Wedding Business Solutions

Fausto - Does the Pantone color of the year really matter?

• Alan Berg, CSP, Global Speaking Fellow

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Fausto - Does the Pantone color of the year really matter?

In this insightful episode, we unravel the significance of Pantone's color of the year for wedding professionals. How much does this annual announcement impact the choices of brides and designers alike? Are your clients seeking the latest color trends, or are these nuances primarily influencing industry insiders? Join us as Fausto Pifferer from Blue Elephant Events shares his candid experiences and offers practical advice on incorporating, or ignoring, this annual color forecast into your wedding planning and design.

Listen to this new episode for a deep dive into the true impact of Pantone's color of the year on the wedding industry and how to make the best design decisions for your clients.

About Fausto Pifferrer:
Co-founder of Blue Elephant Events and Catering, Maine Venue Partners, and Co-owner of Real Maine Weddings magazine, Fausto began his career in catering and event planning 39 years ago in Philadelphia. He has an eye for detail and production and is passionate about creating high-quality, memorable events for his wedding and corporate clients. Fausto is a member of the Leading Caterers of America, sits on the board of directors of the International Caterers Association and Seeds of Hope Community Center, and is a past President of the Biddeford-Saco Rotary Club. He recently published his first book: Temporary Friends: A Caterer’s Guide to the Perfect Day.

If you have any questions about anything in this, or any of my podcasts, or have a suggestion for a topic or guest, please reach out directly to me at Alan@WeddingBusinessSolutions.com or visit my website Podcast.AlanBerg.com 

Please be sure to subscribe to this podcast and leave a review (thanks, it really does make a difference). If you want to get notifications of new episodes and upcoming workshops and webinars, you can sign up at www.ConnectWithAlanBerg.com  

View the full transcript on Alan’s site: https://alanberg.com/blog/


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I'm Alan Berg. Thanks for listening. If you have any questions about this or if you'd like to suggest other topics for "The Wedding Business Solutions Podcast" please let me know. My email is Alan@WeddingBusinessSolutions.com. Look forward to seeing you on the next episode. Thanks.

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©2025 Wedding Business Solutions LLC & AlanBerg.com

Does the Pantone color of the year really matter? Listen to this episode. Let's find out. Hey, it's Alan Berg. Welcome back to another episode of the Wedding Business Solutions podcast. I am so excited to have my friend Fausto on to talk about. You are a one word, one name person now. Thanks.

So, Fausto Pifferer, Blue Elephant Events. Fausto, thank you for joining me.

My pleasure. Thanks for having me.

And there was some post online the other day, just about the time that this came out, and my wife and I were talking about it, Mocha Moose. And on the one hand she was excited because it's like half of her wardrobe. So she was very excited about that. On the other hand, it's kind of like, eh, you know, it's a very neutrally kind of thing. So first of all, you do event design, event decor, catering. I mean, you do all of these things. You have your magazine, all this stuff going on up there in Maine. When the new color of the year comes out, I know you pay attention to it, right? But then what does it matter?

Well, yeah, sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't. This particular one grabbed my attention really hard because I thought to myself, how are we going to make this one work with everything? Because it's so like, is it neutral? It's just there. And in my mind it only fell into one season, which would be fall and also geared towards barn venues. And then I had to stop thinking that way. And then, and then all of a sudden I posted it. I wanted to see what everybody was doing and get feelers. And then you approached me and I thought, yeah, let's talk about it. I think that that would be awesome.

So.

So you're. So you're kind of wearing a neutral color. Yeah, there you go.

And you were not going to stand out. And I always think, you know, like, what is the color of bravado? It's not going to be mocha.

All right, so let's go A year ago. A year ago it comes out and it's peach fuzz. Not peach. Not peach. Peach fuzz sounds like a cocktail. Which. Well, maybe. Which according to Pantone, is a gentle, velvety peach hue symbolizing closeness, offering a sense of warmth and serenity.

Okay, so when peach fuzz came out, how did you feel about that?

