The Wall Street Journal just put out an article discussing the effect the economy has had on the wedding industry. I found it to be interesting and thought I'd share.
Many of these ideas are fabulous... for instance Michelle Preli, editor in chief of Brides.com, suggests prioritizing to keep within your budget. This is KEY during times like these. What I've seen is that my clients are still having the wedding of their dreams, but they may not be spending as much on a designer cake or they are opting for a DJ instead of a band. Many are reusing their ceremony floral elements at the reception, perhaps doubling as centerpieces. We've also seen an influx of brides and grooms shrinking their guest lists and hosting a destination wedding in South Florida. This will cost your guests a little more but can certainly save the couple money with a smaller list and an easy excuse for not inviting Aunt Susie's cousin that knew the bride growing up.
There are so many ways to have a stunning wedding and not break the bank or put financial stress on the beginning of a marriage. Great negotiating skills are a must and someone to make sure it all comes together for you is also helpful. See below for more INsight.
I Do…for Less
As the economy shrinks, so do wedding budgets
By JANE ZHANG
Budget weddings are in vogue this recession.
More couples are trimming their guest lists, bargaining with florists or doing away with expensive favors like personalized miniature cakes, says Michelle Preli, editor in chief of Brides.com, a Condé Nast Publications Inc. site.
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The trend goes beyond those who have lost jobs or seen their investments shrink. Even couples who can afford pricier weddings are cutting back, because they don’t want to show off when times are hard, Ms. Preli says.
The average cost of a wedding in the U.S. was $19,212 in the first quarter, down from $21,814 last year and $26,450 in 2005, according to Wedding Report Inc., a market-research company. A survey by Brides.com earlier this year found that 82% of the couples who responded set a budget before they started planning their wedding, up from 72% in the previous survey in 2006.
“I think that’s a direct reflection of the economy,” says Ms. Preli. But that doesn’t mean weddings have to look or feel cheap. “People are looking for creative ways to save, because they still want to have a special wedding, and you can,” Ms. Preli says.
When Cora Bledsoe got engaged last summer, she and her fiancé decided to spend a maximum of $12,000 for their wedding this August. Since then, she has learned how to tie a bouquet, bought a previously worn wedding gown online and relied on about 100 contacts on Twitter for tips on how to find inexpensive cakes, tablecloths and almost everything else.
“We knew we didn’t want any debt after the wedding, especially now with the recession—nobody’s job is 100% safe,” says Ms. Bledsoe, a marketing specialist in Detroit.
But weddings are often elaborate affairs, and it can be a challenge to stick to a budget. Here are some tips that may help.
Set Priorities
“Couples need to figure out what parts of the wedding and the reception are really important to them,” Ms. Preli says.
A priority list not only helps brides and grooms decide on what must be part of the big event and what can be left out, it also helps them decide what to splurge on and when to go with a less expensive option.
For instance, how important is music to you? Some couples might be happy with music recorded on an iPod, but others might insist on a live band, which can cost several thousand dollars.
One area worth looking into: wedding dresses. Some brides can’t compromise on a traditional wedding gown, which can be gotten inexpensively but often costs thousands of dollars. But you can cut the cost if you’re willing to go with a nontraditional dress.
Consider a Destination Wedding
More couples are holding weddings outside of their hometowns. The number of weddings planned by destinationweddings.com, a site owned by Destination Wedding Travel Inc., grew 11% between the first quarter of last year and the same quarter this year, says Quentin L. Carmichael, the site’s marketing and sales manager.
Destination weddings cost less on average because they tend to have fewer guests, which means fewer dinners and drinks to cover. Most couples don’t pay for guests to travel to the wedding. Mr. Carmichael says 90% of the couples using his site spend less than $10,000 on their event.
His wedding in the Bahamas last year cost about $9,000, Mr. Carmichael says. Fifty close friends and family spent the weekend there, mingling on the beach and at cocktail parties. “It was a lot more intimate,” says Mr. Carmichael. “There was a lot more bonding.”
The downside is that some of your favorite people may not have the time or money—or be inclined to spend them—to travel to your wedding. You can mitigate the impact by choosing a location that most invitees would find relatively convenient.
Check Out the Parks
Most national parks allow weddings, and a permit usually costs $50 to $150, says Kathy Kupper, a spokeswoman for the National Park Service. That’s a far cry from the fees couples pay these days to rent wedding facilities. A Brides.com survey shows that a wedding reception this year costs an average of $11,868.
The advantage of a park wedding: You can get married at a glacier point, a bluff overlooking an ocean, a meadow filled with flowers, or at any number of other beautiful spots, Ms. Kupper says. The downside: The parks may not block spectators from your wedding spot, and you may have to bring chairs, tables and everything else.
Some parks, such as Yellowstone National Park and Grand Canyon National Park, are suited for more-formal weddings because they have chapels. Grand Teton National Park even has two, one Catholic and the other Episcopalian, Ms. Kupper says.
Compare and Bargain
“People are always concerned about the budget of their weddings,” Ms. Preli says. But the recession “made it really OK to talk about it.”
More couples are laying their budget on the table when dealing with vendors, and more vendors are willing to bargain, she says. That makes it smarter than ever to compare prices.
Be sure to know what your options are with any vendor. Florists, for example, often charge less for local flowers that are in season, and more for flowers grown overseas. But you may not find that out if you don’t ask for a range of choices.
And don’t be afraid to negotiate. For instance, a couple may be able to arrange for a free stay for themselves if they are bringing a large number of guests to a hotel.
Sometimes it helps to avoid goods made specifically for weddings. A nice dress instead of a wedding gown is one example. Another: For my wedding reception in May, we bought three plain sheet cakes for a total of about $100 from a bakery known for its wedding cakes, decorated them with flowers and put them on cake stands we found on eBay. By contrast, the store charges at least $5 per slice for wedding cakes.
Rely On Your Friends
Sara Cotner, an educational consultant in Houston, got married last year in Denver on a $2,000 budget. Her secret: help from friends. For example, her ring was made from her friends’ broken jewelry. Three friends took photos, one was her makeup artist and others cooked.
“We didn’t pay for a single vendor,” says Ms. Cotner. “We just asked people to do one small piece each. People are really happy to help out. It helps make people feel more connected to the event.”
--Ms. Zhang is a staff reporter in The Wall Street Journal’s Washington bureau. She can be reached at jane.zhang@wsj.com
