F Duncan Reyes Events by Design

My husband and I are both medical students across the country, so planning a wedding several time zones away was going to be challenging. Additionally, I am a self-​described personality type «AAA» so I knew I wanted to be as involved as I could in the wedding planning process but also have someone on my team that I could entrust with all other details when my wedding could not be prioritized. As a thorough individual, I wanted to do my due diligence in researching a wedding planner who would protect my vision, understand my neuroses, and be flexible with a demanding schedule. In the end I made a spreadsheet of 46 wedding planners — spoke to most of them over the phone and eventually landed on Duncan Reyes. Duncan was truly the brains behind our entire wedding– not to mention a complete genius when it comes to knowing who’s who in the Bay Area wedding scene. In the end Duncan did so much more than plan our wedding; he introduced us to vendors that I never would have found, answered thousands of e-​mails (responding to all of them with lightning speed!), and kept meticulous records of budgets, payments, and meetings. To those of you weighing whether or not to have a wedding planner — it was an absolute must for us and really allowed us to enjoy the wedding planning process and most importantly our wedding day. Duncan Reyes truly has our highest recommendation and is a pleasure to work with. He coordinated our wedding, dealt with crazy nuances (and personalities), and handled all stress and anxiety with poise and grace.
The day of for me was actually RELAXING knowing that Duncan was in charge of everything and that we had settled bills, gratuity and such ahead of time. THE ONLY THING I HAD TO WORRY ABOUT WAS GETTING MARRIED! Our timeline was 12 pages long, but I knew Duncan had that whole thing memorized and was ready to execute and perfect every single detail. If there were any problems, I knew nothing about them because Duncan had already taken care of them. What most impressed me the wedding day was how fluidly everything flowed, everything happened AS PLANNED, and Duncan was able to create the warmest, most welcoming, and glamorous black tie wedding in the middle of down town San Francisco.
Several weeks have gone by and we are still getting endless compliments on our wedding and wedding weekend. Duncan absolutely knows how to make YOUR special vision come to life in the most vibrant and fabulous form. Most importantly, my husband and I were beyond floored our wedding day and would not have changed a thing.

Duncan is the kind of guy that you would want to run your event. He pays attention to both the larger vision but also the smaller details. He keeps the day on schedule with every wrinkle carefully ironed out. I have had the opportunity to work with him on several productions and weddings. The clients feel at ease as he manages their budgets and helps to pull their vision to life. Few understand the San Francisco Bay Area the way he does. He really does know the inside scoop when it comes to both venues and event professionals. He brings class and skill and is worth far more than you could pay him.

Duncan helped make our dream wedding come together seamlessly. More than anything, it was his attention to detail that truly made it special. His extensive experience in the industry and love for the job made our lives so much easier. He’s incredibly organized, quick to respond, calm under pressure, and a pleasure to work with. Any time we were flustered or buried under thousands of decisions to make, Duncan would always be available to help us navigate any issue and helped keep us on track.
Duncan came so well recommended that we had very high expectations. And I can say now that he has well exceeded even those elevated expectations.
If you’re planning a wedding, it’s a no-​brainer. Call Duncan and you won’t regret it.

As a wedding photographer, coordinators really help make things happen for our clients, therefore really help us do our job. Having someone to organize the day, as well as help make it beautiful to look at is a huge part of a couple’s wedding day. Duncan does all that and more.
I had the pleasure of working as a photographer at a wedding Duncan was coordinating at the Boulder Ridge Golf course in San Jose. There was a lot of chaos going on that day due to the Jazz festival happening… and like the rockstar he is he remained calm and made sure things that had to get done got done. In the end our clients were happy, and I was given enough time to take the beautiful photographs that they have to remember their day by.
And that’s besides the beautiful décor of the wedding that was incredible to photograph. So not only did the bride and groom’s day go wonderful, but it looked stellar as well.
Duncan is a rock star!

