Category — Statistics

Nate Steiner

Are you in a state of shock and panic over wedding prices?

I’ve got good news for you…

Brides are spending LESS.

Um, right.  And how exactly is this good news?

Well, brides spending less means wedding vendors are making less money.  Which makes them start to PANIC…maybe as much as you did at first when you found out how darn expensive weddings can be.

(It’s about time they got a taste of their own medicine, right?)

When most wedding professionals get panicked…the first thing they do is drop their price. You better believe you can get top quality wedding services at bargain prices that haven’t been seen since the ’80’s.  Not only are vendors dropping their prices, they’re throwing in extras and offering wedding discount coupons out of desperation to get your business.

How do you know?

Good on you for asking, you smart, sassy bride.

The average wedding cost dropped another 12% in the first quarter of 2009 based on 780 surveys of brides and wedding vendors conducted by The Wedding Report.  This is attributed mainly to:

1. A decreased overall demand for products and services.
2. More couples marrying by a justice of the peace or other non-traditional means.
3. Couples holding the ceremony and reception at the same location to cut costs.

Add this to the other tools and tricks to slash your wedding expenses in half that you’ll learn in my book, The $10,000 Dream Wedding…and the wedding discounts and deals available right now are unbelievable.

This survey suggests that brides are spending less to cut costs and they are…but I also see brides spending less because wedding vendors are slashing their prices.  These businesses are SCARED.

Have you taken a glance at the housing market lately?  Housing prices have tanked.  You can buy a house at half or even a third what it was worth two years ago.  Houses in Detroit are selling for under $7,500!

The same thing is happening in the wedding industry.

If ever there was a time to step up and seize your wedding discounts…it’s NOW.

According to these numbers, 78.53% of couples are paying for the wedding dress themselves. Gone are the days when Mom and Pop picked up the tab.  In fact, one of my brides pointed out that her parents specifically DID NOT want to pay for her gown.  “We think you should be paying for that, honey,” they said.

Another helpful stat provided by The Wedding Report.

Let’s focus on the positives, shall we?

1)  This puts YOU are in charge of the dress.  You get to spent what you want on exactly what you want.

2)  You get to be as traditional or non-traditional as you like…without getting flack from anyone else.

3)  The gowns discount available on a wedding dress is HUGE.  You can save up to 95% on a designers wedding gown.

“Woah.  Run that by me again, girlfriend.”

Yes.  You CAN save up to 95% on a designers wedding gown.

That’s a lot of money!  And because you’re paying for your dress, it’s up to you to find out HOW.

I’ve talked about some of the easy ways to save on your wedding dress here and here.

QUICK NOTE:  If you’re ready to learn exactly what to say and do to save the MAXIMUM on the designer wedding dress of your dreams…you owe it to yourself to read The $10,000 Dream Wedding.  And download my free special report, “The Bride’s Secret Weapon” to get an unfair advantage that will literally compel wedding vendors to give you discounts.  READ IT.

I’ve been talking a lot about the 24% drop in the average cost of a US wedding as reported by The Wedding Report quite a bit lately.

The amount of money brides spent on their weddings dropped in almost every category in 2008 for the first time in decades.  But there were a few exceptions.  Brides actually spent MORE in 2008 on ceremony location, the reception location, rentals, wedding bands, and tux rental.

Here’s the category by category breakdown of the changes in expense from 2007 to 2008.

Categories where brides spent LESS in 2008:

• Wedding dress……………..31% less
• Rehearsal dinner…………..34% less
• DJ…………………………………6% less
• Bridesmaid bouquets…….36% less
• Attendant gifts…………….38% less
• Wedding invitations……..34% less
• Engagement ring………….30% less
• Photographer………………26% less
• Videographer………………24% less
• Wedding cake……………..33% less
• Wedding favors…………….9% less
• Reception food service…53% less
• Limo rental…………………24% less

Categories where brides spent MORE in 2008:

• Tuxedo/suit…47% more
• Ceremony location…….108% more
• Bride bouquet……………….1% more
• Brides wedding band……21% more
• Grooms wedding band…38% more
• Reception bar service…..12% more
• Reception location………15% more
• Reception rentals………..84% more

Since the overall cost of average wedding decreased from $27,800 in 2007 to only $21,814 in 2008, how can we explain these increases?

