By Rick Brewer & Veronica Lozano
Once again our office finds itself in the midst of a hectic and ultra busy show month. All our focus shifts from a typical work day to having an “all hands on deck” mentality to help make our Bridal Extravaganza the biggest and best in Central Texas.
And like clockwork, we hear phrases like, “What is your competition doing?” or “What type of bride are you catering to?” and such. Admittedly, we giggle because our answers rarely change. They merely get more refined season after season the longer we are around. And after 25 years of being in this business, we pride ourselves in the efforts we have made in fine tuning our shows and listening to what real brides want.
So when that question comes up if we are catering to the “high end bride,” we cringe. We also know that possibly the person asking the question may not be well educated on what that phrase means…and how it is not really a true assessment of any bride.
Let me be blunt, there is no such thing as a high end bride, so don’t ever let anyone use this phrase on you or in reference to other bridal shows. Wait, maybe there is though…I believe they are standing next to the elusive polka dotted unicorns.
The “high end bride” that is being touted here is the bride who has tons of money to spend with vendors. We like to think that she exists because price is such an issue in the wedding industry. Of course there are brides who do spend more money, but simply said, does that mean they have more money to spend, or perhaps she has more priority on the amount of money that she is willing to use in a particular area of her wedding? For instance, two brides may have the same $20,000 budget, however, bride A might have designated $3,000 of her budget towards a venue and $7,500 towards catering, and bride B might have the reverse priority on spending. Bride B might want to spend $7,500 on her venue and only $3,000 on catering. It’s all a matter of specific priorities. So who is the high end bride in this scenario?
As a bride, how would you feel if a vendor wasn’t marketing towards you as a possible customer? Think about this: How would one attract a high end bride only? Do you only advertise in certain parts of town? Do you make them bring a W-2 with them for their consultation? And even if you determined that this bride had less income, would you turn her away if she paid for your services? Probably not. The idea of searching after the high end bride is not only a pointless search, but slightly insulting.
Additionally, rather than being deemed a high end bride, start insisting on the term high priority bride. You, as a high priority bride, is one who will spend what she needs to spend with the right person because she truly believes she is getting value in exchange for their offering.
You could be the one who may come to the consult with a $1500 budget, but you end up writing a contract that is twice that amount, maybe three times as much! Each bride has a different set of priorities, so don’t let anyone pre-judge you, as a bride, based on economics, geography, how you dress, etc. Vendors cannot predict which brides are willing and able to spend money on their particular services, so our advice to you is let vendors know where your priorities lie.
So the moral of this story is…as a bride, do your research, have a budget, and don’t let anyone categorize you. You are a high priority to us at the Wedding Guide and Bridal Extravaganza, and ultimately we want you to have the best wedding with the best wedding professionals we can provide to you.
Tags: bridal shows, brides, high end brides, san antonio bridal extravaganza