RSA House, the award-winning Central London venue, is delighted to welcome Olivia Parrott as its new wedding planner and private event sales and marketing executive.
Olivia joins with a wealth of experience having been in the CH&Co Group since 2016 where she initially began as an events assistant before becoming a venue consultant. Olivia recently won the ‘Hire Space Unsung Hero Award’ in recognition her outstanding work at ITA Venues and her ability to continually exceed expectations and go above and beyond for each and every client.
A passionate and enthusiastic industry advocate, Olivia will be responsible for growing the wedding and private events division of the business through her vision and implementation of plans to proactively develop RSA House’s presence in the market.
Olivia comes onboard following a strong start to the year for RSA House. The venue has welcomed several new and returning clients including LSE and BVCA, hosted an exclusive London Fashion week party in the vaults, and launched new DDR menu’s including a ‘Fuelling not Feeding’ menu and a new ‘Grazer Lunch’ menu, both showcased at the recent RSA Open House, putting health and sustainability at the forefront of operations in 2019.
On joining RSA House, Olivia Parrott, commented: “I’m delighted to join the team at such an iconic venue that has so much prestige and history associated with it. I cannot wait to get stuck into some of the exciting projects that RSA House has in the pipe-line this year.”
Emma Gaymer, Sales and Marketing Manager at RSA House, says: “2019 is set to be another busy year for us and we’re thrilled to have Olivia onboard. Olivia’s passion for the industry is infectious and we look forward to her building upon her successes with us at RSA House.”
Olivia Parrott, Wedding planner and Private Events Sales & Marketing Executive answers our questions
What are you most looking forward to in your new role at RSA House?
To be honest, I am most looking forward to building amazing relationships with our 2019 wedding couples, suppliers and some of the top wedding industry professionals that we work with. I feel privileged to represent RSA House, so I hope my passion for the venue will continue to shine through.
How did you get into the industry?
With my organisational skills, attention to detail and enthusiasm I knew the exciting world of events was for me. After finishing my A-levels I knew I was ready to get stuck into the world of work. I really believe that in this industry in particular on-the-job training and experience is key.
I did find it daunting not knowing which career path to take after completing my A-levels. I was lucky that by chance an apprenticeship opportunity came up and the job description seemed like it had been written especially for me. This made me realise that everything in life really does happen for a reason.
What do you love most about this industry?
I love the creativity of events, especially working in weddings, as I know that each event I work on is never going to be the same which is something I think is so special. I love it when couples are inspired to be creative with their ideas and really put their own stamp on their day. I think this is what makes weddings such memorable and exciting occasions. I also love that event professionals are all so creative meaning that industry events are always inventive and imaginable.
What have been a couple of career highlights and some of your favourite events that you have worked on?
One of my main career highlights was winning the ‘Unsung Hero Award’ at last year’s Hire Space Awards. I felt extremely proud that I was able to achieve something like that and it really meant a lot to me.
One of my favourite events that I created was around an ‘enchanted’ theme which also happened to fall on World Vegan Day, so the whole menu was vegan which guests loved as it was such a popular food trend in 2018, and still is. We had an interactive dessert station which included edible garden objects such as pebbles, soil and flowers, which were all incredible. The event felt luxurious and high-end and the feedback from the team, wedding industry professionals and couples was invaluable.
How do you see your role developing at RSA House?
My overall goal is to develop the wedding brand within RSA House by creating amazing weddings but also showcasing the personality of the venue and its catering. I plan to carry out thorough research to understand what has worked well with RSA House weddings in the past and how we can look to establish new ideas
What is your favourite space at RSA House?
The Vaults; 100%! They add such an amazing and exciting contrast to the other spaces within RSA House and allow clients to really exercise their creativity within this trendy and modern space.
What have been some of the biggest challenges you have faced and how did you work to overcome these?
Some of the biggest challenges I faced when first starting out in the events industry were around how best to allocate the marketing spend. However, with time I have analysed what works well and what is most effective to ensure results. This has all come with time and working with professionals within the industry to gain feedback on what they feel is effective in regards to advertising and marketing spend.
What are your future aspirations both on a personal and professional level and how do you plan on fulfilling these?
My personal aspiration is to challenge myself more when organising my own time and become more all-rounded in life. The main three main goals I wish to achieve are; to start visiting new places, helping with charity work such as the Samaritans and Macmillan Cancer Support which are important to me, and finally, as I used to love contemporary dance I would like to get back into this. I hope to achieve these my managing my spare time more effectively and setting short term and long-term goals for myself.
My career aspiration is to create invaluable relationships within the industry to promote RSA Weddings to the best of my ability. I will achieve my ambitions by actively attending industry events to gain new contacts, new ideas and inspiration. This will enable me to gain invaluable knowledge of the wedding industry so that I can effectively guide couples at every stage of the wedding journey.
What would your dream event involve?
My dream idea for my own wedding would certainly involve jetting off somewhere like the Maldives or the Caribbean! Definitely somewhere with beautiful weather and stunning surroundings, which would be a fantastic backdrop for photographs. I’d ensure there are many personal touches which make other guests smile; such as a soul music style which I have always loved or a particular scent for the wedding – I feel details like this are what make weddings memorable and authentic. The menu would need to be delectable and I would incorporate personal travels and experiences into my catering for the day.
If you would like have your wedding at RSA House and have Olivia as your own personal wedding planner visit here for more details.
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