How event planner Diana Wanjira blows past her competition

Diana Wanjira a wedding planner (Photo: File)

NAIROBI, KENYA; What makes for a good event? The food? The décor? The organisation, entertainment or venue? As an event planner, Diana Wanjira pulls all these components together to run successful functions for her clients, from corporate events to weddings.

In 2011, at the age of 21, Diana quit her job as an IT consultant to start her company, Dynamic Event Solutions. Now 27, she speaks to Hustle about the cogs that turn the wheels behind the scenes of event planning.

“The thing about events is that no two are ever the same. Even if clients ask you for the exact thing, the result is always different. Events are made by people and so all are unique,” she says.

 “I think that’s why I started loving events. Initially, I’d just put them together for my family and friends, but I never thought I’d do it as a business.”

Diana studied information technology at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, but after graduating, she worked for six months as an IT consultant before realising it wasn’t what she wanted to do with her life.  

“When I told my parents I was quitting my job, they didn’t understand. I had a degree and was working for a good company. They tried to convince me to stay, especially because the events industry can be extremely volatile. But in the end, they gave me their blessing.”

Getting started

Diana’s start-up capital was Sh200,000, which she raised with the help of her family and friends. The capital went towards rent, office furniture, a website and the company registration process.

Unlike many event planners who initially opt to run their companies from home, Diana insisted on having a business premises to give her company a more professional feel. 

“I think because doing events is something very easy to get into, too many people take shortcuts. I wanted to start my company right so that I could build a strong foundation. After setting up my office, I decided to sign up for a course on event planning with Samantha Bridal,” Diana says.

“The programme lasted nine months. The first six months were theory classes then in the last three months we had to organise a real event to graduate. That was the most exciting part for me.”

Later, Diana, through a referral from a friend, got a contract for a destination wedding in Naivasha for 1,500 guests that had a budget of Sh2 million.

Her scope of work included liaising between the hotel and the bride, and putting together all the requirements for the wedding day, like photography, décor and entertainment.

“It was a huge challenge for me, especially as I’d never done an event with so many guests. Not to mention that a wedding day is one of the most important days of someone’s life. You can’t afford to get it wrong.”

Tough lessons

Though this first wedding event went extremely well, she learned some tough lessons on how to budget correctly for a job.  She had under-quoted for transportation of equipment to the venue, which ended up costing them.

“Once you give the client a quote, unless they change something on the order, you can’t go back and ask for more money. The loss is yours, not theirs.”

There have been many more lessons for Diana, but she never regrets them as long as she doesn’t repeat her mistakes. She’s a firm believer that every setback is a chance for growth if you keep going.

In 2015, largely due to the success of her first destination wedding, Diana got contracted to do another wedding in the Maasai Mara for 60 guests. It was a high-budget one.

“It was one of the most thrilling events I’ve put together. The bride was Swedish and she flew in everyone, including a photographer, videographer, live performing artiste, DJ and florists from New York. They booked an entire tented camp, which they paid for. Our job was to coordinate logistics on the ground, from airport transfers to game drives in the park,” says Diana.

“The real reason I love events is that, if you’re good at your job, your world expands. To see someone spend that much for a single occasion and hire only the best pushed my vision for the company to a whole new level.”

Dynamic Events added conferences to its portfolio. The firm handled the Trans-Nzoia Investment Conference in 2015, which required an entire week to set up the venue, with several 24-hour days and a crew of 50. It also handled Miss Tourism events for counties like Nakuru and Nanyuki.

The company now not only provides equipment for all types of events, but also deals with ushering services, security, conceptualisation of projects and entertainment.

Finding a niche

Without this range of services, Diana believes it would be very difficult for her firm to remain competitive in the market.

“The event business is seasonal. The busiest season is typically from August to mid-January. You can find yourself handling four events on one day, and then the slow season comes, and a month can go by with nothing to show for it. If you’re not well rounded or do not operate in a niche market, the dry spells could be the downfall of your company.”

Diana’s vision for Dynamic Events is to build it into one of the leaders in the industry when it comes to reliability, professionalism and creative innovation. She also aspires to start an event planning school.

“Too many of us don’t go to school for this in Kenya. We just do it because we have a natural gift. The problem with this option is the mistakes made can be crippling, and it takes most people longer to stabilise their company than it would if they were taught and guided from the very beginning.”

Diana considers herself blessed to have got this guidance. Her company broke even in 2013, two years after being in operation. She has invested in event equipment, furnishings and décor.