Louise Phillips has led a life of glamour and intrigue, working in front-line customer service roles as diverse as flight attendant (“a.k.a. on-the-spot emergency consultant for aluminium tubing”, she jokes), and on super yachts sailing across vast oceans. But back in New Zealand, following the birth of her beautiful daughter, Louise decided it was time to do something different. Never one for a 9 to 5 role, she wondered what life might look like going forward. Then as she sat down one day with little Evie and Dr Seuss, an epiphany struck … “oh, the places you’ll go – you have brains in your head, you have feet in your shoes, you can steer yourself, in any direction your choose …”

And so she flung herself head first into the world of celebrancy, but not before she decided that some decent training was essential. Louise declares, “I absolutely would have never become a celebrant and unleashed myself upon the general public without having trained.” The Celebrant School was just the ticket, with the added bonus of meeting other aspiring and practising celebrants – not only for friendship, but for the ongoing support, resources and sharing. Louise has continued to hook into professional development offered by the School. “I am a firm believer, we never know everything, never stop learning and evolve constantly,” she says.

These days, you’ll find Louise living in Christchurch with her supportive husband, gorgeous daughter and their hyperactive dog, Nellie. Weddings are an important part of Louise’s portfolio, but inspired by the team at The Celebrant School, she’s also added funerals, name givings and pet ceremonies to the mix. Check out this energetic woman’s offerings below – we’re confident that our graduates are top quality, and Louise is a great example of this!