Duncan Reyes could organize a party in Hell and everyone would have so much fun they would never want to leave.
Seriously…this guy throws a party and you won’t ever forget you were lucky enough to be invited.
It is the little things… Duncan lets nothing slip by him. His attention to detail is astonishing… his ability to stay unflappable in a hurricane force wind is something that is inspiring to witness.
I know he has planned parties for mega stars… and is in demand by celebrities and powerful people who can choose anyone.
They choose him for countless reasons.
The best part about Duncan is that he will treat you the same if you are a couple in love getting married at the Hilton as he would if you were Prince Abooboo from some enchanted isle in the middle of the South Pacific.
There is none better. Period.

Duncan Reyes is the most fabulous man alive.
When I first met Duncan over Sushi, he told me the story of being flown to India to hand select white elephants for a Wedding he was planning in Dubai. Wow. Duncan has shaken hands with Presidents, traveled the World designing events, and regularly works with CEOs of Fortune 500 companies and NFL Stars. But what makes him such an amazing human being and so good at what he does?
The moment you meet Duncan, he brings you into his world, and you are a part of his family of event professionals and vendors. He connects you with his «Dream Team» of vendors, whom also shower you with love, and care very much about making your event a success. You get a warm feeling of security and ease, which is very unusual for a Groom in the Wedding planning phase. 90 minutes after Duncan started planning our Wedding, he called me back and said, «Ok, we’re ready. The whole Dream Team is on board.»
I know in my heart that our Wedding was a hundred times more brilliant, elegant, gorgeous, memorable, and stress free as a result of Duncan’s constant, diligent, all encompassing work. We are so grateful for everything that Duncan did for us, and he always has a place in our family.
The best investment you can make in planning your Wedding or Special Event is to hire Duncan. He is the best of the best. From both my Wife and Myself, we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for giving us a day we will remember the rest of our lives.
Jason & Laura

I can’t recommend Duncan enough!!!
When my husband I got engaged, I knew that I needed the help of a Wedding Coordinator. I spoke to several other Wedding Coordinators before meeting with Duncan. The others had romantic ideas and emotional outpourings, but I didn’t need someone to hold my hand through the process. I needed someone like me. Someone who embraces the power of endless e-​mails, adores their own OCD, respects generosity, practices gratitude, and understands that business is business and love is love — even when the two go hand-​in-​hand.
Duncan was a savior during this process. I admire his kind heart, his keen advice, and his overwhelming patience (and I know I tested that with my many many e-​mails, questions and changes). His connections and recommendations speak highly of his character.
I’ve was consistently impressed with the vendors he recommended. They have kind hearts and did admirable work, just like him.
He was early to every meeting. He responded quickly to every questions or request. He went above and beyond what I hired him for and exceeded my expectations.
When I look back at this wedding, I will always think of Duncan. He was the dark horse. He was the man behind the whole occasion. He is the reason that my husband and I will remember our wedding day as the start of our lives together.
Also worth mentioning: our wedding guests, even a month later, are still talking about the wedding day and many of them told us it was the, «best wedding» they’ve ever been to. I thank Duncan and his amazing Dream Team for that :)
To Duncan— From the very bottom of my heart, and from Kelvin’s heart as well, THANK YOU! I don’t know how you do what you do — but you do it with grace and style.

Duncan is the calm, assured, experienced presence that you want to be planning (and especially) coordinating, day of. He was an absolute lifesaver, incredibly professional, upbeat, responsive, and all-​around simply a pleasure to have by your side.
Our wedding was in August, so this review has been a long time coming, but my family still mentions how great Duncan was the whole time. He’s unflappable, knows the wedding biz inside and out, and even fills in where other vendors were lacking (our photographer didn’t have a plan for the one hour before the ceremony when we were supposed to be taking photos despite our conversations beforehand… Duncan recommended a plan for him!)
I hired Duncan for his partial planning services, and he integrated beautifully with vendors that I brought on board (florist, DJ, shuttle service, venue) while recommending a few of his own (sound, limo, lighting, etc.). When I was too overwhelmed for small details like escort cards, he took the lead and handled it. After the wedding, he secured refunds for us from a couple of vendors that were lacking. Full refunds. Amazing.
Duncan is the consummate professional and someone you need to have on your wedding day, hands down. I couldn’t recommend someone more highly.

