Creating Bespoke Experiences Worldwide
Colin Cowie: Your Event and Wedding Planner - Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas & More
Your perfect event starts here. CCL is a leading event and wedding planner – Los Angeles, NYC, or wherever else your special day is taking place.
Colin Cowie designs, plans and creates luxurious weddings and events for clients. For thirty years we’ve honed our skills to offer a range of services to accommodate the diversity of our clients. We are the team and wedding planner that New York trusts with their most exclusive affairs, offering comprehensive planning and coordination services worldwide. So if you need an event or wedding planner – from San Francisco to the world’s most luxurious islands and everywhere in between – we’re here to help.
We design and produce events of all kinds, from private affairs to large-scale corporate events. Our expertise lies in consistently planning and executing not just weddings and events, but creating iconic experiences for our clients and their guests. Visit our services page to learn about our most popular offerings, including Colin Cowie White, Signature Colin and Team Cowie.
Our specialties include wedding planning, design and production for private individuals and celebrity couples. This includes destination wedding planning; milestone event planning such as Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, birthdays and anniversaries; corporate event planning and corporate event production for openings, incentive or awards dinners, product launches, brand activations and galas, as well as charity events for non-profit organizations.
We provide our services on a national and international scale, with offices and representation in NYC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Saratoga Springs. Whether you need a wedding planner in Las Vegas or event planner in New York, we’ll put together a celebration your guests will remember for a lifetime.
In need of an event planner or wedding coordinator? Los Angeles to NYC, North America to Europe, give us a call to learn about Colin Cowie Lifestyle’s services or schedule a consultation.
Our Latest Work
Seduce your customers. When it comes to getting customers and preserving that emotional connection, it’s all about a powerful attraction.
Kudos to Chewy for knowing exactly how it’s done. #TheGoldStandard
Learn more about how to get and keep your customers in The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Order your copy today! Link in bio. ...
#TheGoldStandard is OUT TODAY!
There are two types of service in the world: REACTIVE and PROACTIVE.
✖️REACTIVE service comes from 95% of the world’s service providers. When something goes wrong and someone puts up their hand with a problem, your response is reactive service. In this instance, only if you deal with the situation correctly can it buy customer loyalty.
✔️Only 5% of service providers deliver PROACTIVE service - because it is much harder to do. These providers are experts at anticipating the unanticipated needs of guests and customers.
We must use the wealth of information at our fingertips—the news, the internet, and social media—to actively implement proactive customer service.
Learn more about the power of proactive service in Colin’s latest book, The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Order your copy today! Link in bio. ...
#TheGoldStandard of customer service ALWAYS includes:
✨Personalization. You want to engage with customers in the most personal way. Write their name, use their name, print their name. Creating that personalized moment is paramount.
✨ Attention to detail. When you show extreme attention to detail, presenting a product or project fabulously and flawlessly, people will take note.
✨ Elegance. Add a filter of elegance to everything you do. Put elegance in front of anything and it naturally elevates the style.
But remember, none of this is possible without teamwork and communication.
🔗 Pre-order Colin’s latest book—The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted—via link in bio. ...
Many people ask Colin how he defines ‘luxury.’ He doesn’t think luxury today comes in the form of a product. Instead, he believes luxury is an experience, or how someone makes you feel.
When your senses are in harmony and you want for nothing, that is true luxury. 🥂
🔗 Pre-order #TheGoldStandard via link in bio. ...
Authentic is one of the most important words in the English vocabulary. When something is ‘authentic,’ it stands apart from the rest - especially when it comes to customer experience.
🔗 Pre-order Colin’s latest book—The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted—via link in bio. ...
✒️ Handwritten notes make lasting impressions.
🔗 Pre-order Colin’s latest book—The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted—via link in bio. ...
Always put your client on a pedestal to make them feel special. An emotionally connected customer is your best brand ambassador. #TheGoldStandard
It doesn’t matter what your product or service is; if you don’t have customers, you don’t have a business. We remind ourselves every day that we’re here because of our clients. And so are you.
We see Christmas, birthdays, holidays, and, in our business, wedding anniversaries as good opportunities to reignite and sustain emotional connections. Just showing up counts. Our corporate gifts are sourced from charities that we support. We always send Christmas and birthday cards to our clients past and present, and to our creative partners.
