As an award-winning special tent rental and event company based in Philadelphia, PA, EventQuip takes great pride in delivering the highest quality service and equipment for every client. With over 25 years of experience under our belt, EventQuip strives to deliver unmatched expertise when it comes to our event tents, flooring, lighting and staging, providing beautifully maintained equipment to meet or exceed industry safety standards in any occasion such as weddings. The wedding season provides a landscape of opportunities with ample room to grow for experienced professionals. In this blog post, we take a look into the greater industry and asked our network to share their perspective on current market topics to consider for the wedding season all year round.
Raising Prices & Being Selective
With the wedding boom in place, hired professionals are choosing to be selective in the clientele and projects that they take on. According to The Knot, “at least 70% of wedding vendors plan to raise their prices by year’s end.” Caitlin Kuchemba Clover Event Co. says increased prices “are coming from deliveries, staffing, production, and more.” That being said, we have noticed wedding professionals have decided to set boundaries by raising their prices and taking on a smaller clientele.
Size Matters: Flexibility, Compromise & New Ideas
Some clients are choosing smaller intimate weddings, giving the clients the flexibility to spend their wedding budget on other details and simply stay within their budget. A growing seasonal trend is hosting events on weekdays as well as choosing alternate seasons. Additionally, these new choices could increase company offerings while satisfying the client’s dreams. A Win-Win in our book.
Staffing Concerns
Across the board, it has been observed that vendors are facing issues with a shortage of staffing for events. Other professionals have observed that there are more inquiries than professional staff members available, making it difficult to take on larger wedding events.
Smaller Budgets – Desire to Pay Less
As we have seen with the pandemic, some have lost sources of income and are stretching the dollar. This economic struggle has noticeably transferred over into the wedding market. In some instances, couples are lowering their total budget but expecting the hired professionals to still provide the services requested at a lower rate. How do we as professionals adjust to clients being less interested in value and more interested in saving costs where applicable? Caitlin Kuchemba at Clover Event Co. suggests, “The same budget 2 years ago is not stretching nearly as far today as it did back then, which means some of our clients with a set budget need to consider what choices they are making and where they want to invest in their wedding.”
Hesitant to ‘Sign’; Cancellations & Changes
Hired professionals are observing across the board that clients are hesitant to confirm contracts for vendors/venues. Sara Murray Confetti & Co. said, “We are still trucking along, just as we’ve ever. We find a lot of last-minute cancellations and reconfiguring counts, rental counts, and floor plans as guests tend to drop off closer to the big day.”
Takeaway
There is definitely not just one direction for the wedding market. Wedding Pros... no matter what you’re feeling, you’re not alone. Adapting to this ever-changing environment is essential, and the one constant is the need to learn from each other and work together to uphold and grow industry standards. Whether it is maintaining best practices, pricing strategies, or creative new angles... Let’s keep the conversation going.
