did two people choose to have a meaty snack themed wedding? Luckily for you, I'm here to tell you all about it!
It was back in May when I received a phone call from a contact at a London-based marketing firm; the company were creating the latest advertising campaign for Peperami and they wanted to turn quintessentially British things, well, a bit Peperami! They were launching the campaign with a wedding and I was brought on board to help with the wedding side of things.
The biggest initial challenge was that we didn't have our couple yet. After the casting team had worked their magic and whittled it down to three possible couples, we knew that they were either going to be Leeds or Manchester based. So finally with only 6 weeks to go I was given the go ahead to start searching for venues in and around Manchester. Normally planning a wedding in such a short space of time is an achievable, albeit full on, task; but in the busiest wedding season for decades, I knew that we all had our work cut out for us!
The venue search was challenging as I was based over 200 miles away in Kent, and the clients needed me to find venues that would allow us to really go to town with the branding - this wedding couldn't look like any old wedding. After an extensive search, I put forward a variety of city centre locations and some rural options for the team to choose from. They selected a few to show Peperami, and luckily, our mutual favourite had availability and so The Tipis at Riley Green was finally booked!
Decorating the venue was another tricky aspect of organising the wedding from afar. The creatives at the marketing agency had such ambitious ideas, it was my job to do the research, contact suppliers and ensure that what they wanted to achieve was actually possible. Ellie at the venue was amazing at helping me with this; I didn't have time to do a site visit, so I had to constantly ask her questions about what was where and how much space there was etc, as it's hard to tell just from pictures online! I had to try and find suppliers to create everything from bespoke banners for the outside of the tipis, to a 50m green carpet, green smoke machines and on-brand linen.
One of the challenges that I faced when organising the Peperami wedding, wasn't necessarily the time scale or doing everything remotely, it was the pure number of stakeholders involved in the process. Normally as a wedding planner you liaise between the couple, suppliers and maybe the couple's parents if the marquee is at their home. However, every decision for the Peperami wedding had to be approved by the marketing agency (creatives, production and client account managers), Peperami themselves, the couple (once I'd been put in touch with them 4 weeks before the big day) and the suppliers! There was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing, decisions being changed last minute and numerous e-mail threads to keep on top of!
The biggest last minute change was the wedding catering - with only 10 days to go it was decided that a hog roast wasn't 'Peperami' enough. So the amazing chefs at Totally D'vine Stockport, set about creating a whole new Peperami-based menu. The food was sensational and honestly, I've never seen Peperami products used in so many different ways - in cocktails too! The caterers also had to contend with guest numbers changing - it wasn't just the couple's closest friends and family who were attending; we also had a table of press for the wedding breakfast, and a further 20 crew who needed food throughout the day.
There were so many amazing touches that created the overall WOW-factor at the Peperami wedding - from the stunning florals by Cheshire Flowers, to the Peperami cake from Classic Cakes. After the initial shock at the task ahead, all of the suppliers did a fantastic job of taking the brief and making it even better than we could have imagined! Francesca's gown was made by the super talented Erica Stacey Couture in less than a month! Her dress consisted of a fully beaded and sequined emerald green gown, with a plunging neckline; with an overskirt made from twenty-one meters of bespoke printed satin, fastened with a sparkly red button at the waist. Oh, and a 180cm Peperami animal printed on the train too!!
Not to be out done, the groom opted for a traditional looking suit (so as not to outshine his beautiful bride) kitted out with lots of hidden features. I had the challenge of finding a tailor who could cut out part of the suit and replace it with a printed branded patch, as well as finding a company who could actually print the branded bits that we needed, with such a short lead time! We completed the groom's look with a branded pocket square and tie - all bespoke of course - and that amazing Chicken Bite buttonhole!
In the lead up to the wedding it was my job to create the detailed on the day schedule so that everyone knew where they had to be and when; and so that it also fitted in with the production timeline of what needed shooting at certain points. We had to have a dress rehearsal for the fire breather and smoke flares so that the timings were perfect for the filming - we only had limited supplies so needed to get the shots right first time. A last minute dash to the local B&Q to grab paint for the hand made catapult (colour matched to the Peperami green, of course) did not deter from a fantastic day!
I can honestly say, that being a part of the Peperami wedding was a whirlwind - but I wouldn't change it for the world! I worked with such amazing people, who all played an integral role in making the celebration the huge success that it was (did you see it in the media? We even made it across the Pond to the New York Post!!). It was a huge learning curve, and really challenged my organisational and multi-tasking skills - dealing with so many stakeholders, from so far away and on such a short lead time was a baptism of fire!
If you would like help with planning your own wedding or event, then please get in touch via the contact page on my website to arrange a free consultation. I am based in Kent, but cover the South East and further afield. As a lover of all things logistical, I specialise in marquee and dry hire venues.
Read my other blogs on marquee events here:
I want to say a HUGE thank you to all of the amazing suppliers and people that I met on this Peperami-filled journey!
Photographs taken by Ryan O'Donoghue or various Press, courtesy of Forever Beta.