Brenda Nanyonjo has done literally everything! She’s been an actress, dancer, magazine editor, celebrity stylist, pageant coach, star maker, the list is endless! And, as I learned in this interview, the mother-of-one hasn’t dropped many of the above roles, as she chats to me about, a new one – wedding planning.
In the thick of night, 2am to be exact, Miss B tells me about Miss B Weddings, her self care routine and how she braved 7 months of lockdown without her daughter.
What is Miss B Weddings?
Miss B is a wedding planning and events company. If you need anything from; booking service providers or coordinating the ones you already have, we do it all. When a couple approaches us, we sit down and understand their vision before handling the entire event for them. We make sure they enjoy the event stress-free.
Lately, couples don’t want that stress. Also, there are some couples living abroad – these don’t really know which service providers to work with. We step in and advise according to their budget and needs. A lot goes in to making a successful event, and we help coordinate and make it all happen.
What inspired you to venture into weddings?
I’ve done weddings in the past, just that it was never publicised. Because I organize events, people would come to me for tips and guidance. And if they wanted me to help with ABC, I’d gladly do it. I ended up doing several weddings. The person who encouraged me to do it again, funny enough, is someone who attended one of those weddings I did about 8 years ago. It is Shamim of iCandy.
She asked if I was still doing wedding planning. I was surprised because it was such a long time ago since I last did. I was like “not really”. She said, “I think you should do it. I attended one of the weddings you planned and it was really done nicely. You should come back to it.” She is a decorator and many times clients approach her asking for wedding planners. The market, however, doesn’t have many hence the creation of Miss B Weddings.
What makes Miss B Weddings different?
Our job is to ensure you have a stress free event. So, we go the extra mile. When you visit our social pages, in one of the videos, you’ll see what we did when some of the bridal party’s clothes couldn’t fit. We had to step in, because the entourage was big and had to change 4 times, while the bride and groom changed thrice. We ended up doing alterations for about 16 dresses that morning. We always have a seamstress on standby for such needs. This is something we do passionately.
Weddings are stressful! Take us through your planning process and how you manage to make it easier and fun for the couple. From client appointment to final day.
When you sit down and speak to the couple, the things you learn about them help in figuring out their vision. Personally, I will probe and ask a lot of questions to visualize what the couple would like to see at their event. I want to know their tastes, the kind of theme they want and the service providers they desire. Just making sure they enjoy the process with no stress at all. There’s a day I was in the salon working on a bride for a kwanjula (introduction ceremony). The ‘bako’ (in-laws) were about to arrive. Then, someone called me from the bride’s home asking her where the mats were! It’s such small things that tick people off. we try to handle and get off the bride’s back. How do you call the bride minutes before her in-laws arrive asking where the mats are? Such things ruin the mood of the couple. The role of a wedding planner is to calm the couple down, should there be a crisis, figure it without alarming them.
I’ve experienced this over the years especially when I was still a stylist and makeup artist; the people supposed to help the bride, choose to worry about themselves when they get to the event. I’d end up helping out to dress the bride, do their hair, and styling. After seeing this happen often, whenever a bride would come to book me, I’d ask if they had a dresser.
This makes the role of a planner pertinent. You worry about that for the bride, and allow them have a stree-free event.
As a wedding planner, paint for us a picture of what your own wedding would look like?
Before, I would say that my wedding had to be a proper production, but fortunately, that’s what weddings are like now. Weddings are planned months or even years in advance. As we were doing the wedding I did recently, Shamim recommended me to someone in the diaspora. As I was asking those questions, I inquired when her wedding would hold and she said December. And she is already planning, that’s like a whole yearof planning. I’d like my wedding to be pristine and well organized. I don’t think it would necessarily be any different from the way we currently do things.
Rumours are rife that you put Miss Uganda on the side to focus on your new venture. How true is this?
No, it’s not true! Miss Uganda is still on… People have been asking me about Miss Uganda, but obviously Covid has been going on and it’s evident. The events business has suffered so much, because up to now we’re still in lockdown. We are hoping that maybe in August things will much better. Then, we shall unveil our plans for the next pageant.
