Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1439511
PARTY-PLANNING PERFECTIONISTS TODD FISCUS AND KEITH SMYTHE MEACHAM OFFERED UP BANTER, SALVOS AND TIPS FOR THROWING THE PERFECT EVENT. By Billy Fong. Photography Jonathan Zizzo. SOUTHERN COMFORT T h e l i v e l y p a n e l discussion with Todd Fiscus and Keith Smythe Meacham, s p o n s o r e d b y Monogram Luxury Appliances and held at Capital Distributing Showroom, was filled with sweet and saucy moments. First off, I would renew my Netflix subscription if they gave the witty Fiscus his own show. He and the very-southern Meacham, who flew in from Nashville, paired perfectly as she described bourbon-soaked garden parties devised with the late Julia Reed (her business partner), while Fiscus countered with a $6 million wedding extravaganza. Monogram's Kennith Miller welcomed the design crowd before Fiscus and Meacham took to dueling mics. In rapid-fire fashion, Fiscus indulged the audience with images from dozens of events he's planned during his career, from exquisite ballroom to over-the-top tent in locations that span the globe for clients Tom Ford, Neiman Marcus, the Dallas Cowboys, and Audi. Instagram devotees far and wide have hoped for juicy details about Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton since he staged their extraordinary wedding in Oklahoma. Some tidbits he shared for us included Stefani's insistence on having a golf cart wrapped in tulle for moving about the ranch (where the two were married in a chapel that Blake had secretly been building for close to a year). And, in Todd fashion, he cut off the inevitable audience question: "What is the most expensive wedding you've ever thrown?" His response: "$6 million." Then, with a wink, "There were a lot of flowers." His counterpart, Keith Smythe Meacham, co-founded the online emporium Reed Smythe & Company alongside Julia Reed, who passed away in 2020. The two grew up in the Mississippi Delta and formed their boutique e-commerce site around the idea of having artisans and makers from the South and beyond craft unique items for home and garden — the latter, being a spot where Meacham likes to host parties. She shared poignant stories of Reed and how they often had to pivot from outside to indoors when Southern storms appeared out of nowhere, or overcame faux tragedies like the Spanish moss catching fire. Seen: Gonzalo Bueno, Luisa Araujo, Patricia Quirino, Christy Marceaux, Julie Koch, Empress Gilbert, Kim Turner, Eduardo Natal, Gabrielle Warrington, Kathy Adcock-Smith, Ryan Vaughn, Jay Klosterman, and Stacy Coulter. Kennith Miller Keith Smythe Meacham, Todd Fiscus Christy Marceaux Ryan Vaughn Julie Koch Gabrielle Warrington Eduardo Natal Sarah Prazak Matt Becker Patricia Quirino Emilee Miller Leah Hutchins Laurie Ann Love Edlyn Laco Ashley Keating Gonzalo Bueno