Peach is not my favorite color. So I said, no, I wasn't doing it, if you want my honest opinion. And I ignored it. So there.

Okay, but let's, let's go to the other side of this. You've been doing this for a long time. So we have. Before that was Viva magenta, then very Perry ultimate gray, classic blue, living coral, ultraviolet greenery, and rose QUARTZ the last 10 years. Here we go. How many of your couples come to you asking for the color of the year?

Maybe 10%, because they don't pay attention to it. And that's. That's the reality of it. We as designers pay attention to it because we incorporate it and then we educate our clients and sort of move them in the direction of let's Place. Like, for instance, if I was going to use MOCA this year with a client, I would move them into bridal wear for the. The bridesmaids, groomsmen, floral, your cake table, your invitations. That's where I would push those colors. When I think it was emerald green was one and so was that.

It was a green. So I can't remember the year it was, but it was.

Yeah, we had greenery. Yeah, yeah, that was. That was. Wow. That was 2017 already.

And you could imagine all the velvet green couches we were using for events.

Right.

Where are they now? Filling a landfill. Sorry, I don't mean to say that out loud, but it's. You sort of kind of have to use colors in a specific way. I am a fan of. If you're going to use a color like for a wedding dress, there are some beautiful sort of mocha, and they're really pushing the envelope with calling it champagne a little bit. But it's an interesting. I would. I'm still very classic on.

On a bridal gown of being ivory white, depending on the colors. I even went as far as red one year with. I had two clients who wore red dresses and thought it was gorgeous. I really did. But they could pull it off.

So now it's also cultural. Right? Like a white dress at traditional Chinese wedding is. A white dress is the sign of mourning. So you don't want to do that. The red is actually the dress there. And again, you have to be able to pull it off from the inside too. Right. It's your personality.

It's just like anything else. Right. You see somebody wearing a wild jacket or whatever, you're like, wow, that fits them. I don't think I could. As my wife would remind me every once in a while, I put a jacket on in the store and she'll like, that's a nice jacket. Not for you. Not for you. Thank you very much, dear.

Although she did compliment me yesterday. She said it was like my granimals tagged mashed. I dressed myself and actually like that. So. So mocha mousse is, according to Pantone, a rich, warming brown that evokes comfort and indulgence inspired by cacao, chocolate and coffee. So again, I could see bridesmaids dresses, linens, things like that. But too much of that, again, to me, just feels too neutral. Where's the accent? Right.

Exactly. And I think that where you should start is always the very beginning. How the wedding starts. Well, it's the bridesmaids. That's what you're going to see first. So that's a great place to place it. And also backdrops, because backdrops are becoming more popular. Instead of having arbors is create something that's just a wow factor.

And I think putting the mocha there can blend in with green. You know, if you're getting married outside, that's a great contrast to that green, that brown sort of that whole mocha feel. And then, too, I would play on it, to be honest with you. I thought about it. Do a welcome drink when people are first arriving and do you know if it's cold? Do a mocha chocolate. You know, and, you know, just. Just that. And it's funny because the mocha always hits me, I think, in that Lady Gaga, that Lady Marmalade, didn't they say mocha chocolate? My head, every time I see it, which is really funny.

So I. I looked at it like, I wrote a couple of things down, and I would start at the very beginning. What you're going to see first. And obviously you're going to see the bridesmaids, the groomsmen, things like that, the florals, the backdrop, you know, now if you move into, like, the cocktail hour, I would choose those colors for your cocktail hour, because that's only going to be there the first hour, and they'll go a little bit more traditional. And if you still want to add those accents, bring them in on the runners, the candles, the menu cards that are on the table. That will add that color to the table without it being overwhelming, in my opinion.

But it feels like it still needs another color. Right? It still needs an accent or something.

Yes. And I think that mocha would pair very nicely with a cream, an ivory, something that's. That's just elegant because I think it'll bring the elegance of the mocha out as opposed to it just being dark. And you don't want to add dark on dark to me.

Right.

