ELLIE M. BAYRD
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Ladder of Success
ALISON WITTHANS, décor designer of
Après Party & Tent Rental, opened my
eyes to a different side of the event creation process. Leaving the cubicle behind,
I journeyed behind the scenes, where I
watched the décor designer, known for her
draping techniques, work to put two events
together over the course of a single day.
I entered a fast-paced work environment, where I witnessed Witthans navigate tall ladders and negotiate with other
vendors and planners. When the happiness
of a client or planner is at stake and time
is of the essence, a smile and readiness to
spring to action are a vendor’s best traits.
For Witthans, flexibility and perfectionism
came together easily.
I saw what it takes to put a design plan
to action, and in the process I came to real-
ize just how much of an asset a creative,
organized and enthusiastic personality is in
this segment of the industry. I left the day
with a better understanding of how much
effort must go into each part of the puzzle
when putting together an event.
INTO HER WORLD
My Saturday begins at 9 a.m., as I wait outside the offices of Après Party & Tent Rental
in Edina. The sun is out and it’s warmed
up to a decent 40-some degrees, starting
off the day on the right note. I’m there on
a mission to learn about the décor business
from Après’ resident draping master, Alison
Witthans.
Witthans, who has worked in varying
roles at Après for 12 years, opens the door
to the office a few minutes past the hour
and ushers me into the ground floor of the
Après office building. Colorful displays
provide the first view of Après’ headquarters and demonstrate the company’s creative décor solutions. But soon tablescapes
representing varying themes and showcasing Après’ talents give way to a more drab
section of the two-story building, where
the business of décor actually happens.
Dressed in jeans, sneakers and an Après-logoed gray sweatshirt, Witthans enthusiastically welcomes me into her world,
walking me through her morning routine.
Without any prodding, she begins to narrate her every movement and thought. I can
tell she’s excited to share her life, but I worry
as she moves quickly from one thing to the
next whether I’ll be able to keep up.
We head up to her second-floor office,
passing bolts of fabric stored in every conceivable space on the floor. Inside Witthans’
office, a large six-month calendar covers
the right-hand corner, running down a
summer’s worth of meetings and events
for Après. Right now, the October calendar
looks positively bare compared to warmer
months, which she explains is normal for
the fall. “We’re either really busy or slow,”
she says. Those slower times, Witthans
says, give the staff time to organize and
meet with clients. Later I learn that the
jumbles of fabric they’ve haphazardly
thrown in bags after teardowns get rolled
and stored during these times as well.
When Witthans isn’t on-site helping set
up or tear down an event, she’s helping
organize the schedules of the staff, she tells
me. During the summer months, when she
EDITOR PHO TO BY S TEPHEN GEFFRE; DRAPING EXAMPLE PHOTO COURTESY OF APRES PARTY & TENT RENTAL; WITTHANS PHOTO BY ELLIE M. BAYRD
EDITOR’S NOTE: A common adage says that you cannot truly understand individuals until you walk a mile in their shoes. Seeing value
in what can be gained through experience, we’ve created this new column for Meetings: Minnesota’s Hospitality Journal, which will
share an editor’s personal experiences living a day in the life of various professionals they encounter in the local hospitality industry.
Whether our observations surprise you with their view behind the scenes or simply reaffirm what you already may know, we feel they
will help provide a greater appreciation for all of the hard work being done by your fellow hospitality professionals.
