Are you Planning a Wedding During COVID-19 | Advice for Couples

Hey Beautiful Couples & Families,

First of all how are you doing?  NO really how are you doing? This time is so weird, and so unprecedented that no matter where in the world you are or were when this pandemic hit you felt it was out to get you personally or let’s just say the biggest mind-f*@# there could be out there!  It almost felt like a joke or the biggest prank and all your dreams were getting shattered due to COVID-19. We understand that you are newly engaged, or you might have been engaged for a while and you decided that 2020 was the year for amazing things especially one for your dream wedding to take place.   Each day we find ourselves deeper into COVID-19 with no light at the end of the tunnel, and we all are feeling stuck.  In one breath you are wanting to continue planning your wedding, but then in another breath you are unsure if you should secure vendors and shell out money with the uncertainty and fear of our current situation not improving as time keeps moving closer to your big day!  Sending you a virtual hug and definitely it’s the perfect time to pull out those shiny champagne glasses you had planned to use on your wedding day and break them in!

It’s such a surreal moment but also very emotional to plan your events not knowing the certainty of it happening or not on the day you actually decided on, especially in the current state of affairs with the big picture being our well-being, the health of our loved ones and our livelihoods being at stake during this global war against mankind by a virus!

To all of the newly engaged couples we are on this emotional roller coaster ride with you.  Our hearts go out to you and your families.  We know it’s unfair and totally not your fault that the joy of planning the celebrations you intended for have been momentously been distorted.  Regardless of this, if you desire it, then your event planning does not have to stop.  We want you to hold on to the anticipation & positively plan for the joy of the celebrations that are to come.  We know it’s easier said than done, but channel your energy in a positive way & make use of quarantine time by planning the week/weekend of blissful events, giving you both something to look forward to!

Our Recommendations for You:

Hire the Right Experienced Planner

1. Hire the TRUE Professionals we know for a fact the right experienced planner, and it might come across as being partial, but it honestly is the best decision & investment you will make in the event planning process.  It is that much more important now!

2. Experience in Excellence is everything and the right full-service planner will help you navigate this time, along with postponements/re-booking process, and much more for those who have been effected by COVID-19, and more so we are professionals who are well-versed in how to plan during pandemic because we have had to do it for many couples during this time.

3. The right experienced professional will know what to look for in vendor contracts that not only will protect you as you start the process or whether you are redoing the previous planning and it’s our job to protect our future clients because we have 15 plus years of experience to handle unfortunate circumstances, and most of all save you the Time, Money & Stress that comes along with planning multi-day celebrations anywhere globally.

Understand the Reality of Costing/Budgeting/Type of Service

1. It’s our job to help you determine & understand costing so you have real numbers & expectations. Just because we can’t meet in person, true professionals will set up consultation calls or video chats with couples & their families.  Now that you have decide which event professional you connect with and you feel you can TRUST them to have your BACK,  for sure book them before someone else does!

2. Most multi-day events & multicultural events should highly consider a full-service planner, because there are too many details and moving parts to pawn off the tasks to family & friends who you can’t hold accountable on your Big Day!

3. We don’t recommend Day of Coordinators just think about it this way, you are spending so much time and money and investing in different aspects of planning your dream wedding, and you want to hand off all the details to someone that has not been by your side the whole way to figure it out 1-2 weeks out? It’s like showing up to take the MCAT or LSAT without studying or preparing for it!  Don’t set yourself up to fail on the day of, because if you both only know the details than that individual that you think could handle it will be coming to you for questions throughout the weekend and you won’t get to be present and enjoy YOUR DAY, and isn’t that what you wanted?

What’s in your Control?

1.Don’t lose focus on why you both decided to get married! During this time focus on the two of you and being engaged or even consider getting court married on your original date so that you feel less nervous & anxious about the wedding and you can focus on your marriage!   Your Celebrations Can’t be Cancelled but your Parties Can be Postponed!  The rest of the details the right experienced planning team will do for you and handle with care, compassion & confidence!

2. We are creatures of habit and control is something we all want and now that the shock & grieving has happened in regards to the fact that the planning process was not what you envisioned. It’s time to divert your attention to the positive things you envisioned for your day and most of all things that are in your control!  Work with your future significant other on the aspects of the day that are important to the two of you.  Our recommendation is full transparent communication on both of your visions and the reality of the costs & budget even if it’s your families paying for the celebrations.

3. Organize images of all of your ideas from Pinterest, Instagram, wedding blogs, bridal shows you attended and organize by each event and label the details of those images with what you liked about that image with the details. This will help the right experienced planning team when they start sourcing & vetting the right suppliers & sub-contracting partners that can pull of your vision which will help in the overall planning, design and production.

4. Discuss the venue & destination and what’s important to you both in a location. Many venues are offering virtual tours right now which is super helpful if you’re not able to get out and see them in person at least get a head start on that.

5. Decide on if you are going to have a bridal party. Go ahead and ask those individuals to be a part of your big day.  If you plan to provide their attire then go ahead and start getting their measurements (this is normally true for our multi-cultural ethnic weddings.) You can get as creative as you want in the asking, just remember it’s a gesture of kindness and respect and not something that is required to be over the top, its more so your squad has your back and makes you feel like you are not alone during this time and the future months or year to come.  This will definitely make everyone feel loved and part of the celebrations.

Focus on the Need Elements First vs. the Wants!