You know, well, let's start seasonal because. I. I definitely see the fall. Right. The burgundy in the fall, the green, the fall of it. Yep. So you get a couple comes to you, they get married in the summer. We want to use mocha moose. All right.

Where are you going to go with that?

Your backdrop and your, your cocktail hour. And then.

And then.

And it's a way to sort of kind of engage them and that. That's what I would do. And two, you could actually bring it in on your invitation. And then if you're going to do a wedding website, put those colors there. But in the summer, you know, and spring, those aren't. Those aren't the feel good, you know, like inside that I would say. But again, it is something that you could do, but you have to not over overdo it. And that's my opinion again.

Right. I could see a table with the linens of that. But the flowers have a lot of color in them. So flowers sitting there in the centerpiece, bringing that out, but it's still there. So what it comes back to again is, is it really coming more from the designer's side or is it coming more from the couple's side? Like you said, are they really paying attention to that? So you would say year, year over year, it's like 10 of them are coming and asking for whatever the color is. Does it matter what the color is?

No, it doesn't. Because I think, I think a lot. Well, in, in my, you know, I, I should say this. In my opinion, it does it because at the end of the day, every, like, if you have a barn that's completely, you know, we have a couple of barns, and inside they're dark. They're very, very dark. You're not going to bring those darkness into it. Or you have a historic mansion you're working at if you're, let's say Philadelphia or New York. And it's.

You know how historic mansions don't have. They're not bright inside. They're very. The carpets are blood red. The wood is either mahogany or.

Right.

You have. So you have to play around with that. So you, you have to think about your location when bringing in also the pantone color of the year. Unless you're planning on changing the whole landscape to match it. So that's right.

So. So if we stopped having the pantone color of the year, probably wouldn't make a difference.

No. So I hope they don't come after me.

No, no, no. I get. Well, maybe what is pantone selling? Right? Like, they're not selling couples any paint. Right. For this, you're not going to paint your room this color. Right. The linens are already There just picking the color from your linen supplier. Right.

Whether it's BBG or whoever it is, they have the linens of every color, so that's not an issue. So where is the rest of the influence coming? Where. Let me rephrase that. Where is more influence coming? If 10 is coming from this, where is more of this coming from? More of the influence of color.

I. I think it's floral people that are actually bringing. Bringing more things because. Is it 50 flowers?

Yeah, 50 flowers have a whole section.

On mocha, believe it or not.

Okay.

And I was fascinated by that. And not only they also have a whole DIY section that's also, you know, not. It's silks. So I thought that that was really an awesome way. So I think watching the floral people, because they really have their eye on it, because the florals come in so many vibrant colors that they're also somebody to watch as opposed to just in your head. I am a fan that most of my stuff lives in my head. We were just recently doing an event, and everybody's like, oh, can I help you set everything up? And there was a lot of involved. And I said, no, no, it's up here.

And I have to place it a certain way because it's the way it's living in my head, because I don't do mood boards. That's not my. That's not my signature. That's not my style, because I'm not copying somebody else's stuff. So when I do it, I just put it out there and I said, this is what we're going to do, and this is how we're going to do it. And. And it works for me. It doesn't work for everybody, but I think if you were going to follow it, it would be floral.

And listening to your clients and what they're talking about in their. In that first consultation of colors, because they're already coming to you with all the colors that they want. They know it. And you can see them because we have showrooms in our offices. So the linens are all hanging. I mean, there's a room with over 70 linens hanging in there. And so they're pulling. And as I'm watching, I'm already taking notes of the colors they're gravitating towards.

So that plays a big part. And I. And I'm a big fan of also playing that. It's the venue that also dictates that, because if, you know, we have this particular venue and it has a massive American flag in there, and then they don't take it down. And so you have to work around. And I'm, I'm a proud American. That's a. Don't for that.

But you have to work around a humongous flag that's there when you, when you're decorating. You're never going to see a change in drapery that in. In my neck of the woods. In other, in other markets, there are different color drapery. And mine, it's either ivory white. They don't deviate. And it, and it's been that way 10 years. We brought green in and you thought I set the world on fire, you know, like that, like was a complete.