Duncan to the rescue! About a month before my daughters wedding, I realized that if my daughter and I wanted to fully enjoy the coming weeks and the day of the wedding, we needed some help.
David Ethridge of AVR films, highly recommended Duncan Reyes Events by Design.
Duncan was a lifesaver. Heidi and Dave were impressed with him right away. For me, the mother of the bride, he took a huge weight off my shoulders. He contacted all our vendors so that everything would fall into place seamlessly.
Duncan facilitated the rehearsal the night before. He showed up early the next morning at the hotel where the wedding party spent the day getting ready for the 5:00pm wedding. It was after 10:00pm when he finally left.
Duncan is an all-​around good guy. He is very professional and efficient, and at the same time friendly and fun.
I highly recommend Duncan Reyes Events by Design. You can relax and be sure that your event will be a great success. It’s worth every penny.
D. Giuffrida

5 stars all around for Duncan, who lived up to his legendary reputation. Duncan was actually the first vendor we hired. My husband had experienced Duncan’s talent at his older brother’s wedding and kept saying how smooth everything was. We were lucky that Duncan was available on our date and hired him without hesitation.
Starting the month before the wedding, Duncan was the main point of contact for every vendor we had hired. A wedding is such a production with so many people involved, so it was super helpful to have a coordinator handle major communications and follow up. Duncan came up with a detailed, 6-​page timeline and ensured everyone knew where they needed to be at all times. He has great ideas and is always accessible, quick to respond, and detail-​oriented.
One example that impressed me was how Duncan caught an error on my seating chart. To organize our guests, we had three different spreadsheets in Google Docs. One spreadsheet indicated everyone’s entrée selections. Another spreadsheet listed everyone by table. A third spreadsheet organized everyone alphabetically. Without my asking, Duncan cross-​referenced the three spreadsheets and asked me if one guest was still coming, because her name with missing from the alphabetical order spreadsheet. Good thing Duncan caught that, because I was using the alphabetical order spreadsheet to lay out my seating chart! His timing couldn’t have been better because he caught the error before I printed the chart.
Whenever anyone asks me how my wedding went, I tell them it was everything I hoped it would be and more. The day really was about as perfect as it could have been! I give a huge chunk of the credit to Duncan for making sure everything went off without a hitch. A relaxed bride is a happy bride. I absolutely recommend Duncan as someone you can trust to make your day happen. Hire him so that you can kick back and enjoy every moment!

I remember the day my fiancé (at the time) told me we had to go meet with our wedding planner (Duncan). It was a Sunday and I was not pleased about it. I thought to myself, wow, this is going to take about 3 hours to get through and totally burn my Sunday.
I came out of that meeting floored by Duncan and remember turning to my wife and saying, «If I could hire 10 more of him and take them to work with me I would have the perfect team and we would accomplish great things.» Seriously.
To say he’s on top of his stuff is an understatement. He’s not only incredibly considerate of your own thoughts /​considerations but comes with a wealth of advice that he’ll disperse appropriately and comfortably.
He’ll also come with all the details /​contracts /​and anything else you can possibly think of prepared. What I thought was going to be a painful meeting going over the ceremony was incredibly enjoyable, fast, and efficient. This same experience happened again and again with him.
He is truly a pleasure to work with and I can’t say enough great things. He exceeded my expectations beyond anything I thought someone was capable of; and that is quite a compliment considering I’m not easily impressed.
Then sense of relief you have when he’s there day of is soothing to the soul. He’s a game changer and if you’re deciding on a planner, you can’t beat Duncan. He’s worth it, trust me.

