Last week, I had the chance to sit down with Kaela and get to know a little bit more about her, her business, her experience in the wedding industry and her journey starting a business in the years of covid. After getting to know Kaela, even for a short time, she truly loves writing for her couples and being an integral part of their wedding days - whether it’s a huge wedding or a small, intimate ceremony. Dive deeper into her story by reading our full interview below!
Q: Tell us a little bit about Lovely Love Nuptials!
Kaela started her business in 2019 but in 2020 when the Milwaukee County courts stopped their service for civil court ceremonies, that’s when her business really took off! Before writing customized nuptials, Kaela was in the education world for about 8 years. “My main goal is the couple and meeting all of their needs for their big day for any kind of love”. Kaela meets with each of her couples for a consultation and gets to know them and what they envision for their ceremony - then she has their nuptials written up and sent within 48 hours! She knows how stressful all the planning that goes into weddings can be so she likes to be as intentional and efficient as possible. Her goal is to be incredibly intentional with the words she’s writing for her couples and make sure their wishes are being heard so each ceremony feels like them.
Q: What inspired you to start Lovely Love Nuptials?
Kaela got inspired by watching a Lifetime RomCom! She can’t remember which one it was exactly but it just goes to show - you never know when inspiration is going to strike! The maid characters got their happy ending and their friend was the one marrying them and she just loved that someone so close to the couple got to be such a special part of their day. She hit the ground running after that and got certified to be an Officiant. 2 months later, she was in business! Speaking of RomComs, Kaela’s all time favorite is Death of a Cheerleader which will be going on my To-Watch list asap.
Q: Did you always know that you wanted to be an entrepreneur?
The short answer is no. Kaela had only been to 3 or so weddings before starting her nuptials business! She had to do all of the research herself on what it took to start the business and how to keep it going from there. She’s always been a writer at heart and loves that she’s found a way to incorporate that passion into her career.
Q: What is the hardest challenge that you had to overcome while building your business?
“Being a young, black woman there were weddings where I could tell the guests were not expecting to see someone that looked like me officiating the wedding.”
Kaela talked about how some guests of weddings she’s written for, especially during more religious ceremonies, would treat and look at her differently. She said most people at those weddings were probably expecting an old, white man to be the one up there instead of her. Another challenge she talked about briefly is that she’s never been married herself so conducting weddings for other people was pretty foreign. She says the way that she overcomes these challenges is to knock it out of the park and prove that she can be an officiant for any kind of love!
Q: What does your everyday routine look like as a business owner?
Emails, emails...and more emails! Kaela says that the typical wedding season from May-October is super busy for her. Right now it’s pretty calm and is focusing on her upcoming consultations she has with her couples. She likes to be as efficient as possible with scheduling her consultations and getting to know her couples. She knows her couples are busy and having a finalized script takes one more thing off of their to-do list.
Q: If you could share one piece of advice to other entrepreneurs just starting a business, what would it be?
“Keep going! Don’t give up, this thing is your baby!”
Kaela said it all - even when things seem slow and you’re not seeing the growth you want, keep going! Find different ways to get your name/business out there. Kaela had to a ton of research herself, including building her own website. I asked her how she came up with the name of Lovely Love Nuptials and she said she came up with it on the spot when she was making her website! It came to her and it just stuck.
Q: What is your favorite memory when it comes to your business?
“The funny ceremonies are some of my favorite memories! I had a couple who wanted it to be comical!”
Kaela was a little nervous about this ceremony in particular because she saw herself as someone who was supposed to be the profession but it ended up being amazing! Once the ceremony was underway, it became very clear how relaxed and humorous the couple truly was - for example, instead of a flower girl this couple had a “beer guy” who handed out beverages to the guests!
Q: What change or impact do you hope your business brings to the community?
Kaela says that her business was mostly geared toward people who were on a quicker timeline for their weddings, especially during the pandemic when venues shut down and nobody knew when they could actually get married. She says because of her experience with this, she wants to become a resource for people who want a ceremony when they want it! She’s done a ton of very small intimate weddings in dining rooms and backyards - even one in a Red Lobster on her lunch break! She just wants to be there for her couples that know they want to be married and don’t want to go through all of the hoops of wedding planning.
In need of an officiant? Check out Lovely Love Nuptials!
By the end of our interview, I couldn't help but feel like I wanted to watch my favorite RomCom - Kaela has a way with words that makes you feel so clam and nostalgic. If you are in need of an officiant, you should definitely check out Kaela and her masterful words. You can learn more about how to book her services on her website, Lovely Love Nuptials by Kae.
Interviewed and written by:
Abby Kettinger