People were like, no. And I'm like, oh, just, just think out of the box. And it was a style shoe just to see if it would get attraction. We're back to white and ivory or. Right.

And again, you're in the, you're in the northeast corner. You're up in Maine.

Right.

So. And different parts of the country certainly are going to get that. But it. So it. Again, what it feels like is if you're. They're already attracted to your photos, therefore that's your design, therefore that's what you've done, therefore that's what they're going to get. So, you know, if they didn't, like, like you said, if you're putting up only photos of green drapery, you're probably not going to get as many inquiries because they just don't see it.

Exactly.

I remember years ago when we were publishing wedding magazines, my wife was doing makeup for weddings. And we grew up in New York City and now we're up in the Hudson Valley and there was a. An abundance of heavy blue eyeshadow up there. And that was not my wife's way of doing it. Hers was much more natural look. And she would go and do a makeup trial with someone and make them up without, you know, using a trowel for the blue eyeshadow. And they look in the mirror and they say, it doesn't look like me. Because they're used to seeing that.

Like, they're used to seeing white and ivory up by. You're used to seeing that. So let's, let's go another way with this. You being where you are. Where do you get your influence from? Where do you get your ideas? What makes. Again, because it's a scary place to be inside your head. Reuben will tell us that.

Right?

I know you're long enough. I could tell you that. Where. Where does that come from?

Department store Window, like, I love, like, Pottery Barn is the most impressive place for me sometimes. So I'll go to the mall and walk to see their windows. And I remember saying this at Cater Source one year, somebody had asked me the same question, and I said I was just. It was when Cater Source was in Vegas, and I walked by one of the shops at the Venetian, and I think, oh, it was Alexander McQueen. And there was this hanging display from the ceiling. And I said, I'm going to copy that. And we did. And now there are a lot of people that are doing it.

And what we did was hung desserts off of these little acrylic. And so you made it sort of an experience, and that was really cool. And so that's another way that you. If you were to use the pantone color and do it, you can tie it into those kind of. Kind of ideas, and then maybe make the string a mocha where it's hanging down with acrylic. And the desserts could be a certain color and things like that. But that. I get it because I like looking.

And it was back when I first started in Philadelphia because we had bigger department stores. That's where I always drew my inspiration from. I always said I should have been a window decorator, because that's. I love the way they do it, and I love the use of all of the colors that they use. And if you're just starting out and wanting to do it, that's a great way to get inspiration. As opposed to just looking at Pinterest, which is wash, rinse, repeat, wash, rinse, repeat.

Right? And again. But it's history, right? You're watching history because everybody's copying everybody. When I started thinking about us getting on, talking, I just went back to the Devil Wears Prada movie and the whole scene. Where was it? Anne Hathaway says, well, it's blue. And then she gets. She gets blue. Yeah, she. Well, she gets dressed down about.

No, that's not blue. That's cerulean blue. And because it was in this. It was this and this and this. And then all of a sudden H and M and whoever. Everybody's using this blue. But no, it's not just blue. And the importance.

What is it? I guess the butterfly effect. Right. It just started there, and it goes through to this. I'm like you. The inspiration comes from everywhere. I have one of the bedrooms we turned into an exercise room, has a TV, the wall, and it's on wood that's about 3ft tall across the wall. Why? Because I was in A hotel room. And I saw that design and I was like, huh, I could do that, right? I have tools.

And it's that it's now been covered three times with other things because we come up with another idea and another idea, or as people listening to this know, my wife says, you know what I was thinking? And it means Home Depot or Lowe's. Right? That's, that's what it means. Because I love doing it and she loves coming up with the ideas. She makes jewelry. And we were walking the Christmas fair, a Christmas market at Union Square park yesterday. Our son was in from California with my daughter in law. And we're walking and she's just looking at these jewelry things that I could see her wheels spinning. She's like, I'm going to, I could do that.

