WOW – What a Year!

NLED Event Planning
1024 576 Next Level Event Design

A message from Cathy Genetti, President –

Every January we try to take time to reflect on what was and what will be. This year is a very special milestone since we’ll be celebrating our 10th Anniversary and wow – there’s so much to celebrate! As we were recently working on a sizzle reel, I went through a photographic journey of the evolution of Next Level Event Design – where we started a decade ago to where we are now. The memories of selecting the name, the logo, the initial website creation (and I’ll add that I’m glad we don’t have photos of that painful process)!

When I see these images, I can’t help but think about the intense details and the strategy that is behind the pretty pictures.

Some of our favorite feats –

Event Planning

Left Photo: A complete Ballroom reset from Classroom style to Pre-Set Banquet Rounds for 180 guests in 65 minutes (The Duchossois Family Institute).
Right Photo: 14 hours from receiving the RFP to submitting the proposal and then loading in 12 hours later (Executive Office of President Obama).


Event Planners

Left Photo: 22 hours – the least amount of sleep during a multi-day conference over a period of 6 nights (Tetra Pak, Washington DC)
Right Photo: Executing 84% of our annual revenue within 32 days (2014)


professional event planners

Left Photo: Complete change of event format and layout due to security concerns 90 minutes before event kick-off (University of Chicago, Saieh Building Dedication ).
Right Photo: (5) Hotels, (3) Venues, (28) Vendors – (Google – Pave the Way Summit)

There have been some very complicated and logistically challenging projects and I’m humbled by the faith and confidence entrusted in us by our clients. A special mention to the clients we’ve worked with since the very beginning and who we’ve grown together with as true partners do. We’re looking forward to some even more amazing projects in 2019 and 2020!

I am also especially proud of the team we’ve become and the diversified talent each person brings to the planning table. We’ve spent a good deal of energy mapping out where each of us excels, to become stronger as a collective benefitting both the team and our clients. This process has been invaluable to me in my personal growth as a leader and I look forward to delving into this more during our upcoming retreat.

It’s been a crazy 10 years — we had a few sleepless nights, but we traveled, laughed, designed the heck out of our clients’ events and can’t wait for more.

Looking forward to digging into a robust 2019 and as always thank you for your support!

Here’s a peek at what it means to take your event to the Next Level!