1. In all honesty 2020 is a S#@* Show to say the least, unless you want a small intimate wedding a large celebration over 20-50 people is highly unlikely this year…we just want to give you the right expectations based on the medical data & metrics we have been following for our state and destinations we service!  Many events had started postponing into the fall after the panic of the first wave hitting us.  So many vendors got booked, and most clients who postponed from Spring to Fall are now re-booking to 2021 for a second time.  What this means is you have to start now by talking to the right experienced planning team and get signed on with them first, then they will work with you to narrow down the right date, venue and so on.  If you are re-booking multiple times we recommend you consider a Friday or a Sunday or an off day to get your events rescheduled where you are not fighting other clients as well for dates to be disappointed when your vendors are not available.  We know for a fact that all the Friends, Family & Guest who LOVE you will show up to celebrate no matter what day of the week it is, that’s the FAITH you have to have in the bond & relationships you created!

2.Start scheduling phone calls and virtual meetings with the “big production” vendors that book up the quickest such as photographer, videographer, entertainment, hair/makeup, and priest/rabbi/officiant or ordained friend/family.   You may not get a full quote from them at the moment especially the floral & food providers as many industries and crops like flowers & agriculture have been effected during this time, so wholesalers have not released costs so it may be hard to price everything out, but it’s ok to put down save the date retainers with suppliers to secure them if the work & professionalism are something you are in love with.

3. Plan out the ceremony and what you want to be said and articulated & rituals/traditions that you want to see honored and passed down in your family.

4. Believe that this #StayAtHome order is not a bad thing and works for you to get ahead whether it’s planning your event in normal order or backwards by getting your production timeline done with your planner & designing out the concepts & creating mock layouts, then beginning to start securing the top categories of subs vendor partners.

5.As an industry we are also trapped with our thoughts, creativity, and more so our incomes and livelihoods are at stake, so to serve you right now would be our pleasure, because you are the reason, we do what we do.  We want to talk to you, We want to Dream & Envision with you, We want to Create with you, and most of all We want to LOVE with YOU!  Since most professionals have squared away postponements through the remaining of the year, we have more time to focus on new bookings and begin the planning for future events.

6. During this time we have also heard from brides, grooms & their families with lots of apprehension and hesitation to begin booking suppliers because they are worried that their deposits will be lost or that the postponed event they has already rescheduled won’t happen in 2021.  We truly empathize with you and if you hire the right experience planning team then our relationships & reputation are what we have, and we only refer and vet other professionals who match our level of standards and care to serve you in the same manner that we do.   The right experienced planner will collaborate with you to review all of the legalities of vendor partner contracts, they will ensure the right clauses are in there to protect you, your event, and also your family from financial obligations & penalties for postponements in regards to travel and/or large-gathering restrictions due to the pandemic.

7. 2021 is already showing to be a busy year for weddings & events.  The current state has us expecting that suppliers that typically take on one – two projects on specific dates have already limited availability.  We encourage couples to start seriously considering and booking the right experienced event professional ASAP!

Keep Planning with a Practical Mindset

1. Start working with your planner to create your save the dates, wedding/event website, app for your guest to stay updated, start looking into what you want to register for as far as gifts.

2. Have your planner set up virtual consultations with your wedding trousseau designers, sourcing your bridal party attire, planning your catered menu, what new food service will look like, picking all the colors for your events, this will all make you feel that the celebrations are back on!

3. We advise to hang tight on placing orders for things that you want to personalize just in case the date was to have to change again.

4. We truly are all in this together and the future and timeline of this pandemic is so uncertain, but we recommend clients think of postponement 60-90 days out from when your RSVPs are due this will also depend on your destination because if there is still a travel ban then the decision will have to be sooner.

5. Keep in mind if you are planning a destination wedding/event then the airlift in and out of your city into the destination should be your deciding factor.

6. Many airlines have reduced schedules and service and that will be something you need to consider for your guest to get to your destination and feel comfortable making that travel.  (this will all be based on what your local, state, and national government orders & restrictions will be at the time).

7. Many venues are also not open right now with staff all being furloughed and not knowing what their new sanitation mandates will be or how many guest their event spaces will hold based on the #SocialDistancing rules, so you may have to start backwards and start planning all the logistics, production timelines, menus, design then place the whole puzzle together into a venue.  This will also help you negotiate your contract correctly so all the suppliers also know how much access they need and have so you can plan out the event and envision it the way you want and not be restricted to the time the venue gives you.  (We call this Reverse Planning, and guess what its ok to start backwards sometimes to move forward!)

We understand that right now you may take this with a grain of salt, and it may seem the wounds of the emotional roller coaster might not go away, but we promise you that time will heal all this as long as you put the right foot forward.  Just like you we don’t want to stop planning & dreaming of beautiful celebrations, destination, and cherished memories we get to create with you long with the ones you get with your family & friends!    The human connection of events will never die and we will come together again in the future which will be Bigger, Better, Bolder, and Meaningfully more Beautiful than ever before!

Just remember LOVE truly conquers all!   Our team at KIS (cubed) Events would be delighted & ecstatic to bring your dream events to life by standing by your side.  We have over 15 years of experience and that has taught us that everything is worth celebrating including the now!

We would love to hear from you and answer any questions that you have as we navigate this time together.  Please don’t hesitate to schedule a call with us and our team.

We are open for business whether it’s a Wedding, Corporate Event or Social Gala, we love what we do and remain excited to serve you the experience of excellence! 

xoxo,

Nirjary M. Desai

Chief Experience Officer/Owner