I can make that. We were going, we went to Philly the other day. She saw a billboard for a bracelet. Now it was an 18 karat gold, whatever, 20, $800 bracelet. Well, she comes home and with her gold filled beads, she made the same bracelet for probably $28. It's 2800. And she showed me a picture of the ad. I'm like, that's the same bracelet.

Wow.

Which is also a great thing. When you're looking at Pinterest, looking at Instagram, you don't know how much that stuff cost. I wish there was a price tag in the corner that said, oh, that cake. That's a $5,000 cake. Exactly. You could do this on a budget if you do, you know, in the style of. As opposed to. I need that.

Right.

Well, it's. And this is no shade on anybody. I said this recently at MBA when we were talking and I said, you know, we throw around the word luxury or design or Pinterest. Sorry about that. If you hear that Bing. And we throw it around a lot. But the reality of it is for people who. So I go into my 40th year next August, we didn't have Pinterest, we didn't have Facebook, we didn't have any of this material.

We had magazines, if that.

Right.

And we had a fax machine, a beeper, and I worked with a word processor at the time. And I don't even understand how I was able to do a word processor when I can't even do a computer half the time. But I did. It was just easier and it was really interesting because we were doing events for some high end people in Philadelphia in that market. And I look back and I said, you have it very easy because you don't really have to think. And I'm not saying that nobody's thinking. We actually had to stop, produce, figure it out and understand what we were doing without having anybody explain it to us the way that the Internet does for everybody right now. And that's great for them.

But you forget that we used to do it without any of that. So that's why I think I don't do mood boards, because I don't want to copy somebody else's. And again, like you said earlier on the interview, everything that was old is new again. It's just, you know, disco balls and clear top tents are making their way to Maine. Like, you know, in 1995, I was doing clear top tents and I hated them then. And they just are here five years now. And I'm like, still hate them. You know what I mean? Because unless you have an air conditioner inside of them, they're brutally hot, right? And you know, in the morning by time, it's Maine, by the time it's five o'clock, it's chilly.

But it's a very interesting way the way things recycle or they're secular, you know, they just keep turning. And it was interesting because I just thought of this and I forgot that in one of our showrooms I do have a paint swatch from. I don't think I ever returned it to the handyman who paint it because I liked all the colors inside of it and it was one of those big sort of thick wheels and it had recolor imaginable. And I said, well, I'll just keep that. And if he wants it back, he knows where to get it and we'll come get it now that he hears this, but here it is. And then we look at Pantone. But the reality of Pantone picking the color of the. Of the year, I don't think it was necessarily for the wedding industry.

In my head, I, you know, it wasn't something that was constantly being done back then. I think we have taken it over and seizing that. And then we pick and choose which color were actually, actually going to use.

You know, well, well, you know, it's a guidance because the difference also, again, I'm not in my 40th year, but I'm catching up to you. I remember when my fiance was looking at things, it was Brides Magazine, you know, that was probably it. You know, then you had to go to the yellow pages to try to find your vendors and stuff like that. The. One of the challenges of the world we live in is the access to information, which creates decision overload, decision paralysis, decision fatigue. Right. Because you tell me you have 70 different linen colors. Yeah.

That's too many. Right? It's too many. It used to be, you know, did you want black or white? Ivory. Oh, you have ivory. Oh, big shot. You're a big shot here. You got ivory. Right.

And then how many different blues do you really need? Right? Do you need cerulean blue and do you need sky blue and do you need navy blue? Do you need cadet blue? Right. All these different blues. And the answer is, you don't need them. But the access to them gives you more choices. More choices isn't always better. And I think what the pantone color of the year for the industry does is it gives you a focus for you to say, yes, I like it, or no, I don't. Right. And then something else that we didn't say but was kind of glossed over is the clear top tents have been there for five years, and you're still using them even though you hate them because it's not for you, it's for them.

Correct.

Right. And it's like the DJ that, you know, DJs would say, I'm not playing that song right now. The do not playlist has a place for about five songs. Right. The song from your first wedding. Right. Your first dance song. Okay.

