If you ever get an e-vite for one of Susan Arledge’s wine parties, don’t say no. Instead, bring your favorite bottle of wine—and leave your husband or boyfriend at home.
About a year ago, Arledge—she’s chairwoman and CEO of Arledge Partners Real Estate Group, a commercial real estate firm in Dallas—hosted a wine party for 30 other women in her industry.
After a successful night she joined with her “co-conspirator” sister, residential-realty executive Brenda Sandoz, to create a professional-female wine networking group. Says Arledge: “Life is all about connections.”
The group’s gatherings—the female equivalent of a businessman’s golf outing—quickly grew to include 150 women after Arledge’s outfit merged with another networking group, Professional Women of Park Cities.
“Most people have this perception that no one in the Park Cities works, and they do,” Sandoz says. “It’s a very prestigious group of women. If they didn’t know each other, they have heard of each other.”
The party guests range from baby boomers to millennials, environmentalists to interior designers. Attendees leave with business cards, new clients, and workout buddies.
Arledge says one of her guests, Dallas fashion retailer Dian Dorsey, attended a party wearing an outfit from her clothing line, Etcetera. After the event, Dorsey had several appointments just from women who liked what she wore.
“The best part were the responses afterward—especially [from] the ones that couldn’t come,” Arledge says. “People would say, ‘I heard I missed the greatest party. I will not miss it again. Don’t take me off the list.’ ”
Women aren’t the only ones begging to make the cut. Arledge receives frequent calls from men asking to come, or at least to help out as one of the wine stewards.
The latest party had a new addition: a charity beneficiary. Aspiring oenophiles not only learned about wine and networking opportunities; their donations also supported the Nexus Recovery Center.
Now, the party has become a much-anticipated tradition. The event allows women to feel at ease and to connect with others in an informal, non-structured setting, forging unexpected business and personal connections. And, the wine doesn’t hurt.
