Meet Leah Lewis and Brittany Schoede of Ten-Four Events

Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Lewis and Brittany Schoede.

Ten-Four Events is owned by best friends Leah Lewis and Brittany Schoede. Long before Ten-Four, Brittany and Leah met while watching their soon-to-be-husbands’ band play a show at Lion’s Lair on Colfax. They became immediate friends and have been inseparable ever since.

Brittany’s career started in reality television production, working for networks such as HGTV, Food Network, Discovery Channel, Travel Channel, TBS, and DIY Network. Leah always knew that she would pursue a career in the events industry, starting with major events for the Country Music Association and later, a speaker series for C-suite executives. Leah then became an events manager at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, and Brittany soon followed. After planning hundreds of events spanning nearly five years, their love for live events (and working together) was solidified. The pair transitioned once again to work side-by-side at a luxury regional magazine, planning prestigious events all across Colorado.

After 20 collective years of event planning and production experience (plus numerous friends asking the duo to plan their wedding), Brittany and Leah decided to form a company in 2018 and make their event planning services official. Over the past several years, Ten-Four has grown exponentially and now includes wedding planning, corporate event planning, day-of coordination, and so much more.

Has it been a smooth road?
Event planning is inherently a bumpy road, and the greatest challenge has been managing the expectations of our clients. As is the nature of any event, issues will arise. The role of a planner is to solve problems in real-time, while under immense pressure and with very few resources. If we’ve done our job well, the client should have no idea there were ever any hiccups.

Typically clients do not fully understand our value until the conclusion of their successful event. So the struggle has been to demonstrate our value long before our clients know they need us. We always say, “Hire a planner—even if it’s not us.” You wouldn’t buy a house without a real estate agent—you shouldn’t host an event without an event planner.

Please tell us about Ten-Four Events.
The name “Ten-Four” comes from the radio transmission code used to communicate affirmation. It symbolizes our efficient communication with one another, our clients, and our vendor partners. The two of us work in tandem to execute every element of the event, and this teamwork is what sets us apart in an industry that can be very isolating and competitive. We provide every client with personalized attention and enthusiasm for bringing their unique vision to life.

In the early days, we would do so much of the grunt work ourselves in order to accomplish our clients’ dreams. Now that we’ve been able to hone our expertise and expand our professional community, we collaborate with our vast network of talented industry partners to create experiences that our clients could never have imagined.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Colorado has become a destination for events from all over the world. There are countless amazing venues, planners, florists, photographers, bakeries, etc. Although it is a highly saturated market, there are ample business opportunities here. With ever-evolving creativity, technological capabilities, and trends in design, Denver is a very exciting location to work in the events industry.

The best advice for aspiring events professionals is to immerse oneself in the market, work as many different types of events as possible, and earn the trust of clients and vendors. Referrals (both giving and receiving) have been key to the success of our business.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ten-fourevents.com
• Email: hello@ten-fourevents.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/tenfourevents
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/TenFourEvents

Image Credit:
Ashley Kidder Photo
Be Boulder Photography
Madison Leigh Creative
Stori H. Photography
Z Luxe Photography
Danna Frost Photography

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