It's okay to not. Not play that one. And the foul language and the whatever. There's a few songs I will agree with. But the rest of it, you're making a decision for 150 other people who, by the way, have been waiting all year to do the Electric Slide. You know, give me the electric Slide. Give them the cha cha shuffle. Your aunts and cousins are like, we're going to a wedding.

We're going to line dance. All right, let them do it. You don't want to dance. Go outside that. That's all. But I think that going back that color of the year kind of gives you a focus where at least you get to say, oh, it's mocamoose. Let me look at mocamous. I love mocamoose.

I'm going to do a lot of mocamous. I hate mocamous. I'm not doing. Unless they ask me for it. Correct.

And you're right. It's like a jumping point. And so you're, like, right here, and you're, like, looking at it and going. Because when actually did all the research for it, after I posted it and then you had reached out to me, I started falling in love with certain things and hated some other things.

Okay.

And it brought me back to this. I don't know if you know this. This venue in Philadelphia called Karenwood. I think you might.

Yeah, yeah.

All right. So Karen would. I did a renaissance wedding there. It should never have happened. I've got bless them. I'm just being. This was 30 years ago. Okay.

So, you know, probably all the characters have moved on, but it was interesting. Now we'd have to take this Bozark style mansion and create a renaissance wedding.

Right.

But it wasn't my wedding and I needed to take myself. It's what you just said. It isn't about me. It's about what they want. And for those seven hours that we're putting on this production, it's whatever they want.

Right? Right.

You know, I mean, it's not mine to choose. It's not mine to say, no, I don't like that. Which is clearing. You like that? We're going for it, you know.

Well, it. It's the same as a restaurant. So when I'm talking to caterers and I'm talking to restaurant people, I eat out a lot. You travel, right? Not maybe not as much as I do. I travel a lot. And I will say to the server, hey, I've never been here before. I may never be here again. Which is a true statement.

I just might not be in this restaurant. I like to eat at different places. Never been to the city maybe. What should I know? What I don't want them to say is, well, I like the. Because my first thought, my head is always like, oh, are you joining me? Right. Because I shouldn't tell you what I like. What they should say is, do you like fish? And if I go, oh, I love fish, they go, well, if you like fish, my favorite is the salmon. That's okay, right? Because what if I say I'm allergic to fish? I'm going to die if you serve me fish, I like the salmon.

There's no relevance to that. Right. So have you thought about colors for your wedding yet? And if they go, oh, yes, here you go. Here, we want there, right? No, we really haven't thought about it. Well, you know, and then you start asking them good questions there because it isn't for you to. To talk them in or out of it. Except I want to hear this from you. When have you talked somebody out of colors ever?

Yeah, actually, the linen hangs in my showroom. To say, this is not what you want. And it is. Now, I am Hispanic and if it's a quinceanero. Go for it. But if it's a wedding, we're not doing it.

Okay.

It is fuchsia and it is. Got roses on them the size of a two fists. And that's, it's just, it's literally. That's the one every single person makes fun of when they come to the showroom to pick their stuff.

Except abuelita.

Exactly. But you jog something in my, in my thought process here. When we were talking, when we first meet a client, it's interesting that a lot of them always come with swatches because they've gotten their swatches at bridal boutiques and so they already know because they're already picking everything there. And it's sort of the first trickle. Once you get engaged, where do you go first? Well, what's the first thing that's open that you can actually go and, and, and, and tell everybody you're engaged? A bridal boutique. A bridal shop. You're going there immediately. Like even if it's two days after you've gotten engaged, you're going.

Even if you're not going to buy it there, you're going to try to try it.

Right.

And then you're leaving with swatches.

So now bridal shops who are listening, email me, DM me or whatever and tell me what's the delay between Pantone announcing Mocha Moose and your bridesmaid section and your bridal dresses, Are they influenced by this? Because again, I, I don't, I'm with you. I don't know that I see a bride necessarily wearing Mocha Moose bridesmaids. For sure. I could see that. And really almost any of the colors, if they're tastefully done. Right. If you don't hate your bridesmaids. Right.

