WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE A...WEDDING PLANNER

Meet Samantha Gilchrist, CEO of wedding venue company The Gilchrist Collection

- ELLA DOVE

Samantha Gilchrist began her career as a wedding photographer, but long hours and a lack of work-life balance led her to reconsider her options. In 2017, she discovered that 14th-century manor house and wedding venue The Ravenswood, near her home in Sussex, was up for sale. It felt like fate, so she decided to take a leap and buy it along with her business partner, Stuart Guy. Fast forward to today, and they now own and manage 12 luxury wedding venues - with nine across the UK and three in the US. Here Samantha, 43, who lives in East Grinstead, Sussex, with her husband, Garion, and their toy poodle, Teddy, shares her career journey and reveals what it takes to create a couple's perfect day.

What do you love most about working in the wedding industry?

The fact that every couple is unique. Their wedding is their vision, and it's mine and my team's job to execute that to the best of our ability. Some couples have never even planned a birthday party, let alone an event for 100 people, so our role is to give them as much guidance as possible. We have a policy that no question is too stupid to ask. Ultimately, it's about removing stress from them so that they can relax and enjoy what will hopefully be one of the best days of their lives.

How does your day begin?

I've tried hard to be that person who gets up at 5am, but I've come to accept that my body just doesn't like it - it doesn't bring me any joy. I wake up around 7am for a slow, relaxed morning of self-care. I eat 30g of protein, take my dog on a long walk and spend time on my skincare routine. Then at around 11am, I drive the short distance to our company's head office to knuckle down to work.

What does a typical morning look like?