Rena Soclof of Teaneck has always had a knack for turning people’s dreams into reality. She starts with someone’s vision of an event or party and, step by step, helps bring that vision to fruition by creating an event that perfectly meets the person’s needs and expectations. Recognizing that the planning of such an event can create incredible stress, often detracting from people’s enjoyment of their simcha, Soclof created Rena Soclof Events, enabling her to use her passion to help people alleviate the stress of event planning.
Event planning is not a tedious or burdensome activity for Soclof; rather, she loves the preparation process that comes along with a big event. She explained, “I love the final product or event, but I also love all the steps along the way from the initial vision.”
Since officially starting her business six months ago, Soclof has planned a bat mitzvah weekend and a Shabbat aufruf weekend. She organized every detail of Karen Federbush’s son’s aufruf, which took a huge burden off of the Federbushes. “She immediately took away the stress; she was calm and informative and helpful. She was always there for both of us at any given moment,” said Federbush. “She did all the leg work, meeting and negotiating with the various vendors involved. At the actual event, we were relaxed and were able to be in the moment with our son at this special time and enjoy our guests and ourselves.”
Aside from the events she has planned through her business, she has also planned all of her four children’s bar and bat mitzvahs. One was literally on the beach on the sand, and people still tell her how amazing it was five years later. She also planned a bar mitzvah for one of her sons where they brought in a basketball dunking group who had appeared on America’s Got Talent. Even though the parties were all different, they were all memorable, and that is one of Soclof’s main goals when planning events. “I enjoy making things different and unique and making it everything the client wants while alleviating some of the stress.”
When planning an event, one of the primary things Soclof discusses with a client is the budget. It is her job to ensure that the client’s dream can be actualized within their spending abilities. The most important part of planning an event is that the product is something beautiful and memorable, and it is possible to have all of that without overspending.
Soclof has the agility to plan any type of event no matter how big or small. Whether it is a weekend, a wedding or a corporate event, she is very open and flexible, and is confident that her business will create a special niche in the market. Having noticed that some planners only do specific aspects of the event, or that one can only hire them to plan the whole event, Soclof’s business is designed so that people can use her services even if it is just for one part of the planning. She can be engaged for any part of the planning, from contracts to venues to giveaways to fashion advice.
If you are interested in planning your next event with Rena Soclof Events, email or call Rena at [email protected] or 201-280-3145. You can also follow her on Instagram @renasoclofevents.
By Esti Ness
Esti Ness is a Teaneck resident, a rising junior at Queens College and a Jewish Link summer intern.
