“What’s your budget for your wedding?” Is the most important question you’ll have to ask yourself when you begin planning your wedding. Whether big or small, your budget tells you what you can afford for your wedding and areas that you need to scale on so that you stick within the budget. Here are the key areas you need to consider when creating your wedding budget:
The number of guests: whether you’re inviting 40 people or 400 people, you must be realistic about the amount of money you’re going to spend per person. You can anticipate that at least 50% of your budget is going to go to food and beverage.
Venue: This is a big one and there’s so much to think about when choosing – city or suburbs? The taxes in the city or county? Is there a venue fee/room rental fee? Does the venue offer food and beverages, or do you have to bring in a full-service catering team for your wedding? What’s the percentage for gratuity? Here’s an example, if you have 150 guests for your wedding and the venue package price is $205/ per person, you’re going to spend at least $30,750 for the venue, food and beverage, assuming the venue doesn’t have a rental fee. This price tag is all before tax and gratuity, which varies by city and venue.
Catering (food and beverage): If the venue of choice does not offer food and beverage, they may have a preferred list of vendors to choose from. Some venues will allow you to choose the licensed and insured caterer of your choice with no fees added. More often than before, venues are charging a fee that could range from 10-15% of the total catering cost for not choosing a caterer on their list. Once your non-listed caterer finds out about this fee, where do you think that 10-15% cost is going to go? That’s right, to your final bill. So be mindful and be informed!
Photography: For this investment, I always say "you get what you pay for." Everyone can take a photo but not everyone can take a photo that tells a story. Hiring a great photographer will ensure that your photos will tell your personal love story and wedding story that others will be able to tell just from looking at the pictures. These memories are going to last a lifetime so make sure the photographer you hire meets the criteria you're looking for and be ready to pay.
Floral and Decor: Every couple wants their wedding to look like something fresh off the Pinterest
App. That is until they find out that the value of the florals and decor in the photo is worth over $100K! Floral and decor companies pay top dollar to provide an exceptional, quality product. These items come at a premium and you must be prepared to pay the price or scale back. Everything does not have to be big and over the top in order for it to make a statement. Do your research and work with a floral and decor designer that can help you create a beautiful look that's workable for what you want to spend.
Now, don’t forget you still have videography, wedding attire, DJ/ entertainment, invitations/save-the-dates/signage and transportation. These are the main areas, but there’s so many other tedious details to consider when creating a workable, realistic budget for your big day. That’s one of our areas of expertise! If you need help creating a budget for your wedding, contact us today and let’s get this planning party started!
Fabulously yours,
Qiana, M.E. Events
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