Products, software and advice for planning family, military, and class reunions

Featured Profile of the Month

JOHN CULLEN
Professional Reunion Planner
Reunion Planning, Inc.
www.reunionplanninginc.com
Region Served: Cleveland/Akron, Ohio

As part of a series we are doing to highlight professional reunion planners, we would like to recognize John Cullen, President of Reunion Planning, Inc. in the area covering Cleveland/Akron, Ohio. He has some excellent advice and tips of his own for starting a business helping others to plan their high school reunions.

John purchased his business in 1993 after the previous owners decided to give up reunion planning. He was a head of his time computerizing the data so that the research and data collection would be simplified.

Prior to starting his business, John was a career counselor for nearly 30 years. He also was an administrator/business manager for several area law firms and outpatient medical agencies. With his extensive computer usage in these capacities, he was encouraged to make his decision to acquire the reunion planning business.

His wife, Linda, assists with the business. They sub-contract front desk, photography and music for the reunions. DJs are used for a majority of the reunions, while live bands are only used when a class can afford it. What are his favorite venues? They use all kinds: hotels, restaurants, county clubs, party centers, outdoor venues and church halls.

Most of their advertising is "word of mouth." After 23 years operating in the greater Akron/Cleveland area, they have school classes that use them for several of their celebrations including the 10, 20 and 30-year reunions.

John says the most gratifying part of the business is knowing that they have "taken the 'grunt' work out of planning by running a reunion and allowing the committee to enjoy the event (s) worry free." According to John, often the committee takes the credit for all of their hard work, but that is OK with him. "They were smart enough to hire us to do it for them!!"

The committees John and Linda work with can become as active (or inactive) as they like, "Our greatest value is helping to locate 'lost' classmates and planning any pre-or post-reunion celebrations."

John and Linda find that the most difficult task in planning reunions is getting the committee to agree on details, especially if the committee is a large one. The committee often asks their advice and sometimes they are able to settle minor disputes, "When they can't decide on what kind of potatoes to have at the dinner, I pin the choices on a dart board and the committee chairperson throws darts to decide! That usually dramatizes how silly some of their decision making becomes."

Some advice John would offer future professional reunion planners is to research thoroughly the current reunion planning 'market' such as finding out how many existing planners and total number of high schools are in the target area. He recommends preparing a business plan and talking with other planners. For example, members of the National Association of Reunion Managers, [NARM] who are outside of the immediate area can be an invaluable resource.