Venue Spotlight: South Second

Jul 10, 2018 | Venue Spotlight

Vendor Spotlight: South Second

South Second is a relatively new event venue unlike any other in Milwaukee. Nestled in the heart of Walker’s Point, South Second brings the city’s food and beverage districts together under one roof for an unforgettable experience. South Second’s interior, designed by the award-winning firm HGA, honors the historic industrial character of the building while opening the space to the bustling nightlife of the neighborhood. The mezzanine lounge provides guests with a semi-private place to converse and recharge while keeping an eye on the festivities below.

South Second Wedding

The Team

Angie Nieman and Michelle Anderson are both Sales & Events Managers and Wedding Specialists at South Second. They are the ones who introduce couples to the options and guide them to the experience they are hoping for. We were thrilled to get a chance to sit down with them and get to know them better and hear more about South Second.

Angie Nieman

Adult beverage of choice? Brandy old fashioned sweet, one of my own homebrews, or a nice micro brew.

Junk food of choice/guilty pleasure? Candy! Any candy, especially Sour Patch Kids.

Best trip you ever went on and why? I’ve spent a few weeks in a small town Brno in the Czech Republic. That was lovely. We did some traveling to Prague and other small towns too.

What music makes up your favorite playlist and what is the best concert you’ve ever been to? My background is in classical music, so that what I lean towards. All of the best concerts I’ve been to are all classical music.

Tell me about your family & friends – what do you like to do together? I spend a lot of time playing tabletop board games. I’m a fanatic.

If you had an enormous yacht, what would you name it? It’s hard because it should be a clever pun, right? Well, let’s name it Clever Pun.

Michelle Anderson

Adult beverage of choice? Champagne or white wine.

Junk food of choice/guilty pleasure? Anything sweet, I have the biggest sweet tooth known to man.

Best trip you ever went on and why? My trip to Mexico last year! It was a belated honeymoon (three years later) and my first vacation in many many years. It was nice to get away.

What music makes up your favorite playlist? Country music

Tell me about your family & friends – what do you like to do together? I just had a little boy, he is 3 months old. His name is Grayson, he is a handsome little fella. We are just kind of figuring out what our new family likes to do. Right now it’s just spending as much time with him as possible.

If you had an enormous yacht, what would you name it? The Wine Cork

South Second Wedding

The Interview

History of the venue?

It was an old warehouse space vacated at the beginning of 2015. Saz’s moved across the street and they started to renovate this space around December 2015 and it took around 6 months to complete it. Everything in here is pretty much new. The style is post-industrial and it looks completely awesome.

South Second Wedding

Why are couples drawn to your space? What style of wedding is the best fit?

Couples that come here usually are looking for a post-industrial look: Edison bulbs, exposed beams – the garage doors are a huge feature. We have beautiful natural light that comes through the garage doors and is a big draw. People love that. It doesn’t feel like you are closed in, it’s a very open feeling. They also like a lot of inclusivity of what this venue offers. They not only get the space, they get the furniture, the linens, and the catering all in one. It’s pretty easy for them to go out and navigate the rest of their vendors. It only leaves them a handful to find on their own.

Fab feature couples might not know about?

The excellent coordinators they get to work with 🙂 – I feel like it’s kind of a hidden gem here. The mezzanine doesn’t get featured in many of the wedding pictures couples see online but it’s a very cool spot to hang out in with awesome furniture. What always happens when people come for the tour is they go, “oh my gosh, this is so much bigger than it looks like in photographs or from the street.” The ceilings are 18 feet tall. That’s something people don’t realize as well until they come in here. It’s a 6000 sq ft building.

South Second Wedding

Saz’s catering is in-house – what is your favorite dish on the menu?

Boston Bibb Salad, Candied Bacon, Moroccan Chicken, Cheesy Grits are all amazing. We have a couple of items that people tend to choose over and over again. For example Braised Short Ribs, and Chicken Verona. But there are so many more on our menu that are like hidden gems. We are excited when people are willing to take a chance on something that is a little bit out there.

Your favorite thing about weddings at your space?

Creativity. The way people put their vision into it. Every wedding is different from another. You never get to see the same thing twice. I don’t feel like Pinterest is dictating the way couples use this space at all. People are creative in their own way. It’s definitely a blank slate and you get to see how everyone interprets that.

South Second Wedding

What important question do couples forget to ask you?

They forget to ask about parking. It’s all street parking which is not a big deal. It’s usually all free on Saturdays and Fridays after 5:00. Or they don’t talk about catering when they are on tour here, because they are not at that stage just yet. Asking about which hotels are nearby. It’s a good thing to know that the Iron Horse Hotel is the closest one to us. The style is so similar that their getting ready photographs in the morning and their reception photographs here will have the same vibe. We also are lucky to have a lot of boutique hotels around us in the area that look the same as this space.

Favorite trend you are seeing for weddings this year?

I feel like people are going simpler and simpler. They are splurging on one thing and kinda keeping it very minimalistic for the rest of it. For our venue, simple is great. You don’t need much to make the space look good. Simple candles go a long way, or a vase with peonies with a bunch of candles around it. People are getting smarter about how they are spending their money when it comes to weddings. They invest in the venue, food, and photography and not as much into the decor. What is nice about our space that it has enough of character that you don’t need to do a lot in order to make it look very nice. I think a lot of our couples embrace it. They make it look really great and sophisticated without spending much. We notice that a lot of times people are downsizing the flowers as centerpieces and doing larger and more beautiful bouquets and maybe a big floral piece as a focal point.

South Second Wedding

Before picking a venue, I suggest…

Take the time to research spaces. Don’t book 15 or 20 appointments just to see them all. Figure out what your style is, figure out what your budget is and pick a handful that really work. Go to those five and, if you are not satisfied with what you see, then look elsewhere. Consider what is important to you for your wedding day and which venue can help you accomplish it. Figuring all that out before making appointments would be ideal to maximize everyone’s time.

The Beauty

When it comes to photographing couples, we adore the industrial and urban looks. South Second is a perfect space for both. Inside the space, they have maintained the warehouse feel but dressed it up with modern accents that are both striking and photogenic. In the city blocks surrounding the space, there are opportunities to find anything from cream city brick to graffiti to a clean, simple street shot. It’s wonderful to have so many options right there!

South Second Wedding