Non-credit courses spur woman to start her own wedding coordinating business

Rachel Duke enjoyed planning her own wedding in September 2005 so much that she helped a friend plan hers the following spring.

“I’m a real girly-girl,” the Knoxville native confesses. “I have a thing for fairy tales.”

Now, the girl who was nicknamed “Tinkerbell” by her high school classmates is creating fairy tales for other Knoxville-area couples through a wedding coordinating business called A Fairytale Wedding.

Duke started the small business after earning a wedding coordinator certificate through the Department of Professional & Personal Development (PPD).

“The certificate has helped me find a career that not only is fulfilling but also flexible,” Duke says. “As a young mother of twin boys, going to work isn’t always easy. I was only working three nights a week (previously) and felt like it was always when the boys needed me.

“After taking the certificate course, I started A Fairytale Wedding,” she says. “Because I own the business, I can work on my own schedule, allowing me to have the freedom to be a full-time mother and still have a career of my own.”

Lana Needham, a past president and board member of Knoxville Wedding Specialists, teaches the 10-week Wedding Coordinating course to help students develop the skills necessary to build their own wedding coordinating/consulting business. The coursework covers wedding traditions, budgets, location guidelines, booking vendors, contracts, and more.

A second course, How to Direct a Wedding, is also required to complete the non-credit certificate.

Duke completed the courses in fall 2006 and set a modest first-year goal for her business – two weddings. She met and far surpassed that goal, booking 15 weddings through late fall. “Next year I’m going to try and reach 20,” she says.

“I love it!” Duke says. “I’m my own boss. It’s so satisfying to go through this whole process with the couples … to make their fairy tales come true.”
Duke markets her business by attending bridal shows and networking events in addition to listing her business on several wedding Web sites. She is also a consultant level member of the Association of Bridal Consultants.

“And I always let people know that I’m certified through UT,” Duke says. “UT holds such clout in the area.”

PPD also offers non-credit certificates in business management, grant writing, non-profit management, private investigation, marketing and media relations, health care, project management, and human resources, among others.