On a couple’s first anniversary they get a card. For some very special clients, we’ve had a duplicate of the top of their wedding cake recreated as a gift. We’ve also celebrated each anniversary thereafter with gifts that fit the particular year’s theme: a book with their initials engraved on the cover for paper, a tray inscribed with lyrics from their first dance for leather, a replica of their reception centerpiece for flowers. These are things they will talk about with their friends and families, and those people may become our new clients.
So, what else can you do? Colin shares his best-kept secrets for building client loyalty (and more!) in his latest book, The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio for exclusive Conversations with Colin bonus content. ...
How can companies WOW clients?
Great customer service should be Standard Operating Procedure.
The best customer experience is personalized, authentic, luxurious, timely, consistent, and effortless (for the customer).
Strive to provide a memorable experience every time.
Send a card on birthdays and anniversaries. It goes a long way. 💌
🔗 Pre-order #TheGoldStandard via link in bio. ...
Good service gives the customer what they want; great service gives the customer what they didn’t know they wanted.
Colin shares the importance - and power - of anticipating the unanticipated needs of guests in his latest book #TheGoldStandard.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio for exclusive Conversations with Colin bonus content. ...
We believe in taking a 360º approach to telling your story in today’s market…
📌DREAM. It costs nothing to dream and dream big. Whenever you have that great dream, it will help fashion every creative decision you need to make along the way.
📌WEBSITE. You need to have an incredible website. You have 10 seconds to capture someone’s attention. Make sure you present yourself in an immediately compelling way.
📌CORPORATE CULTURE. A strong corporate culture fuels how you fuel the business.
Learn more about telling your story in Colin’s latest book, The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio. ...
The equation for the gold standard of service isn’t 1+1=2. It’s 1+1=3.
What can you do or offer to stay ahead of the curve? What can you do to make your product and customer service better than anyone else’s? We ask ourselves those questions every day, and this is our advice:
⭐ Stand out. Your customer has their choice of products and services. You want them to choose yours. If they can’t find you, they can’t buy your product or service.
⭐ Know your market. See what your competitors are doing, look at what you’re losing, and put all that information to use to increase your market share.
⭐ Make data work for you. You need as much data as you can get from your customer: data is a powerful tool that will help you get attention.
⭐ Consistency is key. Your customer wants to be confident they will get a consistent product or experience every time they come to you.
⭐ Do whatever it takes. The gold standard of customer service requires creativity and flexibility. Be prepared for any eventuality and do whatever it takes to deliver on your promise.
Colin shares more hard-earned wisdom about standing out in a saturated market (and more!) in The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio for EXCLUSIVE Conversations with Colin bonus content. ...
It’s very important to know your market. When word got around about our early events with Oprah, we began losing clients who thought our services were inaccessible and unaffordable.
To counter the perceptions around our price point, we designed a new brand architecture with three company divisions, each selling a specific version of the Colin Cowie experience.
At the top end, there is Colin Cowie White. These are the most expensive events, the haute couture experience. The word ‘no’ does not exist and each element of the event is unique, larger, better, and more fabulous.
The next tier is Signature Colin. Colin is on the phone calls, sits in on the meetings, and holds the client’s hand every step of the way, as he collaborates with the client’s designated team.
Finally, there’s Team Cowie, our fastest-growing division that provides #TheGoldStandard of service at a lower price point. While Colin approves the creative aspects of the event, the client works with team members Colin has educated and worked with over the years.
🔗 Pre-order #TheGoldStandard via link in bio for EXCLUSIVE Conversations with Colin bonus content. ...
We are thrilled to be a part of the @VRAIofficial Summer Bridal Experience!
VRAI is a fine jewelry brand featuring modern and timeless designs with sustainably created diamonds from their zero-emission foundry, an innovative customization experience, and recycled solid gold.
One winner will experience the ultimate wedding planning package featuring an exclusive consultation with Colin, a personalized session with stylist Petra Flannery, and a white-glove virtual appointment with VRAI’s diamond experts to receive a pair of VRAI wedding bands of your choice.
As part of the Summer Bridal Experience, Colin will sit down with you for a virtual appointment and share expert advice on venues, decor, flower arrangements, menu, music, guest experience, and so much more!
Enter to win via link in bio. #VRAILoveStory2021 #VRAIjewelry ...
Today's world is a buyer's world. Consumers are overwhelmed with choices in every aspect of their lives. How do you make sure your target customer picks you?
How do you get—and keep—your potential customer’s attention?
⭐ You have to have the right product.
⭐ You have to package it fabulously.
⭐ You have to make the customer's experience a priority.
Colin offers hard-earned advice about standing out in a saturated market (and more!) in his latest book, The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio for exclusive Conversations with Colin bonus content. ...
