Meet Maggie Burns | Owner, Ad Astra Events

We had the good fortune of connecting with Maggie Burns and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maggie, putting aside the decision to work for yourself, what other decisions were critical to your success?
After making the decision to work for myself, the most valuable decision I’ve made for the company was to hire a team. Having a team working for the brand has allowed the company to grow into something more than what I could have imagined. Different personalities and perspectives come together at our staff meetings and we’re able to challenge, stretch, and grow because of each other. We debrief after each event to share success stories and pitfalls and how we overcame them. My team makes me better and they make the brand stronger and more experienced.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Ad Astra Events is a wedding planning business that specializes in creating planning packages that meet clients where their needs are. We hand craft each package proposal based on the scope of the event, the blind spots of the client, and the venue requirements. We tossed the standard wedding planning packages out the window and decided that each couple and wedding is unique, so the planning process should also be unique.

Because Ad Astra has a team of planners, not only are the planning packages custom, we actually choose a planner for each client based on the venue and the personality of the couple. I’m proud of each of the lead planners and their care and dedication to each couple. We’re excited to be helping couples experience planning bliss and smooth wedding days.

It took years to get the company where it is today. One of the biggest hurdles I had to face was scaling the company during the pandemic. If I had known a global pandemic was around the corner, I definitely would not have chosen 2020 to be the year I added my first employee. I’ll never forget the first weekend I had two weddings on the same day – one for each of us. It was March 21 of 2020 and it was chaos. The government shut events down the week of the weddings leaving us to manage client emotions and expectations. The minefield of concerns was widespread, unique, and almost impossible to tame. We ended up executing both events after we each re-planned them from start to finish the week of. It was so complicated to do the work necessary for my own couple and to simultaneously coach an employee on how to do the same but with a totally different scope and set of circumstances.

I learned that you can’t just blindly say yes to something and learn as you go. In order to intentionally scale, you have to intentionally plan and prep for it. During the pandemic, I took time to un-plan and re-plan all of my events and also poured into the first employee I had before adding more to the team. I built standard operating procedures, an employee handbook, and added regular staff meetings to the schedule. I try to do professional development at each staff meeting to keep the team on their toes. I developed systems to support the needs of the planners and also have annual reviews. I tried to create an environment that I would want to work in. I know I can’t prepare them for everything, but I can do my best to make them feel encouraged, supported, and equipped to handle anything.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’ve actually been known to design itinerary packets for family visits. They’re full of schedules, maps, addresses, and fun spontaneous options as well (read: mural locations). I really enjoy creating wedding day graphics for my couples and creating a packet for guests brings me such joy!

I love to include all of my favorite coffee shops. We always make a trip to Red Bike and CREMA. I also must have everyone I know try Hugh Baby’s. There’s no other fast food place like it! Then you have your regular go-to restaurants: Grilled Cheeserie, ML Rose, Hattie B’s, Fifth and Broad, and of course Pinewood Social. We also love taking people to Fort Negley. You can’t beat that view of the city! The bicentennial mall is also a great stop because you can enjoy the outdoors, learn something, and pop into the farmers market when it’s open.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to dedicate my Shoutout to the Nashville Wedding Planners Group. This group of event planners has challenged, encouraged, guided, and helped me in countless ways. The mentality of collaboration over competition is admirable and has been a life saver.

Website: www.adastraeventsllc.com

Instagram: @AdAstraEvents

Image Credits
Josh Bennett Photography, John Myers Photography, Daniel Poore Media, Emilee Carpenter Photography, Jennifer Cody, Caitlin Steva Photography