Sending wedding invites in style

Dubai - As Entertainment Design Company celebrates five years in Dubai, it proves that a good invite will never go out of style.

As the cooler season approaches, you can expect to receive many invites for weddings and celebrations - like Eid, Diwali and Christmas - over the next few months. And in these days of email, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, there is nothing more special than receiving a real invite. It immediately sets the tone for a special event, an occasion to remember. The importance of the "invitation" became very apparent to Chareka Paillart when she was planning her wedding. The company she turned to for wedding invites was Entertainment Design Company (EDC), that has designed the personal stationery of Nita Ambani as well as the wedding cards of Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan; as 'invites' go in India, EDC offers the "gold standard." EDC has offices in Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.
After 15 years as a professional, Dubai-based Paillart - who worked in the corporate field in India, North Africa and the Middle East, in media companies such as McCann Erickson and Mindshare - decided it was time to set up her own company, Charcoal Management Service, that specialises in bringing Indian brands to the region. "When I approached EDC for my wedding cards, I was highly impressed by the offerings that were coming out of factories in India. I met Kapil and Sandy Khurana, co-founders of the brand, and realised the potential EDC had to go international. The brand fit my company like a glove."
Five years ago, EDC opened up in Dubai. In the first year alone, Paillart and her team designed over 100 wedding invites with the client, including ones for the royal families of Sharjah and Oman. In Dubai, EDC has become a truly international company with clients coming from all communities. Says Paillart, "At EDC, we define ourselves by our quality, good service and unprecedented luxury. These elements are not community bound. we cater to all design elements - modern, classic, Arabesque, ethnic, vintage etc." Each invite is bespoke and helps a client create a memory to mark the landmark event.
Paillart firmly believes nothing will replace the paper invite. "The quality of the paper and the treatments used tell a story that can entice anyone. E-vites are very restrictive from a design point of view, and so have an impersonal touch."
EDC invites can often be more than announcements of an event; they can become keepsakes and gifts too. They have designed invites that can later be converted into jewellery boxes. "I once had a client who walked in with an invite designed by EDC in 2004!" says Paillart.
The designing of the card is a process that is an experience itself. At EDC's lounge-style store at the Village Mall, you sit with Paillart and her design team of five and go through concepts before a mood board is created; EDC then presents the client with three options, from which the final card is created. The real "magic" happens at the EDC head office in Delhi, where there are 50 designers and a team of over 1,000 in production.
With some of EDC's most important work displayed like pieces of art around the boudoir-style store, the inspiration to design something beautiful hits you as soon as you walk in. Paillart's background in advertising has made her understand the importance of creativity and client servicing. The company has mainly grown through word of mouth. Clients often get "married" to EDC themselves: they start with their wedding cards, and then there is the baby shower card and, soon, landmark birthdays and anniversaries over the years.
With Paillart doubling her space at Village Mall after just over a year of setting up EDC, it was obvious she had found herself a niche in this region. She soon hopes to expand to gifting - and her role is more macro and strategic as the business has grown. Her dream is to create the invite for the opening ceremony of Expo 2020. Not only as gratitude for the opportunity that Dubai has given her but also to gain awareness globally from heads of states, dignitaries and VIPs. "To be associated with any vision of HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum would be our biggest achievement."
sujata@khaleejtimes.com
The Entertainment Design Company's couture invitation boutique is located at the Village Mall, Jumeirah.

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