“The stress that I can relieve for others is truly something I’m meant to do,” said Katie Murphy, owner and founder of Jane Rae Events.
After starting her event planning journey in January 2017, Murphy began to expand her business from solely wedding planning to offer design services, as well. After almost four years of running the company, Murphy is excited to soon add some new faces to her team.
Murphy shares with 605 her favorite parts of wedding planning, her family life, and some holiday event tips.
PEOPLE MIGHT KNOW ME FROM… working at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center as an event manager before starting my own event planning company.
I STARTED PLANNING EVENTS BECAUSE… it fed into both my organizational and creative passions. All the way back to my 13th birthday party, I loved picking out all these details with my mom, Janie Rae. She loved bringing people together, and I shared that love with her. Throughout college I was a part of planning several events, and my passion grew with each one. I knew this is what I was meant to do.
IN MY FREE TIME, I… love hosting parties with my closest friends and family. I also love cooking Italian dinners with my husband, Matt, spoiling my dogs, and a good wine tasting.
THE EVENTS WE WORK ON INCLUDE… weddings, weddings, and more weddings. We also have several business summits and holiday parties we work on each year. Bridal showers, birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and other social events are sprinkled in throughout the year as well.
THE BEST PART OF MY JOB IS… when I’m at a day-of coordination and see all the guests enjoying dinner, sitting at the tables we designed, conversing, laughing, just simply living in the moment, and celebrating together. I get to be a part of that, and that is really priceless.
ONE OF MY FAVORITE PROJECTS HAS BEEN… custom designing backdrops for a recent wedding on October 10. I really love creating something that has never been done before. It challenges my creative side, and that’s how I know I’ll always be pushing my limits.
SOMETHING I RECOMMEND TO MY CLIENTS IS… to hire a day-of coordinator. Your wedding is one day. One day, a few moments, to soak up that time with your family, friends, and the love of your life. You don’t want to spend it worrying about if the candles are lit or if the desserts arrived on time. This is the best money you’ll spend to put your mind at ease and know someone is looking out for you.
Follow Katie
Instagram: @janeraeevents
Facebook: /janeraeeventplanning
MY PETS ARE… my babies. I have a black lab, Jetta, and a yellow lab, Bella. They’re sisters from the same litter and are inseparable from each other and me. I love bringing them to our studio space and greeting clients with wagging tails.
JANE RAE EVENTS IS SPECIAL BECAUSE… it’s a boutique design studio that offers three vendor services in one. Since we plan, have an extensive rental inventory, and a floral design team in house, we’re able to walk our clients through the entire design process in our studio.
WHAT I LOVED ABOUT PUTTING TOGETHER THE BUSINESS WAS… the fact that it was my own and challenged me in more ways than I could have ever thought. I always find myself wanting to push my limits and can honestly say my company brings new challenges all the time that I can’t wait to conquer. I also loved the fact that I can offer my talents to help people. I love seeing the stress fade and the happiness and excitement flood in.
WHAT PEOPLE MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT JANE RAE EVENTS IS… that we go above and beyond to simply bring joy to people. We’re a close team that’s always there for one another, working hard, and laughing while we do it. That culture radiates through our business and to our clients.
SOMETHING WE’RE DOING WITH OUR BUSINESS RIGHT NOW THAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT IT… that we’re going through some growing pains. After being in business for almost four years, we’re ready to expand our team in several ways, and I couldn’t be more excited about it.
5 Holiday Event Tips
1. Create an invitation, even if it is only an electronic one. An invite is personal and brings more excitement for your guests.
2. Instead of having a full bar of drink options, create a signature, holiday cocktail. It’s an easy way to get festive.
3. Create that playlist. Music creates the vibe as soon as someone walks in the door. Have it on and not too loud, to make sure people can still chit chat.
4. If you’re making dinner, make sure to have some light appetizers out. This will give your guests something to snack on with drinks, and it can be a great distraction if you’re running behind.
5. Have some entertainment. Food and drinks are always a must, but a game or two will turn up the fun. Having a fun prize of some kind at the end is a plus and pushes the competitive spirits, which will be entertaining in itself.
WHEN I WALK AROUND SIOUX FALLS, SOME OF MY FAVORITE PLACES TO STOP BY ARE… Crawford’s Bar & Grill and Primp Boutique, hands down. Give me a sweater from Primp and a Pomtini from Crawford’s, and I’m the happiest gal around.
SOME THINGS THAT ARE INFLUENCING ME RIGHT NOW ARE… female entrepreneur pages on social media. Several pages I follow post quotes, articles, and images that really speak to me. I’m a strong believer in women supporting women, and I love flooding my feed with positive vibes like these.
SOMEONE LOCAL WHO I ADMIRE IS… Gloria Kolbeck, the owner of Vanessen’s Hair Design. When I was starting out Jane Rae Events, I worked part time as a receptionist at her salon. Throughout my time there, I was able to see what an amazing boss she was and how much her team loved and respected her. I remember thinking, one day I hope to become a boss like her.
AT HOME, MY HUSBAND AND I SPEND OUR TIME… watching a drama-filled TV show, currently Yellowstone, planning our next getaway, and cooking dinners together. When cooking, he’s always the lead chef and I’m the sous chef. We make a solid team.
ONE THING I LOVE ABOUT SOUTH DAKOTA IS… the community we have in Sioux Falls. The community is so strong and loves supporting small business. I love it.
