A Inside Look at Event Planning: June Luncheon with Cindy Y. Lo of Red Velvet Events

Our insightful industry luncheons return this month and on Wednesday June 20th we host Cindy Y. Lo, owner and entrepreneur behind Red Velvet Events. We sat down with Cindy to learn more about how she got her start in the business and why she loves calling Austin her home. Don’t forget you can save $5 off your registration if you sign up by June 13th and we hope you can join us.

AWCAustin: How did you get into your field?
CYL: It was actually semi-accidental. I was contemplating a change of career after spending a solid 5 years as a road warrior for a software company doing technical consulting/project management work. Several of my friends encouraged me to start my own business in event planning, but I knew first hand how much work it would be since my dad owned his own business. However since no one, especially in the events and meeting industry, was hiring post 9/11, I decided to go ahead and put my business plan on paper and informed my network that I was going out on my own and the rest is history. I did read every book I could get my hands on and got involved in industry organizations similar to AWC to get educated.

AWCAustin: What makes you proud to be a leading female in Austin?
CYL: I love Austin because it’s a very entrepreneur-friendly city, regardless if you’re male or female. And I love how closely connected we are all to one another in this city. I usually can identify a two degree separation from someone I want to meet.

AWCAustin: How long have you lived/worked in Austin and what makes it special to you?
CYL: I’ve been calling Austin my home since 1994. There are many things that make Austin special to me, but if I had to pick three, they would be — my wedding at the historic Driskill Hotel; giving birth to both my kids here in Austin; and being able to be so involved with my alma mater The University of Texas at Austin.

AWCAustin: Tell us why you think communication is so important for women in business today?
CYL: Communication is everything…if you don’t communicate effectively you can negatively affect the growth of your business and without proper communication (i.e., participation in social media), you could give off the impression that you don’t care or that you’re behind the times.

AWCAustin: Could you share with us some of your favorite books, blogs, websites and resources?
CYL: I tend to pack my schedule between family and work, so I really enjoy catching up on my news via Twitter and Blogs vs. books. My favorites include Alltop.com (they help you stay on top of all the blogs out there) and FlipBoard (an iPad and iPhone app) which allows you to visually view your twitter feed and popular topics such as tech, design, and news in a magazine format.