Filipina Soul

Ahh weddings! Brides and grooms who are planning their wedding know how stressful the preparations can be. So many details, so little time, and you want it to be just perfect.

We planned to have our wedding in Tagaytay. But planning it all from the US was near to impossible. Until I connected with a group of other brides and grooms I connected with - online! - who helped us along the way.

Weddings at Work (W@W) helped me plan my wedding (and Maricar’s as well!) and I highly recommended W@W to everyone who is getting ready for a wedding.

After nine years, I caught up again with John, the better half of the W@W tandem of John and Benz Rana.

I emailed him and ‘re-introduced’ myself.

JOHN RANA: Hi Grace! Of course we remember you.  We cannot easily forget our first batch of W@Wies and that includes you and your sister.  :)

GRACE/FILIPINA SOUL: I got involved with W@W almost 9 years ago, but the network is much older than that, right? And you and Benz are about the same as a couple. Let’s catch up a little. How are you both now and how is W@W?

JOHN RANA: Benz & I got married in October 26, 1998.  While planning for our wedding, we were already toying with the idea of developing a website focused on Filipino weddings since at that time, there wasn’t any.  We started working on the site soon after our wedding and WeddingsAtWork.com (W@W) was on beta by January 1999.  The site was formally launched in a bridal fair in March 19, 1999.  As a couple, we’re celebrating our 10th anniversary this year while W@W turns “ten-ten-te-ten” in 2009.

FILIPINA SOUL: The website is much bigger and more savvy now than I remember. What changed since the early days, and what remained the same?

JOHN RANA: The site has undergone two makeovers since it’s inception.  If one would visit the site’s archives, you would see that we tried to remain faithful to our original “homemade” look. But professional web developers came in to help us with the subsequent redesigns. Most of the content of the site remains the same but we also try to add components to relate to the demographics of current web users i.e. we’ve added a W@W blog and W@W toolbar to keep with the times

FILIPINA SOUL: The strength of W@W is really in the community, right. The brides and grooms that get involved in their weddings and sort of participate in the idea-letting of others. Say I am newly engaged, what can I expect from W@W if I want to join the community? What can I contribute?

JOHN RANA: That’s right. The W@W eGroup is the heart of what W@W is really.  It is for any hands-on bride & groom.  But we warn anybody who wants to join to be ready with the email load.  The group is very active with at least a hundred fifty emails on a regular day.  Even more if there’s a hot topic.  Most have an exclusive email account devoted specifically for the group so as not to mix up their personal emails with those coming from the group.  If one loves planning his/her own wedding, they would surely find like-minded soon-to-weds in the W@W community.

FILIPINA SOUL: Any famous name or celebrity that has since joined or gotten in touch with W@W?

JOHN RANA: There has been one, but she requested if she could participate in the discussions under a different name because of her stature.  We don’t usually allow that as we want everybody to be as truthful as possible.  But we understood her situation and she was decent enough to ask our permission. We’ve also hand our share of news journalists being active W@Wies.  

FILIPINA SOUL: And now you have a wedding primer. Tell me more about that.

JOHN RANA: Since W@W evolved into a media company, we didn’t just concentrate on online publishing but we got into printed publication as well.   Here are our current titles:

The W@W Wedding Primer - A handbook written with the detail-conscious bride in mind–giving her an indispensable reference guide in planning her big day. With lists, checklists and fill-in planning forms, the book features brief yet concise articles containing time-tested advice from industry experts coupled with “life-tested” tips from actual brides and newlyweds.

Bride’s Yellow Pages - A bag-sized wedding directory containing pertinent information of churches, reception venues, honeymoon destinations and other wedding-related products and services.

My Little KanChiu Book -A mini-guidebook for marrying Chinese-Filipino couples. It includes details on what to prepare for their ting hun, ke tseng, chia te and all the other colorful wedding customs and rituals of a Chinese wedding in the Philippine setting.

W@W Desktop Gallery - An annual desk calendar which features the works of twelve (12) noted Filipino wedding photographers. The talent and artistry reflected in every photograph included in this annual collection, makes this unique calendar a virtual photo exhibit in one handy and functional format.

Copies of these books are given away for free to soon-to-weds to our partner bridal events and limited copies are sold in selected shops to reach out to those who don’t go to such events.  Our publications serve as the couples’ access to W@W even if they don’t go online. :)

FILIPINA SOUL: What are W@W’ s plans for the future? And you and Benz?

JOHN RANA: Since 2009 will be W@W’s 10th anniversary, we have several plans up our sleeves.  But since W@W is essentially a two-person tag-team between me & Benz, all those remain to be seen. hahaha! 

FILIPINA SOUL: Thanks John! You, Benz and the WOWies really have a place in our wedding story and we know our husbands fondly remember how much help you’ve given us. You get our votes all the time!

JOHN RANA:

Cheers!
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John & Bennette Rana
www.WeddingsAtWork.com