How to Choose Wedding Suppliers

With the Waikato Wedding Expo happening this weekend, now seems like a great time to talk to you about how to choose suppliers.  It can be a daunting task choosing who to involve in your wedding day and where to start when finding suppliers, so hopefully this helps to simplify things.

Choose people you like

Some of your suppliers are going to be spending a lot of time with you on your wedding day (think photographers, hair & makeup, venue managers) so you want to ensure you get along with these people.  If you have a first meeting with them and don’t click, think about whether this is someone you want to share your special day with. 

But where do I start?

Google!  Type in what you’re looking for, and then get overwhelmed at all the responses!  So to narrow it down, ask around.  Talk to your friends and family and ask for recommendations.  Join Facebook pages and online communities and chat to others who are engaged or recently married.  Visit online directories or professional organisations and see who their members are.  Our next blog post will be a guide to some of our favourite NZ wedding websites.

There’s so many options!

Yup, there sure are!  For every category that you are looking for, there are likely to be multiple suppliers that can do the job.  The question is, what quality do want, who do you like, and what do you want to pay? Quality is often worth paying for, but it’s not always about who is the most expensive.  You have to like their style, and trust that they can deliver your vision, whether that’s the food, the music, the decorations or the flowers.  You know what you want your day to look like, so pull together your dream team to make that happen.

How do I know if the price is right?

Firstly, I would recommend getting a couple of quotes so you can compare.  BUT you have to remember that sometimes you’re not comparing apples with apples.  In the end, it comes down to what I’ve said above.  If you love them and the price is in your budget, that’s your answer.  If they’re not in your budget, then it’s up to you how you deal with that (find an alternative, extend the budget, rejig the budget, or change the dream).  Asking online can be the best and worst way to get your answer because not everyone has the same budget.  While one person might think $3000 is exceptionally cheap for high quality photography, another might be planning their whole wedding for $3000, so to spend it all on photography isn’t feasible.  Budget questions are best left for you and your partner.

At the end of the day, remember that your wedding is just that, yours.  Think of your dream day and then pull together suppliers to make that happen.  And if you need suggestions, I’m only an email away.

Happy Planning!
Hannah
xox