Our first Vendor Spotlight features 128 South, a new event venue in the heart of Downtown Wilmington. The building is reminiscent of Southern Victorian charm, yet is open and airy. Although the building is quiet during the weekday, there is a constant buzz as we meet with Christie, Mira, and JJ. Brian was not able to be present for the interview. The phone rings often; brides and vendors alike calling with inquiries and event updates. The owners clearly love what they do, and the laughter is infectious.
Owners:
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| Christie Brogan Background: Hospitality & Event Planning/Design Years of Experience: 17 Years |
Mira Khoury Background: Hospitality Years of Experience: 17 Years |
JJ Khoury Background: Hospitality Years of Experience: 12 Years |
Not Pictured
Brian Hood
Background: DJ Extraordinaire
Years of Experience: 17 Years
IS: 128 South is a new venue downtown. Tell us how it came to be.
128: 128 South is housed in the historic VonKampen building on South Front Street. The building is also home to Stemmerman’s Inn and is owned by the Khoury family. Originally, the building was the largest grocery store in three counties and throughout the years, the space has been a bar, art gallery and a Thai restaurant, among other things. When the restaurant moved out last year, we combined our hospitality experience with Christie’s event experience to create an event venue in downtown that is truly unique. It took 10 months of renovations — sometimes it seemed we’d never be done! But we finally hosted our Grand Opening on Feb. 11, 2010.
IS: Every event space is a little different. How would you characterize 128 South?
128: We describe ourselves as “Historic charm… meets modern elegance”. The building features heart-of-pine beams, hardwood floors, original Victorian stained glass windows, brick walls, and a charming staircase. But we also wanted it to be modern. Our biggest goal was to hire a great chef. We’re all foodies, and we didn’t want to serve our guests the typical wedding “rubber chicken”. We wanted to serve food that had it’s own reputation. Chef Shannon Pitts has previously worked for Jerry’s and Harvest Moon. He also worked for a Charleston, SC Catering Company until he relocated back to the Wilmington area this past year. He’s amazing! We’ve even had people request for us to cater events off-site because they love the food. (Editor’s note: The coconut shrimp is delish!)
Our space is designed for seated events of up to 120 and cocktail style events of up to 150 (until the completion of the Riverview Deck which will increase our capacity– see below). We never do a hard sell. We want our brides to fall in love with the space, to love the food, and to love what we do. The brides that tend to book us are brides who are not afraid to think outside the box, who have a unique vision for their wedding. That said, we’ve also had brides that take a more traditional approach to designing their event. The building is so versatile and works well either way.
IS: You’re coming up on celebrating your first full year in business. What are you looking forward to in your second year?
128: Our business is growing and expanding! We have been hosting other types of special events, such as corporate parties, meetings, holiday parties, and birthdays and are looking to expand more into that segment of the market this year. We’re definitely loving the variety and we look forward to continuing to grow. Also, we are currently in the planning phase of an outdoor Riverview Deck. Our goal is to complete construction of the Riverview Deck by Fall 2011, we will be opening our outdoor deck as an extension of our downtown event space!
128 South will be hosting an open house as part of this Sunday’s Carolina Wedding Guide Bridal Expo.
Visit 128 South at www.128southevents.com.
To contact 128 South for your upcoming event, please call (910) 399-1709 or email info@128southevents.com.
