Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabriella Shahi.
Hi Gabriella, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I started off in the wedding industry several years ago as a professional wedding officiant in California (which is definitely one of the most “niche” vendors of the wedding vendor variety). I got into officiating because I am a proponent of marriage and I have a knack for story telling. I felt like couples deserved to have wedding ceremonies that truly told their love story and were delivered with joy and intention. At Married by a Millennial (my wedding officiant business), we craft bespoke ceremonies and we try our hardest to ensure they are far from stale and boring. The biggest compliment I receive (besides the couple crying tears of joy LOL) is when the wedding guests ask me how I know the couple because it feels like I’m a long time friend or relative.
Fast forward to my move to North Carolina – I knew I wanted to continue to support marriages but on a grander scale. I reflected on how I could take my knowledge and experience as an officiant and a married person and deliver the greatest impact to other couples. Cliff note but I actually planned my very own micro wedding a decade ago (before it was trendy) which was the seed for launching our micro wedding business today. In the same way that I give my ceremony clients a bespoke rendition of their unique love story, I wanted to do the same for their entire event.
The name Moonshine carries double meaning for us. The legacy of Moonshine as a liquor, the ability to craft something by hand, make it your own, the grit and tenacity of the time, the rebellious nature lends itself to how we approach our work. Also, the romance and beauty of the light from the Moon appeals to our design sensibilities. Our motto to marry those two meanings (no pun intended) is “Heartfelt, Handcrafted, and a little Rebellious”. We love to push boundaries, find creative solutions, and have a great time while doing it.
Micro weddings, which really comes down to keeping your guest count to your closest friends and family, allows you to take your budget and give it a super boost to support the parts of your celebration that mean the most to you. What we are doing isn’t simply recreating an inspo board but rather to curating their wedding to reflect their bond both as a couple and also with their inner circle. There is a lot of performance that comes along with the wedding industry and everyday couples deserve an option that focuses what matters the most. Sometimes that means we ditch the wedding cake and have peach cobbler, sometimes that means we have card games and dominos, sometimes that means we are in record shop instead an a traditional venue. As we’ve come to learn the RTP, we’ve come to realize that we are giving people an opportunity to take back their wedding day, to show up unapologetically as they are, and to feel free to let their wedding day feel and be authentic.
Today we are focused on building strong relationship in the community and with local businesses to better support our mission. A lot of people are learning about us through social media which is great. We realize our style of wedding may not be for everyone, not everyone can narrow their guestlist to our wheelhouse, but we definitely want folks to know this is a powerful option that is very attainable.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’ve never met a business owner who has had a “smooth road”. That said, the road has a lot of lessons along the way and the more you learn the better. We are still in our beginning phases and so far so good. Our team really believes in what we are doing which helps those long days, late nights, and weekends worth while. I’d say the biggest factor is getting our name out there in a very saturated industry. We’ve utilized social media, especially TikTok, to get in front of future clients. In events, there are also a million factors at play at any given time which is certainly challenging with a small team, luckily, that is also what we find both exciting and satisfying about this work. The last challenge is to explain what a micro wedding is! I know it’s in our name but it is an aspect of our offerings that sometimes get overlooked.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
There are several venues and planners who offer micro weddings packages. However, micro weddings are our BAG, it is what we do, and it is what we are passionate about. We specialize in micro weddings for couples who want their wedding to be a reflection of their bond. We take what would usually cost close to six figures and deliver it for these intimate celebrations at a fraction of the cost. We are able to do this by focusing the budget on where it has the most impact based on the couple’s preferences, not force them into what is economical for us. We want to help couples breakout of the “cookie cutter” style weddings they see online. We help them reimagine what is “wedding” by taking their story and finding creative ways to bring it to life. That can be sourcing decor from local thrift stores or mixing our inventory to accent unique venues. We support our couples in examining wedding tradition, expectations and norms and lean into the possibilities for what their day can look like. When you throw out the “should” you can lean into “why not”. We pride ourselves in thinking outside the box and delivering a stress free experience to our clients.
Our packages are (mostly) all inclusive and include the majority of their expenses in order to limit the financial unknowns for our couples. We limit as many external factors as possible to help them know their budget and stay on budget. We believe in full transparency so our prices are always listed on our website.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
We spending a LOT of time on Canva. I am a total music junkie so there is always something on Spotify or Soundcloud going. Books I recommend are Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman, Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara, and The Untethered Soul by Michael A Singer.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.moonshinemicroweddings.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moonshinemicroweddings
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@moonshinemicroweddings