But I'd be curious, you know, now that it's been announced, is there a scramble? Like all the manufacturers are out there now. Just, okay, we need to make Mocha Moose bridesmaids dresses. We need to make Mocha Moose shawls and whatever else. You know, we need to go along with that. Interesting. There. So that's the only one you've talked them out of. Is that, or is there any.

No, that pretty much is it. And Damask had his place for a while in linens, but it really is something. But something else I just thought of too. When you're releasing the color of the year, it should be released for the following year because we all work a year in advance. All of my couples are already booked and their stuff is already in place. The rentals, all of it's done. So it really, when you think about it just now, because it was an epiphany, right now I'm like, really? This should be 26, not 25. Or the newbie that are coming in for whatever date you have available, it might work for them, but the reality is, for my calendar year, everything's pretty much already set in place.

Right. So is it the color of the year for the people getting engaged now, is what you're saying, whose weddings aren't going to happen now, but they will choose the color in 2025, which might get used in 2026, and then they.

Come out with a new color, and you're like, oh, okay, should I change that?

And whatever. Has that ever happened? Anybody ever come to you and said, I need to change the color because I just saw something? No, no, because. Because you wouldn't allow that.

No, I'll allow anything as long as you're paying for it. You know me. But I, you know, two of it. If you can't change linens that often, if they're specialty orders, so that you're going to pay a cost. So that also plays a big part. Florals can change anytime. But if everything's already done, I think sometimes that becomes harder. And I never thought that.

Why are you calling it the. The color of the year when the reality of it is, if we are all working a year in advance? Because I'm really working on 26, starting January, February, March, and April. It's 26 that I'm concentrating on, not 25.

Right, right, right. So I'd be really curious. Feedback from people. Again, emailing me alleneddingbusinesssolutions.com or commenting. How are you incorporating this color of the year? Does it really matter to you at all? We're looking again towards next year, Fausto, saying maybe about 10% of your weddings are going to end up being incorporating this color. Is that. Is that normal? You know, is that what everybody else is seeing? Or is. Are people.

Are you seeing 20%, 30%? You know, because whenever I would think about it, like, gosh, it would feel like it would maybe influence a quarter or a third of the weddings, but then again, maybe not. And like you said, they're coming to you with the color already and they look at it. Yeah, it's a pretty color, but not for my wedding. Right. It's just the same as when you try to paint a room. You know, the overload. You go to the paint store and it's all the Swatches and then they have the shade of the shade of the shade of the shade of the shade of the shade. Right.

Which again, is helpful if you want the accent wall or any of those things there. But I love. I don't know if. Have you seen this where you get this clear plastic thing that you put on the wall and you paint that?

Oh, wow. No, I haven't seen that yet.

Yeah. So you go to. Go to Home Depot and you get this thing and you put it on the wall and you paint that so you can see it on the wall like a pretty big piece. And then you can just peel that right off, kind of like contact paper.

I like that.

Right. Because the little one doesn't tell you what this whole wall is going to look like when it's there. You need a bigger thing.

Exactly. And if you want to do a 120, which covers a 60 inch round table in a mocha, I think that the little swatch isn't going to do it justice. So having mocha in your showroom collection, which we already do have it.

Right.

And if you're going to choose it, choose it in a velvet because then it really gives you a luxury feel to the linen.

Right. And to me, I think when people sit down, one of the things when I'm helping linen companies sell or designers sell is, you know, what statement do you want the linens to make to your guests? And most people don't think about it that way. They're like, well, what do you mean? Like, well, it covers the table. Right. That, that, that's the purpose of a linen from a physical standpoint, but that's not the purpose from an emotional standpoint, from a design standpoint. And I know I was asked judge a tabletop competition one time. Only once. I recommended you for the next one.