That said, I can still do several other things while simultaneously doing Miss Uganda. Last year, we didn’t choose a new beauty queen, and this wasn’t unique. Only about 30 countries did. As a foundation we were doing a little bit of work, but for events, there wasn’t anything happening. I even have girls in my inbox asking me “whether Miss Uganda will hold this year?”
Yes, we shall hold it, we have even set dates although we can’t divulge anything at the moment. Hopefully by August we shall be in a better position to share. Most events are now virtual, which we can do, but this year we can’t because it is our 10 year anniversary as Kezzi Entertainment running Miss Uganda. That’s the plan.
You are the organizer of Miss Uganda. You are into events. You are an actress. You have been a stylist and magazine editor. You have also launched a denim line before. What inspires your entrepreneurial spirit?
It’s just passion, because as you can see, all the things I do are related. It’s all entertainment and show business. Depending on time and schedules, I can do all these things because they are intertwined. Miss Uganda is a beauty pageant. Kezzi Entertainment is an events company, with that we can do many other things as well. As an actress, good thing with that, we no longer do stage plays, it’s mostly TV work – series, films and all that. The advantage of that is, if I’m cast for a character, I’ll know what week I am going to be shooting and will block off time for it, then move onto other things after. Before, it would disturb me because theatre work is hectic. You have to rehearse for long, sometimes a month or more. And when the production starts, it’s usually not just 1 – 2 weeks and you’re done – it can even go on for a month or even 2. Lately, it’s film work mostly. I have a team I work with for styling, whenever there is a gig, I can delegate and we figure out how to do it. I’m a performing artist; I started out as a backup singer, I was dancer. That’s how I got into acting as well. Then there is fashion and beauty and then there’s events. That’s me. I’m passionate about these things and because I am, I find time for each of them. Sometimes ideas keep coming to you if you can do, because there are so many things you can do in the industry we are in.
From your experience, what advice would you give another woman planning to start a completely new business, especially during these uncertain times?
Usually, what I tell young women (mostly because I work with them the most) that when you’re starting a business, don’t start because it’s going to give you money. It is always good to do something that you are passionate about. Entertainment has been my passion since I was child. Passion is number one for me. Find something you are passionate about. Passion will drive you to sacrifice, put in the time to research and get better at what you do.
If you have capital, first think deeply about what you intend to do with the money. It should start from what you want to do. What is it you’ll do and still feel like you’re not working?
Do some research too. Find a way of marketing what you’re doing, through social media or word of mouth. Social media is currently the most powerful way to advertise. Market as much as you can, you’ll make it.
Talking about the pandemic. How did you keep yourself positive and productive during lockdown?
I was in Rwanda at the time. I thought lockdown would be on for just a month. Hmm, I ended up staying there for seven months! I’d try to keep busy by taking walks. When it had just started, it was really cold, so we mostly stayed in the house; watching movies, sleeping late, snacking, eating, and I ended up putting on so much weight which I’m still struggling to lose, but that was it. I was missing my daughter so much, but thank God for the internet and all these other ways we can communicate. I would speak to my family members frequently, but for Zara (her daughter), I’d talk to her every day, sometimes more than once. It wasn’t easy, but we thank God that we are here and this too shall pass.
Lastly, what’s your selfcare routine?
I try to sleep, but I usually sleep late. I try as much as possible to prioritize sleep, even if I find it hard to fall asleep before midnight. I make up for it by sleeping in during morning hours; I make sure I don’t have morning meetings. Currently
there are no school runs, Zara’s teachers come home.
I avoid wearing too much makeup, by that I mean wearing it every single day. Some times I’m busy and wear it for appearances all week long. When that happens, I’ll go for a facial (I regularly cleanse and tone the skin). Once in a while I go to the spa and have a body scrub, steam bath and massage, especially times when we have had an event and it was hectic. Lately, I’m trying to learn not to stress too much. Our line of work comes with a lot of stress, and I’m trying to learn to avoid it. Once a year, usually I’ll try and take a complete break. It’s very important.
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