The Covid-19 outbreak has forced couples to postponed their weddings...
The wedding industry is in crisis, the Covid-19 outbreak has forced couples to postponed their weddings across the country. Wedding planners, hotels, caterers, florists etc... are seeing 45-80% weddings getting postponed or cancelled. They fear things will only get worse from here on.
April-May weddings are already affected, with several states including Oklahoma, California and NewYork banning public gatherings for groups of 10 people or more. Industry insiders are projecting that with nobody visiting venues, the impact will be felt on winter weddings as well.
“In an abundance of caution, we took the initiative to contact all couples, venues and vendors on behalf of each client to explore backup dates, place holds and establish deadlines for making decisions,” says New York-based event planner Amy Shey Jacobs of Chandelier Events.
“The goal is to mitigate the financial damage and give our clients well-thought-out strategies for rescheduling their event date. It is a giant game of chess.”
“many couples with wedding dates set for spring 2020 have now made an important call: save the celebrations for another season.” Says senior editor Joyce Chen from the knot.
“And in doing so, they’re helping the international plea for everyone to help “flatten the curve” by social distancing.”
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reports that 25% small businesses have already closed, and 40% of those now open expect to close, at least temporarily, by mid-April.
Arne Sorenson, Chief Executive Officer of Marriott International which operates in the United States and internationally, says as much as 70% of business have been affected. This number reflects postponed and canceled weddings. Hotels have been forced to close, under the pressure of Covid-19 and refund customers. “In terms of our business Covid-19 is like nothing we’ve ever seen before” he says.
About 45-50% of weddings have been rescheduled to after June, says Sarah Bennett, founder of Frosted Bakery. “It’s hard to mention how much of these rescheduled weddings will also be affected by the situation, it is changing every day” she added.
Some are moving to more intimate weddings with close families and drive by receptions.
The truth is that the Coronavirus or Covid-19 has disrupted the wedding industry.
Very few, like Jessica French owner at Jessica French photography are holding out hope. Jessica says that the majority weddings scheduled up to March 15th the peak period went on as per schedule, and only a couple of March-end have been cancelled. “For May our clients are on the look out, and are hoping for the best.” She said.
The current situation has shown us how the wedding community is coming together and helping each other get over this pandemic. Your health is the most important thing, the CDC recommends frequently washing your hands and practicing social distancing. Keeping up with your local authorities and heath professionals on measures to protect yourself against the Coronavirus.
