Small Business Spotlight: Details Matter by Amber

From Wisconsin to South Dakota–this La Crosse based event planner is making her way through the Midwest one wedding, party, and baby shower at a time.

After leaving her corporate job, Amber DuHoux decided  it was time for change–and turned her second job and passion– into a thriving business. 

Cherita Booker, UpNorthNews Reporter: Tell me a bit about yourself and your background?

Amber DuHoux, Owner of Details Matter by Amber: I grew up in Southwest Minnesota and moved to La Crosse about 4 years ago for my then full time job. I was a Director of Finance and Operations for a wireless retailer for 12 years, doing 6-10 weddings per year on the side, until I transitioned to a full time wedding planner January 1 of this year. My husband Brent and I have three children and two grandsons that all live in Sioux Falls, SD.

Cherita: Tell me about Details Matter by Amber? 

Amber: I help couples plan the perfect day by making sure no detail is overlooked. I also provide all of the decor needed to achieve the desired look and color scheme from my vast inventory. My team and I  bring everything with us. We set up, make sure the day runs perfectly, and then tear it down and take it back home with us. I also do the bouquets and flowers, whether live or artificial, and offer custom signage, timelines and ceremony programs as well. 

Cherita: What areas do you service? 

Amber: I service all areas of Wisconsin, and continue to service Southwest Minnesota, Sioux Falls, SD and Northern Iowa. 

Cherita: What inspired you to become a wedding/event planner? 

Amber: I have always been the party planner with the over the top kid parties and amazing showers. I helped my family and friends with organizing and decorating their weddings, also doing all of the decor, invitations and flowers for my own wedding. When my daughter got married, I took care of everything for her wedding. I spent the entire day making sure everything was perfect for her and unfortunately, I didn’t get to enjoy the day in the way I wished I had been able to. One of her bridesmaids thought I did a great job and asked me to help her and the rest is history! 

Cherita: What do you love most about your job?

Amber: I love taking someone’s vision and making it a reality. My favorite moment is when the bride sees the space and just says wow! And I really love that the couple and their families can just enjoy the day and we take care of everything. 

Cherita: What’s your least favorite part about event planning?

Amber: It’s physically a very hard job with long days. The hours are also very long leading up to the actual wedding day too but I love it. I have always worked best with a deadline! 

Cherita: Planning and executing a wedding/event seems stressful. How do you manage?

Amber: I have done well over 100 weddings at this point so it’s really not stressful to me. The stress comes only if you aren’t prepared or don’t have a good plan in place, which we typically do. When unexpected things happen, I just make sure that I am the calmest person in the room. 

Cherita: What are your favorite events to plan?

Amber: Weddings. Fall weddings are my favorite! I love the beautiful rich colors and the crisp weather. I also still really love planning parties for my friends and family. 

Cherita: What’s your most memorable event yet? 

Amber: I kicked off my wedding season in 2022 with a bang. We had three weddings on the same day. One in La Crosse and two in Southwest MN. Putting together all of the decor, doing all of the flowers, making sure everything was planned perfectly for all of them was a ton of work. My teams in Minnesota and Wisconsin really stepped up and helped me pull it off. Going back and forth between weddings, literally getting one down the aisle, and driving to the next was a little crazy but we nailed it. 

Cherita: What are you most proud of? 

Amber: I’m certainly most proud of my team and all I was able to accomplish in my first year doing this full time. Me and my team were involved in 35 weddings and 12 other events. 

Cherita: What has this business taught you about yourself? 

Amber: It has taught me that I am at my best doing this. I absolutely love that this is what I get to do for a job. My past experiences have certainly played an important role in my success and my background in finance and operations serves me well with running a business. It’s not just about making things look pretty. You have to understand how to run a business, manage inventory, juggle lots of things at once, be professional and organized, along with having the creativity to make each event unique. 

It has also brought me out of my shell a bit. I’m not a very social person by nature but when I’m at an event, you wouldn’t know that. 

Cherita: How do you market yourself? 

Amber: This is a business of referrals and recommendations and I have had the pleasure to work with so many great couples over the years that have told their friends about me. I also have a website, Facebook, Instagram and most recently TikTok pages that I use to show my work and market my business. 

Cherita: Where do you see yourself 5 years from now? 

Amber: I want to continue to grow my team and expand their roles beyond assistants to full planners. This will allow us to help more couples achieve their perfect day and allow me to not have to work 100 a week during the wedding season!