Sara Mazzei, luxury wedding planner in Italy

What defines your strength as a company today?

What defines us today is the ability to combine creative direction with production expertise.

Design alone is not enough to deliver a truly exceptional event. It requires structure, experience and a team capable of managing complexity without compromising the guest experience. Over the past twenty years, we have developed a solid production framework that allows us to work across different countries, cultures and scales, always maintaining the same level of attention, discretion and quality.

 

What are the key milestones or achievements you are most proud of as a founder and company?

One of the achievements I am most proud of is the high-end word-of-mouth network we have built over the years. Today, more than 80% of our revenue comes directly from personal referrals. Working closely with influential families and leading entrepreneurs from around the world, across Switzerland, Italy, the United States, and the Middle East, has allowed us to create lasting relationships based on trust, discretion and excellence.

This consistent level of service has shaped a reputation that goes far beyond social media presence. It is a reputation built through private recommendations, authentic client experiences and the confidence of those who value quality, privacy and substance above visibility. For me, this trust is the company’s greatest milestone.

What does luxury mean to you today?

Luxury today is not about excess. It is about time, intention and ease. True luxury is the ability to experience a celebration without friction, where every detail feels natural, never forced.

Today, the real luxury is culture: the ability to work with deep respect for the history of a place, its traditions and the art that surrounds it. Culture is the truest form of elegance, something that cannot be bought at a low price, but is instead the result of a continuous process of knowledge, sensitivity and awareness.

For our clients, luxury also means trust. Trusting a team that can design an experience that feels effortless yet unforgettable. Our clients love to celebrate, and they rely on our expertise to create extraordinary events where every moment is thoughtfully curated and every guest is genuinely impressed.

Entertainment seems to play a central role in your weddings. Why is that?

Because entertainment sets the tone. It creates connection, emotion and energy. A wedding should feel alive. Whether it is a band, a DJ, a performance or a carefully curated musical journey across several days, entertainment is what transforms a beautiful event into an unforgettable experience. We design it with the same care and intention as every other element.

We also invest constantly in research: we travel, experience events and visit clubs around the world to understand emerging trends and the most innovative creative directions. This allows us to bring fresh energy and a global perspective to every celebration, while always tailoring it to our clients.

Looking back, which events have marked key moments in your evolution as a planner?

It’s a beautiful question. There have been many defining moments along the way. In every career, there are what I like to call “sliding doors moments”, those pivotal experiences that quietly, yet profoundly, shape your direction. You don’t only recognize them in hindsight; often, you can feel their significance as you are living them.

I think of a remarkable wedding for a German family set in the Tuscan countryside (450 guests and an entire month of production, with considerable challenges to overcome). Or the wedding of a Swiss entrepreneur, where, just one month prior, we still had no confirmed venue due to a series of complex circumstances.

Then there was the bride who called me just three weeks before her wedding in Capri (an entire celebration to be conceived and delivered in such a short time). A major event in Seville marked another turning point, as did a stunning winter wedding in Sankt Moritz, surrounded by snow.

Each of these experiences involved large-scale productions, often with 200 to 300 guests or more. The list could go on, perhaps because I live every moment with intensity and a deep awareness that every opportunity carries meaning. It requires a certain willingness to seek that meaning, and the patience to truly understand it. Nothing, after all, happens by chance.

 

Can you share a memorable moment from one of your events that still makes you laugh, and another that was particularly difficult?

I’ll share a story that, at the time, brought me to tears and ultimately, to laughter.

It was a wedding in Verona with over 200 guests. The concept, both in terms of entertainment and overall flow, was exceptionally refined. As always, we had prepared a plan B, securing a marquee in case of bad weather. The idea was to make a final decision two days before, based on the forecast. The family, reassured by the predictions, chose not to install the structure.

On the morning of the wedding, however, dark clouds gathered above us. The tension of those hours is difficult to describe, holding onto the hope that they would simply pass. Instead, just thirty minutes before guests were due to arrive, a storm unlike any I had ever seen broke out.

We rushed to protect everything, doing our utmost to safeguard the technical setup, while hosting the guests inside the villa, hoping the rain would subside.

For the first (and, fortunately, only) time in twenty years, I locked myself in a bathroom and cried. There were no alternatives: either the rain would stop, or the entire celebration would be compromised. Two intense minutes of tears, and then, like an actor stepping back onto the stage, I told myself: the show must go on. Somehow, we would make it happen.

We extended the aperitif slightly, and at last, the rain eased. Yet the forecast warned it would return within three hours. At that point, I advised the family to accelerate everything: a four-hour programme had to be condensed into just two and a half hours, ensuring guests would remain sheltered.

What followed were two incredibly intense hours of coordination (kitchen, performers, lighting), all moving in perfect synchrony. And in the end, the compliments were overwhelming. That was the moment I finally allowed myself to laugh.

Even now, I can still recall the tension of that evening. Life, after all, has a way of making us laugh and cry over the very same moments.

 

What advice would you give to someone who wants to enter this industry?

Advice is always a delicate matter: everyone must find their own path. If anything, I would offer a reflection on education. Today, there are countless courses available, but in truth, much of what they teach can be learned in six months within a well-structured agency.

Instead, I would encourage aspiring planners to invest in their cultural foundation: study art history, explore culinary traditions, perhaps undertake a sommelier course. Cultivating oneself opens the door to worlds rooted in substance and depth and ultimately enhances one’s credibility.

 

You are known for your discretion, and you tend to stay behind the scenes. What qualities have enabled you to build what you have today?

This is perhaps the most difficult question of all and one I have often reflected upon.

If I had to identify a defining quality, it would be perseverance. It is what I rely on whenever I am faced with challenges or complex projects. I never assume I will succeed because of any extraordinary talent; rather, I find confidence in my consistency, in my resilience, in the ability to keep moving forward.

Over the years, it is this quiet determination that has allowed the brands to grow and evolve.

 

In between the grandeur of celebrations, what are the small, personal luxuries you cannot live without?

There are a few rituals I consider entirely my own: small, essential moments that bring me back to myself.

Time outdoors is one of them. I love walking at a fast pace, whether along a lake, in the mountains, or through the quiet streets of a beautiful city at dawn, often in between events or early appointments. There is a particular stillness in those hours, a sense of clarity that I find deeply grounding.

Equally important are the people I hold close: friends and loved ones who remain a constant, a safe harbour amidst the intensity and demands of my work.

And then, there is the rare pleasure of being a guest. To attend a beautiful celebration and finally experience the magic from the other side is, in itself, a quiet luxury.

And perhaps my most personal indulgence: every now and then, I allow myself a moment of complete solitude: a cigar, silence, and time standing still. My own, intimate idea of luxury!

We work with a limited number of celebrations each year.
If our approach resonates with you, we would be pleased to begin a conversation. You can contact us at info@infinityweddings.it