Before the venue, before the date, and even before the dress — we chose Duncan to be our wedding coordinator! He soon became our GO-​TO person for everything from vendor suggestions, décor ideas, and just plain advice about anything we needed. I doubt anyone else could have executed our dream day any more perfectly than Duncan. On the day of, he rallied up our crazy Bridal Party, laughed with us, let us cry it all out, then got us back on track (we had a tight time line and well… ya know– we were celebrating every minute!), and most importantly, through it all he became our good friend and we’re so happy to have shared it all with him and the A TEAM. To all the Brides on the fence about hiring a wedding planner, (as I was one!) it is a definite must. Duncan jumped in and took care of last minute headaches and unexpected whoopies — and there WILL BE whoopies! As perfect as our wedding was, it was Duncan and his A-​TEAM who made it so. Thank you my JLO!!! I am already having wedding withdrawals…

Duncan is the best thing that will happen to you… after getting engaged of course!
Seriously, any bride looking for a wedding planner to help plan your wedding or just someone to run the show on your big day, this is your MAN! My videographer (David Etheridge, also great!) referred me to Duncan and I’m so glad he did.
My husband and I had Duncan’s services for three weeks prior to our wedding and he was like a GOD that took care of every little detail and organized every little thing that you can imagine. Our wedding may have been a disaster if we didn’t have Duncan. I was skeptical at first because my husband and I were the ones who had planned everything and we were so on top of the whole thing that I really didn’t think we would need a planner. But then after talking to Duncan and telling him all about our wedding, I realized that there were little details that we had not even thought about and great ideas that we had not even considered. Duncan is extremely creative and can give you lots of wonderful ideas and referrals. Anyone who works in the wedding industry knows that when it comes to planners, Duncan Reyes is the one and that he is the GOD of planners in this industry. No joke.
This will be the best money you spend on your wedding… and it gets you peace of mind, a great new friend, and a wedding that he makes possible for YOU and YOUR husband to actually ENJOY!

Five– stars is nowhere near the number of stars that Duncan deserves. Although he’s already well-​known in the Bay Area, I thought I’d add my 2-​cents here on Unilocal.
I first contacted Duncan almost 2– years prior to my wedding date to inquire about his services & pricing. He was very prompt in responding– he always is! Sometimes he even replied within the hour! We couldn’t afford it back then (even the 2-​week coordination), but when he contacted us again a year later, he mentioned that he was still available & w/​the downturn of the economy he lowered his prices. We were paying for the entire wedding ourselves, and at this point we already had most everything planned, bought, and booked. But we decided that having a professional brought in for the last (hectic, agonizing, anxious) 2-​weeks would be worth it.
It was the best decision ever made. Although our wedding was in Carmel, and we would have had to pay for travel/​lodging, Duncan waived it. He said he would stay w/​a friend in San Jose & wouldn’t include the expenses in the final contract. And to sweeten the deal even more (and this was AFTER we decided to hire him for 2-​weeks), he gave us 2-​extra weeks for free! Can you say G-​E-​N-​E-​R-​O-​U-​S???
When we had a photographer nightmare (see my review for Amie Morgan Photography) less than 3-​weeks before the wedding, Duncan stepped in, contacted a few friends, & found us a Wooooo-​nderful photographer to shoot our wedding (here’s a shout-​out to Mike Steelman Photography!). A talented photojournalist who happened to be free, & after hearing what we went thru, decreased his prices just for us!
We don’t know what we would’ve done without Duncan. He did more than coordinate for us. He brought calm into the storm, made us laugh & smile when we wanted to throw our hands up and cry, & helped us enjoy our special day.
Duncan, thanks for being so thoughtful as to bring straws so I wouldn’t mess up my lipstick, for bringing a granola bar to make sure I eat so I won’t pass out, for helping bustle my dress when it broke, for. .. . ( Unilocal has decided to amend this posting because it continued on for another 10 pages).