Only one time. And I remember sitting down and all the other people were designers, so they were critiquing things. Oh, my gosh. They're picking it apart. And I sat down, I'd be like, would I want to come to this event? Do I feel comfortable? Like the linen, was it like, oh, this is nice, or is like. And then being, you know, around the industry, when I see a linen that's creased, you know, depends upon where I am, right? Absolutely. Depends on where I am. But if I'm at a place where I'm like, you got an iron? You know, you should iron that, Right.

Lower end place, I'll still notice it. Right? I'll still notice it. And, you know, that'd Be an interesting thing. I wonder if I went to a lower end event and they were ironed. What I notice.

Yeah. Yes. Because sometimes our linens can get that way and you're pressed for time. If you're not allowed in a certain time and the linens come from the rental company and you're sort of stuck and you don't have that.

No, no, no. What I'm wondering is I, as someone who would notice the pieces, right. Would I notice they weren't there? Like, if they had been ironed? Because, you know, I always say we get, we don't always get credit for getting it right. We lose points for getting it wrong. Like, do you notice if you go to a restaurant and you sit down and you know there's no creases in the linen, do you consciously say, oh, there's no creases in the linen, or you just pay attention to other things? Because that's. It's right. So it's not taking your attention.

It's funny that you say that because I tell my clients not to concentrate on the china and silverware as much as they concentrate on it because it's on the table for one hour. Your linens and your florals are there the entire time. It's the first thing you see and the last thing you see.

Yeah.

And so, yeah, I think, I think you would, because I just posted something about a bride that had nobody show up to her wedding. And I'm like, well, first of all, how did you walk in? But to me, everything that caught my attention, where the linens didn't go to the floor, the folding plastic table, the chairs, that all caught my attention. And obviously it was very DIY and there's nothing wrong with that. But if you're going to do that, you can go an extra step. It's just that nobody's explaining to you to say, hey, get this linen. It will make it look a little bit nicer for you. It's $2 more or whatever, but you can do it. And there's a way to do it and dress it up, I think in my book.

But yes, I think you would notice it because I notice it when, when my team puts something down and I'm not there and I'm like, oh, shit, the rental company did not iron correctly.

And again, being in the industry versus not, you know, other people might not ever notice that there's a crease in a linen because there's always creases in the linen wherever they go, therefore it is. And it's not it's just a statement of if your event is more of a luxury event. Those details, like I said, you don't always get credit for getting it. Right.

Then get something with a pattern. You'll never see a crease.

Right. Well, but again, these are some ways that you can get around that we're not going to be able to iron them. Okay, let's get something with a pattern. Let's get something that a material that doesn't crease as much like, you know, nobody gives you credit for. All the light bulbs working in the chandelier.

Exactly.

One is out. They start looking around for what else is wrong. Right.

You got it.

We're going off on a tangent here. We're on light bulbs now. Fausto, always love talking to you. Thank you so much. I think I really am looking forward to the feedback. I'm curious, you know, from the bridal shop community, from other people. Does. Does this matter or not matter? You know, to me, from the outside, it's just interesting, you know, the names like Peach Fuzz and Viva Magenta and Very Perry or whatever.

It certainly doesn't influence my wardrobe at all. My wife is very happy. Like I said, she's already got half mocha mousse going, so. Or complementary colors. So there you go. Thank you so much. If somebody wanted to find find you, where would they find you?

Instagram. Blue Elephant Catering in Facebook and Blue Elephant Catering for Instagram as well.

We will put that into the show. Notes and any links and anything else you want there. But thank you so much for joining me and talking about this. It's been a lot of fun.

Thank you, man.

Nice.

I’m Alan Berg. Thanks for listening. If you have any questions about this or if you’d like to suggest other topics for “The Wedding Business Solutions Podcast” please let me know. My email is Alan@WeddingBusinessSolutions.com or you can  text, use the short form on this page, or call +1.732.422.6362, international 001 732 422 6362. I look forward to seeing you on the next episode. Thanks.

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Alan Berg, CSP, Global Speaking Fellow

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