SWMI natives bringing luxury picnics to Lake Michigan shorelines

ST. JOSEPH, Mich. -- As we head into summer, it’s one of the busiest times of the year for towns on Lake Michigan’s shoreline and two Southwest Michigan natives have a new business venture just in time for tourist season.

Sincerely, K & J is tapping into a type of event planning that’s blown up across social media, turning beaches into a luxury space for your anniversary, wedding proposal, or upscale picnic.

“We decided to start after seeing these pop-up picnic companies in LA, Florida, Virginia Beach, they’ve been everywhere,” said Jennifer Brown.

Katie and Jennifer grew up just north of Berrien County in South Haven and have been best friends for 15 years.

Neither previously had jobs in hospitality, but it was always a passion and talent for both women. 

And their creation is already catching the interest of hundreds around St. Joe. 

“We launched on June 1st, it’s been 10 days,” said Katie Kenreich. “We were going to wait and launch our website but had to push that up, we ended up posting in some Facebook groups and it just went wild.”

People already booking much of June and July to get a luxurious spread laid out on Lake Michigan without having to put in all the work. 

“We bring the blankets, the ottomans, the floor cushions, an umbrella, we work with a charcuterie company, we also bring flowers and a small cake, some Polaroid cameras,” said Brown. “You come and enjoy the picnic for 1-2 hours then you leave and we clean it up and you just got to experience a beautiful picnic on Lake Michigan with minimal effort.”

While event planning companies took a major hit during the pandemic, they say the industry is coming back even stronger, making them confident in the decision to turn their passion into a full-time job.

“We just have this mentality that there’s no way we’re going to fail, this is a perfect area for it and people need something like this around here,” said Kenreich.

For some of those arrangements that supplement Sincerely, K & J’s picnics, they’re making sure to partner with local businesses on so their new venture can benefit different areas of Southwest Michigan’s hospitality industry.

They are also willing to do events on other areas than the beach, like private events or work parties. 

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