Duncan is truly a hands on, I’ll get it done and do it right Planner.
When you hire Duncan, it’s like hiring a former 5 Star Catering Manager and a Wedding Planner in one person. It can’t get any better than that.
A few words comes to mind:
(D) — like a DIVA (I’ll call him DIVO) He’s fierce. He’s on your side.
(U) — Understanding, Calm, a problem Solver.
(N) — Never say Never. He listens to your wants and Executes.
© — Charismatic — brides and mothers becomes BFF’s w/​him.
(A) — ABSOLUTELY joy to work with! He’ll go the extra mile.
(N) — not just a Wedding Planner, but a Creative designer for your Dream Wedding.
Brides, You’ll have the Dream Team the minute you meet this Man. I’m glad I did.
Duncan, thank you a million times! Your services Rock!
** 10 STARS **
** 10 STARS **
** 10 STARS **
** 10 STARS **

Duncan is quite simply the best event planner.
As the groom, I was somewhat skeptical on the need to have a wedding planner but after my bride explained that it would be quite difficult to plan a cross country wedding for 75 folks by ourselves, we decided to work with Duncan.
Duncan is meticulous, resourceful, and extremely creative. He helped us set up a wonderful weekend complete with rehearsal dinner at a great Napa Valley restaurant, wedding ceremony and reception at a Calistoga vineyard, and a casual oyster BBQ in Tomales Bay on the day after.
Duncan knows many vendors and his great attitude makes the wedding planning process a pleasure. Duncan is able to work with couples from us to celebrities. Its due to his good work that all of our guests have been constantly bestowing plaudits on our wedding weekend. We strongly recommend Duncan.

If I could give this man five thousand stars, I would. Duncan Reyes is truly a god sent. I found Duncan through Unilocal and he was 2^nd wedding planner I called. The first planner I called didn’t answer the phone… on a Monday morning! Duncan and I hit it off immediately on the phone and set up a meeting, but I knew from that conversation alone that I wanted Duncan to be my planner.
Duncan was attentive to all my questions, was by my side throughout each process and guided me with each decision. I owe the every perfection of my wedding to this man.
Duncan is a genius, true talent, a friend and a man that knows the profession like the back of his hand. My wedding went off without a hitch. Timely, gorgeous, classy and exactly what wanted. I was told I was the calmest bride ever and it was all thanks to Duncan. The day was stress free and i was able to enjoy every single minute of it because Duncan had it all under control.
I would do it all over again if I could and I wouldn’t do it with any other person.

As the groom I was skeptical that we actually needed a wedding coordinator. I figured we could do most of it on our own and use friends and family to do the rest. Thank goodness I was overruled. I signed up for Unilocal just to write a great review for Duncan.
Duncan is an amazing professional who treated our wedding as if it were his own (and we know he had others to plan and coordinate at the same time). He fixed existing problems, anticipated problems that we did not foresee, was a great sounding board and most importantly he made sure that the big day went off without a hitch. By the end of our wedding day I wasn’t sure whether my wife was more excited about getting married to me or about having the chance to hang out with Duncan for the three months prior.
He would have been worth at least twice as much as we actually paid him. Of all my vendors I recommend Duncan the most. I work with professionals on a daily basis — Duncan truly lives up to the title. And he’s a very nice guy too. Which is nice.

Duncan has planned many super fabulous star-​studded bizillionaire type weddings and events. Yet he never made our small budget wedding feel any less special. Working with Duncan is fantastic. He is very organized and responds promptly and is always early for meetings. He helped keep us on-​track and kept within our budget. He has great ideas and great taste. Our wedding was beautiful and stress-​free and everyone had a fun time. I would highly recommend Duncan to anyone planning an event.

when we started planning our wedding we were really surprised that our contract with the venue said that we had to have a wedding planner. we were wondering how to use a coordinator and what they would do that would help us since we felt that it was «all in the bag»…
well, basically the thing i learned about planning a wedding is that there are a ton of people that need to be on board and Duncan made everything work so well that potential problems were solved, everyone was in line and we were able to enjoy our event. he’s creative, on the ball, and completely professional. a total ace!