MEET THE SUPPLIER - Olivia, owner of Social Scenes Event Hire & Balloons

Meet Liv. She is a driven, creative and warm-hearted mum and wife who, together with her husband Cliff, has hit the ground running in the events and wedding industry in the Clarence Valley.

Although Social Scenes is still in its early chapters, Liv brings a genuine passion for celebrating life's biggest moments, from baby showers and first birthdays through to the big day itself. She loves travel, the outdoors, and above all, sharing in the joy of the people around her.

Liv was kind enough to sit down with us and answer a few questions to give us a better sense of what drives her and offer a glimpse into the Social Scenes story so far.

Give our readers a little bit of background on how SS began and how long you have been doing it?

Social Scenes actually started while we were on our honeymoon when we saw an ad for a local business being sold. We jumped straight in from the other side of the world and began preparing and brainstorming from there. We started out solely as a balloon and backdrop hire business servicing baby showers, birthdays and smaller events, however as we have started to expand and receive many wedding enquiries we decided to go all in and cater to weddings and the entire event industry. We have now been running for a year and a half in total with the weddings only being introduced quite recently.

Many wedding businesses, especially in the Clarence Valley, are often peoples side gigs. Do you guys do anything else outside of weddings?

Cliff is a FIFO worker in the mining/civil construction industry so his availability is limited for events. Liv is the main operator of the business and has just finished her maternity leave but has been working in the Real Estate industry since 2019.

What do you love so much about being part of someone's wedding day or special event?

There are so many happy moments in life and in some cases we are lucky enough to follow someone's journey from baby showers to first birthday to engagement party and now weddings as well. Celebrating life, family and love is the biggest joy in our own life and we absolutely love being able to share in other people's joy as well, it is highly rewarding in that way.

What does a typical weekend look like if you don't have a wedding on?

On our free weekends, we love to travel, camp, fish and just get outdoors. Otherwise, we like to spend that time with family and of course doing all of that with our baby girl.

Did you always have ambitions to own your own wedding business? If not, what did you see yourself doing before you started this business?

For a long time, I have definitely wanted to get into the wedding business however I always dreamed of owning a wedding gown shop. I worked hard over the years to finish a degree in Business/Marketing in hopes to one day make my dream a reality. The idea of buying a balloon and backdrop business was to eventually expand into the wedding side of things to get a foot in the door of the industry I have always wanted to be a part of. There may still be a future for the gown shop a long way down the track.

Have you got any disaster stories from previous weddings you have done?

Given we are quite new to the wedding industry, we have been lucky enough to experience only smooth sailing so far, however we have had one bad experience. We were driving home from an event in Yamba one day through a big storm. The cover on our trailer caught in the wind and tore in half, we had to pull over in the pouring rain to try and patch it back together and tie our balloons down so they didn't blow away. Thankfully, we were on our way home, not on our way to the event.

What is the #1 mistake brides and grooms make when it comes to their wedding day?

I think excessively exceeding your budget is the worst mistake you can make. Planning a wedding should be fun and enjoyable, it's something most girls look forward to for a really long time. Going over budget typically causes arguments, stress and can ruin the process and excitement of wedding planning. We are strong believers of stress free weddings and the best way to achieve that is to be conscious of your budget at all times.

What is your most important tip for brides and grooms?

The most important thing to remember on your wedding day is to stick together for the whole day. It is a day to celebrate your love together so make sure you are together as much as you can. Engage and speak with friends and family together and enjoy each other's company all day long.

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