What could be behind the 84% increase in reception rentals…the whopping 108% increase in ceremony location expense…the 15% increase in reception location?

Brides are beginning to shift their priorities.

2009 wedding trends will continue to show brides choosing smaller guests lists.  This will allow food, favor and invitation costs to decline while freeing them up to spend a bit more on the ceremony and reception location they prefer.

Brides are placing higher priority on the ceremony rather than the reception.

More brides are planning weddings at home that require tent, linen and other reception rentals.

Could it be that couples are purchasing the groom’s suit instead of renting, a thrifty choice when he can wear it again?

One thing is for sure: frugality is here for the long haul.

To learn more about why this is the best time to be planning your wedding and how to use the recession to your advantage and save $1,000’s on your wedding…check out my earlier post on the Breakdown of Average Wedding Costs and The $10,000 Dream Wedding.

Paul Falardeau

A bride recently emailed me with a request for more information.  I want this blog to be YOUR forum, so feel free to challenge me, question me…heck, even ridicule me…if this stuff isn’t valuable to you.  Here goes…

Q: Regarding your post about wedding costs decreasing, can you please cite where you got those numbers and what the breakdown of expenses is. I think brides would be interested in seeing what categories the decreases are in, if it is across the broad, etc. etc. - Maura

A: Maura,

Thanks for asking your question.  I’m getting the feeling that you doubt the numbers I quoted?

GOOD.

Don’t take anything “they” tell you for granted.  It’s Step One to planning your dream wedding inexpensive…and avoiding the lies the wedding industry wants you to believe so that you overspend on your wedding.

NOTE:  To learn more about the wedding industry’s LIES exposed, check out The $10,000 Dream Wedding and the Bride’s Secret Weapon Special Report.

On the other hand…is it tough to believe that the average cost of wedding is going down when everything “wedding” is so darn expensive and wedding vendors use any excuse to rack up the price?

Sure.

But it’s true.  Brides are beginning to reduce their expenses for the first time in decades.  And they actually spent 24% LESS on their weddings in 2008 than they did in 2007.

These statistics come from The Wedding Report and in particular their recent report, “Average Cost Of Wedding In 2008.”

And I quote…

“The average cost of a wedding in 2008 was $21,814. This is a 24% decline over the 2007 average of $28,704.”

This data was collected from 3,620 surveys of brides before and after their weddings, as well as wedding vendors.  These costs were not included: Honeymoon Items, Bridal Shower Invitations, Engagement Announcements, Engagement Ring, Bridal Shower, Engagement Party, Engagement Photographer, and Engagement Videographer.

A breakdown of costs by category is available for a fee at The Wedding Report.  However, the average cost of wedding expenses in every category is predicted to decrease in 2009.

In addition, wedding vendors report that brides are choosing to invest their money in entertainment and photography…the parts of the wedding associated with making and preserving memories…rather than areas of decor.  So the amount spent on entertainment and photography is remaining the same or only reducing slightly…while brides are spending much less on flowers, favors, invitations, etc.

I’ve posted the specifics on the average cost per item in 2008 as broken down in their report.  Bear in mind that this is a national average.  The average wedding cost is actually much higher in metropolitan areas (like where I am in New York) and much less in rural communities.

While this is bad news for the wedding industry…it’s GOOD NEWS for you as a bride. Vendors are scared and they are dropping prices to get your business. Knowing this information empowers you to get the best deals…so use it!

Your Friend & Wedding Coach,

Stephanie

2008 Average Spending per Item