Create an experience that exceeds customer expectations on any budget! #TheGoldStandard
Colin shares the best ways to curate the ultimate customer service experience in his latest book, The Gold Standard: Giving Your Customers What They Didn’t Know They Wanted.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio. ...
Learn how to cultivate the most incredible customer experiences on earth through The Gold Standard book, an essential guide by Colin Cowie, distinguished purveyor of unforgettable “wow” events.
🔗 Pre-order via link in bio. ...
Held at a private estate on the edge of the Pacific (with everyone vaccinated!), this wedding felt like something out of a dream. We created an ethereal vibe with an abundance of white and cream florals and lush greenery. We added wood and mirror accents to enhance the natural glamour of the space, and draped light, airy fabric along the ceiling for further effect. After the sun set over the California coast, our newlyweds and their guests danced their hearts out as the band played into the night. 🥂
Event Design & Production: @colincowielifestyle
Photography: @carliestatsky
Video: @unfadingfilmco
Band: #deboisentertainment
Cake: @studiocakedesign
Catering: @paulaleduc
Ceremony Florals: @seascapeflowers
Hair & Makeup: @kellyjomakeupandhair
Lighting: @gotlightsf
Reception Florals & Antique Glass Fabrication: @rjackbalthazar
Rentals: @brighteventrentals @theonicollection
Paper & Invitations: @paperbythebay ...
Last night we made BRIDGERTON come alive for City Harvest in New York City. 🌸
We staged the event atop Rockefeller Center with St. Patrick’s Cathedral as our backdrop. From the abundance of bright florals to the epic repertoire of NYC-themed entertainment – featuring the most fabulous costumes – and a decadent dinner, we’d like to think this summertime rooftop soirée would surely get Lady Whistledown’s seal of approval…
Photography: @loricannava
Client: @cityharvestnyc
Venue: @620loftgarden
Catering: @gpfood
Entertainment: @onthemoveevents
Lighting & Video: @bentleymeeker
Linens: @cecijohnson ...
After the lively gospel performance (see previous post!), Oprah’s spectacular Civil Rights Legends Weekend drew to a close with a stunning brunch on the lawn (2014).
Chef Art Smith and Chef Sonny Sweetman curated an impressive menu. Not only did they prepare a bodacious offering of pastries and desserts, but Art served his world-famous fried chicken and waffles. Grand Bevy was behind the irresistible selection of cocktails and mocktails. 🧇🍹
The Civil Rights Legends Weekend was one of Colin’s favorite events (and one of Oprah’s!) and a celebration that everyone will remember for a lifetime. (Legends Weekend 2 (2014) • PART 3/3) ...
Oprah’s Civil Rights Legends Weekend concluded with one of her signature gospel brunches at her home—The Promised Land—with Bebe Winans as musical director (2014).
Featured performers included Bill Withers, Kim Burrell, Kori Withers, Kathy Taylor, Joshua Nelson, Marvin Winans, Carvin Winans, Ledisi, and Angela Bassett.
Guests included George Lucas and Mellody Hobson, Cory Booker, Gayle King, Common, Tyler Perry, David Oyelowo, Ben Vereen, the Obama family, Ivan Reitman, Rashida Jones, Linda Johnson-Rice, Smokey Robinson, Ellen Degeneres, and Portia De Rossi, among many others. (Legends Weekend 2 (2014) • PART 2/3) ...
Oprah’s Civil Rights Legends Gala – “Legends Who Paved The Way” – honored legends of the civil rights movement (2014).
Honorees included Ambassador Andrew Young, Berry Gordy, Rev. C.T. Vivian, Diane Nash, Dick Gregory, Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., Congressman John Lewis, Rev. Joseph Lowery, Juanita Jones Abernathy, Julian Bond, Marian Wright Edelman, Myrlie Evers-Williams, Quincy Jones, Sidney Poitier, and Harry Belafonte. Other guests included Ellen DeGeneres, Deion Sanders, Alfre Woodard, George Lucas, Gayle King, Iyanla Vanzant, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, Magic Johnson, Maria Shriver, Phylicia Rashad, Rashida Jones, Reese Witherspoon, Jimmy Iovine, Robin Roberts, Roland Martin, Samuel L. Jackson, and Smokey Robinson, among many others.
The O’Jays played R&B classics and the cast of Selma read Pearl Cleage’s celebratory poem ‘We Speak Your Names,’ which served as the centerpiece to Oprah's first Legends Ball (2005).
