Italian planner Oana Nechifor takes only five brides a year, every wedding inside a heritage venue across Italy or the South of France. She doesn’t pitch. She isn’t on a list. She’s a recommendation.

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TRAINED IN TRADITION

Before founding her own practice, Oana built her career inside the European heritage wedding world.

After studying business in London and moving to Lake Como, she found her way into the events industry, working alongside people she describes as “leading this industry for centuries.”

“It was kind of natural for me to choose this profession,” she says. That early role, she says, “boosted my creativity in the most incredible way.”

It also gave her something most destination planners can’t claim. She didn’t decide to plan heritage weddings. She was trained inside one.

What Couples Get Wrong

Heritage venues are easy to fall in love with from the outside. The image is doing most of the work in advance. But Oana sees the trap most couples walk into.

“Couples sometimes fall in love with the image of a heritage venue before understanding how it actually feels to spend time there,” she says. “The most beautiful properties are not automatically the most welcoming or emotionally resonant. A venue should support the wedding’s atmosphere rather than dominate it. The best celebrations feel connected to the history of the place instead of staged against it.”

It’s the difference between using a venue as a backdrop and being part of its lineage. The first reads as a photograph. The second reads as a wedding.

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WHY DOES SHE LIMIT BOOKINGS?

Five weddings a year is a quiet number in an industry that prizes scale. It’s also her position.

I limit bookings to five per year because the way I see it, weddings require attention that cannot be scaled endlessly without losing quality,” she says. “Every event has a different rhythm, family dynamic, and creative identity, and I want the space and energy to stay personal. I would rather do fewer weddings exceptionally well than turn the experience into a production line.”

In a market where most planners optimise for volume, Oana has built a practice that optimises for memory.

The Case Study: A Lake Como

The most recent celebration to embody this approach was Yuri and Dev’s wedding on Lake Como, photographed by Greg Finck.

One couple, one weekend, two heritage settings. The architecture set the register. The wedding was built to belong to it, not perform against it.

Florals by @lakecomoflorist. Catering and mixology by @spumafashionmadetasty. Calligraphy and paper goods by @ginkgo_calligraphy. The vendor list read like a who’s who of considered Italian wedding makers, every collaborator chosen for their relationship to place.

The result was a wedding that stayed quiet on the inside. No spectacle laid on top. No concept imported from elsewhere. The history did the work.

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THE MOST OVERLOOKED TRUTH

The biggest shift in Italian weddings isn’t aesthetic. It’s behavioural.

“The most overlooked truth is that people are starting to value intimacy and emotional texture more than spectacle,” she says. “Italy naturally gives weddings beauty, so the weddings people remember are usually the ones that feel deeply human: long conversations at dinner, thoughtful moments, warmth, atmosphere, genuine hospitality and exceptional service. The setting matters, but the emotional experience matters more.”

It’s a quiet correction to the past five years of excess in destination weddings. Spectacle photographs well. Intimacy stays.

The Recommendation

The brides who find Oana tend to be the ones who already understand the difference.

They aren’t searching for the wedding no one’s seen. They are searching for the wedding people will remember.

She does five of them a year. Everyone inside a heritage venue. Everyone quietly built around a couple, not against a backdrop.

She isn’t on a list. She’s a recommendation.

To inquire with Oana Events, visit oanaevents.it.

Credits for Villa d’Este and Balbiano for Yuri & Dev
Planning, Concept & Design: @oanaevents Venue: @villa_balbiano @theheritagecollection Photo: @gregfinck Video: @cordes_studio Content : @elinitaly Styling: @torringouskos MUAH: @thestudiocomo Catering & Mixology: @spumafashionmadetasty Cake: @lisabakerycomo Florist: @lakecomoflorist Celebrant: @comolakecelebrant Paper goods: @ginkgo_calligraphy Live Band: @thegypsyqueensofficial Harp: @ambracanevari Dj: @alrmusic Sound & lights: @blunotteventi Rentals: @memorable_productions Boats & transfers: @lakecomosbest

Credits for Cetinale for Ally & Ryan: Planning, Concept & Design @oanaevents, Venue @cetinale Photo @jackhenryphoto Video @sommarfilms Content @elinitaly Make up & hair @trinejuel Florals @lakecomoflorist Catering @galateoricevimenti Cake @sugarcups_cake_design Paper goods @ginkgo_calligraphy Games @italianweddinggames, Electric Violin @jeremygreen Rooming band @the.cool.boyz Live Band & DJ @courtierentertainment AV & Lights @weddingmusicandlights

Credits for Villa Erba for Cherry and Grant: Planning, Design & Concept : @oanaevents Venue : @villaerbaofficial Content creator : @elinitaly Photography : @daniloandsharon Videograohy : @moonandbackco Glam : @thestudiocomo Florals : @rattiflora Seating plan : @ginkgo_calligraphy Illustrations : @inna_illustrator Electric Violin : @jeremyxgreen Rooming Band : @the.cool.boyz Dj : @alrmusic Sound & Lights : @bdm.weddings Catering : @sunlake.catering Getaway car : @vagueluxuryrent