Love, Logistics, Linens, and Late Nights: The Story of Details Event & Design Studio

Just outside Bridgewater, along the old highway between Mahone Bay and town, stands a 4,000-squarefoot warehouse filled with tables, glassware, linens, lighting, and décor of every kind imaginable. To the casual passerby it might look like a typical storage building. But inside, it’s the creative engine behind countless weddings and celebrations across Nova Scotia’s South Shore and beyond.

This is the home base of Details Event & Design Studio, the event planning and design company founded by entrepreneur Shanna Joudrey.

Over the past decade, Joudrey has built a reputation for helping couples turn their wedding visions into reality—often managing every detail from venue selection to décor design. But like many small business stories, Details didn’t begin with a perfectly laid-out roadmap. It began with experience, passion, and a realization that something was missing.

A Creative Path Takes Shape

Joudrey’s journey into event planning began in the world of design.

Born and raised in the Bridgewater area, she went on to study at NSCAD University before launching a career in publishing. Through connections made during her studies, she landed work with major Canadian magazines, eventually joining House & Home in Toronto, where she spent nearly nine years.

 “I did a lot of décor work there,” Joudrey recalls. “Toward the end of my stay, I started helping with their events and things like that. That’s where my passion for the event side of things really came about.”

 When she and her husband decided to move back to Nova Scotia, she found herself at a crossroads professionally. While planning their own wedding from afar, she discovered something surprising: professional event planning services were almost nonexistent in the region.

“What it made me realize is that there was a huge gap in the industry,” she says. “At the time there was almost nobody here to help with the planning side of things.” 

That realization would soon lead to the creation of Details Event & Design Studio.

From Big Idea to Business Launch

In early 2015, Joudrey enrolled in the Province of Nova Scotia’s Self Employment Program in Bridgewater, where she began sculpting her idea into a viable business.

The experience required developing a full business plan—something she now credits with helping her define the company’s direction early on.

“It made me really focus on what my business was going to be,” she reflects. “It made me narrow in on what services I wanted to provide and how I wanted to fill the gaps.” 

Later that year, Details Event & Design Studio officially launched

In the beginning, the business was a mix of graphic design work and wedding planning, with Joudrey operating out of her home. But as demand grew, so did the need for space—and inventory.

“We initially worked out of my house, but we just kept acquiring more and more things,” she says with a laugh. “Eventually we realized we needed somewhere bigger.” 

Today, the company operates from a large warehouse and studio in Oakhill, where Joudrey and her team store an extensive collection of event rentals.

Weddings, Rentals, and Creative Vision

While weddings remain the heart of the business, Details has evolved – as many businesses do – intosomething much broader.

The company now offers full-service planning, design consultation, and an extensive rental catalogue that includes everything from dinnerware and glassware to drapery, furniture, lighting, and custom décor pieces.

“The rental side of the business has really grown in the last few years,” Joudrey explains. “It’s almost surpassed the planning side in terms of revenue.” 

For many couples—especially the growing number of people planning destination weddings in Nova Scotia—Details acts as the local expert who brings everything together.

“Some clients know what they want but don’t necessarily know how to achieve that,” she says. “We’re the people on the ground doing the footwork—meeting vendors, helping design the event, and bringing it all together.” 

The company works on 20 to 30 weddings each year, and Joudrey reports that the calendar for 2027 is already filling up.

Support Through Growth—and Crisis

As the business grew, support from organizations like CBDC played an important role along the way. Early on, Joudrey participated in the CBDC’s Consulting Advisory Services (CAS) program, which helped strengthen the company’s online presence and marketing efforts. 

That relationship proved especially valuable during the COVID-19 pandemic—a devastating period for the event industry.

“We had 20 weddings booked for 2020,” Joudrey says. “In the end we only had five or six.” 

Support programs – such as the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund (RRRF) – helped provide stability during that uncertain time, allowing the business to survive while many in the industry struggled.

“When we came out of the pandemic, things really took off,” she says. 

As the demand for celebrations quickly returned, Joudrey was ready to meet the moment, and there’s been no looking back.

A Business Built on Relationships and Community

Although Details maintains a strong web and social media presence, most of the company’s growth has come organically through relationships with vendors and word-of-mouth referrals from satisfied clients.

“I would say it’s mostly referrals, to be honest,” Joudrey says. “Clients often reach out because their photographer or caterer suggested they contact us.” 

That network now spans the entire South Shore, with Details often acting as a hub connecting venues, caterers, photographers, florists, and musicians.

“I kind of think of myself as the wedding hub of the South Shore,” she says. 

The business has also become involved in local fundraising and community events, organizing creative experiences such as themed dinners and charity galas.

Dreaming Bigger

After more than a decade in business, Joudrey isn’t slowing down.

Her long-term goal is something she has been thinking about since the earliest days of the company: creating a dedicated event venue on the South Shore.

“My goal right from the start was that after ten years, I’d love to have my own venue,” she says. “And I know exactly what that venue should look like,” she adds with a smile.

For someone who has spent years transforming barns, backyards, and waterfront spaces into unforgettable celebrations, the idea feels like a natural next step.

Until then, Joudrey and her growing team will keep doing what they do best: turning ideas into unforgettable experiences, and making sure every celebration is exactly what the client imagined.