“Cleage considers the poem a continuation of an oral tradition that encompasses the entire history of the African-American experience. The praise poem acknowledges the legacy of those who have gone before and a realization "that we are part of something better, truer, deeper." (Pearl Cleage, Zaron W. Burnett Jr.) (Legends Weekend 2 (2014) • PART 1/3) ...
The last day of Oprah’s Legends Weekend—celebrating iconic Black women in art, entertainment, and civil right—consisted of a lively gospel brunch on the sprawling grounds of Oprah’s estate (2005).
Sipping Bellinis and Bloody Marys on the vast front lawn, glamorous guests enjoyed spectacular performances led by the king of gospel—Bebe Winans—with accompaniment by Shirley Caesar, Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, Dionne Warwick, and Chaka Khan, among countless other gifted musicians. Guests made their way to the garden for a delightful Sunday brunch with exceptionally curated food stations. Colin sat with Sugar Ray Leonard whose wedding he designed years earlier!
As a parting gift, Oprah compiled the weekend's music collection so guests could continue their celebration at home for years ahead. 🎶 (Legends Weekend 1 (2005) • PART 3/3) ...
The highlight of the Oprah’s Legends Weekend was an elegant white-tie ball at the Bacara Resort in Santa Barbara (2005).
Notable guests included Michelle and Barack Obama, Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie, Usher, Spike Lee, Tyler Perry, John Travolta, Diane Sawyer, and Barbara Walters, among many others. Colin has never seen or been surrounded by such greatness before - it was electrifying.
From Oprah’s show-stopping haute couture Vera Wang ball gown to the extraordinary dinner by Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and the custom, multilevel 1940s Art Deco installation in the ballroom, the night was dazzled with style and glamor. Colin even built the tiered wall sconces himself.
Another recitation of Pearl Cleage’s poem, “We Speak Your Names,” left the room teary–eyed, while musical performances by Chaka Khan and Michael McDonald prompted an unforgettable night on the dance floor. (Legends Weekend 1 (2005) • PART 2/3) ...
Throwing it back to Oprah’s LEGENDS WEEKEND! (2005)
This 3-day mega-event celebrated 20 legendary Black women in art, entertainment, and civil rights. Among the Legends included Maya Angelou, Aretha Franklin, Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, Diana Ross, Cicely Tyson, and Tina Turner – just to name a few. Oprah also invited a younger generation of 40 guests—who she termed the “Young’uns”— to meet and celebrate the remarkable women who preceded them. Some of the Young’uns included Alicia Keys, Angela Bassett, Ashanti, Brandy, Halle Berry, Janet Jackson, Iman, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliott, Naomi Campbell, Natalie Cole, Phylicia Rashad, and Michelle Obama.
The event began with a luncheon at Oprah’s stunning estate. Guests had cocktails in the main residence then were transported via a customized San Francisco trolley to the front garden for a (now legendary) group photo by acclaimed photographer, Kwaku Alston. The trolley then brought Legends and Young’uns to the bespoke gazebo we created in the gardens.
Guests sat at a table in the shape of a giant ‘O’ where an abundance of vibrant florals and complementary soft hues created an organic springtime feeling. Every detail—from the embroidered napkins to the hand-painted china and even the seat cushions—was custom-made for the occasion!
After welcome toasts and an exquisite luncheon, it was time for dessert. Waiters presented the women with miniature hat boxes with a chocolate surprise inside – edible potted plants! (And yes, every woman had their own waiter – the epitome of #TheGoldStandard.)
John Legend performed “Ordinary People” and Pearl Cleage read a poem she wrote for the weekend, “We Speak Your Names.” The Legends offered advice to the Young’uns and Oprah surprised everyone with a parting gift. Oprah gifted each Legend with a gorgeous engraved red alligator box. Each box held 10 carats of diamond earrings.
The Legends received 10k diamond drop earrings and the Young’uns received diamond hoop earrings. Now that’s a legendary party favor. 💫 (Legends Weekend 1 (2005) • PART 1/3) ...
Our Latest Work
OUR LOCATIONS
NEW YORK CITY
Stephan Baroni 212-994-2000 NYC@colincowie.comLOS ANGELES / SAN FRANCISCO
Stephan Baroni 310-286-9600 ext. 20 LosAngeles@colincowie.comLAS VEGAS
Ashley Goodhue 702-907-0005 LasVegas@colincowie.comSARATOGA SPRINGS
Maureen Baringer 518-290-7124 SaratogaSprings@colincowie.com
