Meet Annie Goering & Shivani Kothari | Cofounders, Salud

We had the good fortune of connecting with Annie Goering & Shivani Kothari and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Annie & Shivani, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
The most important factor behind our success as a brand is due to how we make decisions. We have a clear mission and values and we tend to funnel our decisions through those lenses. We also have a lot of discussions where we ask ourselves “How would we feel if we were one of our clients and they saw we announced this change?”

For us, being in the wedding industry, we really try to stay true to designing a wedding planning experience we would love to have ourselves. For example, that means having affordable tiered price points and a business model that is designed to fit into the modern couple’s life and financial parameters, rather than the other way around. That also means recognizing there’s not a ton of transparency when it comes to wedding planning as it stands, so we consciously make the choice to list our pricing on our website and only partner with brands we genuinely believe in.

It could be very easy to always make decisions based on whatever seems to be the shiny object at the moment, but we really try to be intentional with how we grow and how we treat our team and community.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Salud is a flexible and affordable, month-to-month wedding planning subscription service designed to fit into the modern couple’s life. Some people call us “The netflix of wedding planning!”

Couples can work with a wedding planner in their wedding city over facetime, email, and our collaborative web space on tasks like organizing a budget, putting together a design plan, sourcing vendors, and creating a timeline.

Salud helps couples all over the US, and has most recently started to expand to Mexico and Jamaica. This service was designed for couples who:

– have busy schedules and don’t always have time to spend hours doing research, but would rather email their wedding planner for trusted recommendations.

– would appreciate working with a wedding planner, but maybe a full service planner isn’t in the budget or they feel they need more of an in between option

– are really comfortable planning their wedding virtually. Every monthly plan includes access to a personalized Salud planning portal to connect with a dedicated wedding planner and collaborate on planning documents.

We strongly believe we’ve got to where we are because we’re good listeners and we try to put ourselves in the shoes of our customers often. It’s not always easy, and some may even say it’s not the right business decision at times, but we know we couldn’t have got to where we are without our customers, team, and larger community supporting us at a larger scale.

From the beginning, we’ve wanted to break the mold and create a new and diverse landscape for the wedding industry. It’s not just about the ‘big day’; it’s about the journey that leads up to it. It’s about ensuring every couple, regardless of their cultural background or financial situation, experiences the wedding they’ve always dreamed of. The heart of a wedding is not in the extravagance, but in the love and shared moments regardless of the budget.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
We are two founders who are so opposite in so many ways but we also think that’s what makes us such a good team! For Annie it would probably be something outdoorsy she’s super active and loves exploring. For Shivani she loves being outside near the beach and exploring local coffee shops!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We want to give a shoutout to our amazinggg team! They’ve been through so much with us through several launches, busy wedding and holiday seasons, and even a pandemic. Everyone has been so amazing and patient as we navigate the chaos that comes with startup life sometimes and we’re so thankful to have them be a keystone to our journey.

Website: www.momentstosalud.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/momentstosalud

Facebook: www.facebook.com/momentstosalud