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How to start a wedding planning business

Calligraphy pen next to a wedding invitation as an example of what wedding planners can do

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Whether you’re starting afresh with a career change or utilising heaps of existing skills and experience, starting a wedding planning business is relatively low cost and can be financially rewarding if you do it right. The average cost of a wedding in the UK (2021) is currently at £30,000 and there are huge markets for easing that inevitable stress on couples. We’ve revealed our greatest tips on how to start a wedding planning business to see you on your way!

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It’s important to decide from the offset whether you’d like to provide a full wedding planning service that includes everything from venue finding to napkin choices, or whether you’re particularly skilled or experienced in one or a few key elements of wedding planning and would like to focus on those. Are you up for sourcing a seamstress or a florist or a cakemaker, or are you a project management pro who can keep everybody in line?

Utilise those handy tricks and relationships

If you have existing experience in wedding planning (if you don’t you should probably get some training at this stage…) think about the relationships that you can utilise in your new venture. Perhaps there are some great suppliers that you’ve worked with in the past, or some tricks you’ve learned along the way.

Plan how to promote yourself

It’s important to have some idea of how you intend to source business before you begin. How will people know you exist? Then, why should they choose you? Being able to market yourself is an important part of starting any business, but remember – this is (probably) the most important day so far for your couples and trust is imperative.

Plus, when you’re planning your costs, you’ll need to include your marketing. Do you need a website ? Can you do this yourself? Do you have photography from weddings you’ve managed in the past? How are your clients going to find you – do you need social media profiles, an SEO strategy, advertising budget?

Standard process

There are some things that apply whatever kind of wedding you’re planning, for example what you and your couples need to know from a venue (corkage, parking, décor or music restrictions, licensing etc). Standardise these processes for yourself with a list of questions to ask a wedding venue, recommended alcohol quantities or your preferred suppliers.

Get insured

All businesses should have the right insurance and, as we know, when it comes to live events things can often crop up. Consider the type(s) of business insurance that you need:

  • Public liability coverage : Property damage or injury cover
  • Employers’ liability coverage : If any of your employees become unwell or injured
  • Professional indemnity cover : For if somebody loses money as a result of your service(s) or advice
  • Business and office equipment coverage: Covers your work equipment (you may often have your laptop on-the-go!)
  • Legal expenses : Support for any future legal costs
  • Personal accident: In case you get injured at work

Rates and packages

Wedding planners tend to receive a commission of between 10 and 15% of the total wedding budget in the UK, whilst fix fees may be applied for large-scale events. Explore your local markets to identify your competition, what they do, what they charge and figure out how you want to charge.

You can also work out standard package offerings as well as bespoke wedding planning, to include the common essentials like venue finding, price negotiation, project management, supplier sourcing or on-the-day support.

Implement your own stress management strategies

We all know that planning a wedding can be one of the most stressful things a couple will do – and in taking on their wedding, you’re taking on that stress, too. If you’re already a wedding planner, you may have great strategies in place for managing those hiccups but when it’s your own business in the mix, too, you’ve got a recipe for stress! Starting any business is stressful and can be financially demanding, so be sure to think about how you’ll manage these worries alongside being responsible for people’s weddings.

Get out there

If you’re a seasoned wedding planner, you probably have a little black book of wonderful suppliers that you can call upon to support your new business. Ensure that you have enough to be able to recommend to your couples in the event that your #1 florist is working on another event that day, on holiday or unwell. Whilst you might feel particularly confident with suppliers that you’ve worked with in the past, it’s always a good time to expand your network.

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Small Business UK

Small Business UK

Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

setting up a wedding planning business uk

Starting a business in the wedding industry

setting up a wedding planning business uk

Here, we give some step-by-step advice on preparing and starting up a wedding business.

So, you want to be in the wedding industry? It’s a strong sector of the economy, worth over £10 billion a year. The ‘ Bridebook Wedding Report ‘ estimated that the average cost of a wedding was over £30,000 and rising annually at close to 12% a year, mainly due to a focus on personalisation.

You’ll no doubt hear about how hard it is, how competitive it is, how saturated the market is. It’s true for almost every industry, though, and it doesn’t mean you can’t bring something to the wedding market through quality and effective business preparation.

The wedding business is unique; you’re asking someone to trust you with what they may deem to be the biggest day of their lives, but every wedding business has to start somewhere, so we’ve put together a plan to cover before starting a business in the wedding sector. First though, you should decide what you kind of business you want to be. Are you:

1. A whole new idea in the wedding industry? 2. Buying an existing wedding business? 3. Franchising an existing wedding business? 4. Distributing an existing wedding-oriented product not currently in the UK market?

The point of asking these questions is to make you think about whether there’s a way to become self-employed in the wedding industry without accepting all the liability and risk of starting a new company. Here’s a simple step-by-step plan of how to get started.

Define your business in a concise pitch

You’ll be spending a lot of time giving brief, concise and effective explanations to potential business partners and clients, and ‘We’re in weddings’ isn’t good enough when someone asks what your business does; you need an explanation which doubles as a pitch. ‘We provide bespoke tipi hire for weddings and special events in Cheshire’ is a very different statement than: ‘We do wedding hire’.

Do your research

Extensive research is required for any business to succeed, no less so than in a space so crowded as the wedding industry. Research your market and learn:

Who, if anyone, is already doing what your business will do? Will they compete with you in your market (and is your market clearly defined)?

This will allow you to work out what your unique selling points are, and what will allow your business to stand out and compete.

Find potential partners – get networking!

The wedding industry is a word of mouth business, so building a network early on will be a huge advantage to you. There’s no shortage of conventions, expos and networking events to get into, and everyone getting married or knows of someone who might get married is a potential avenue of business for you. Go out and find them!

List of UK Wedding Exhibitions

  • The National Wedding Show – 4 events nationwide (Olympia London, NEC Birmingham, ExCeL London, EventCity Manchester).
  • Perfect Brides shows – 7 shows around the country, the main one being the ‘UK National Midland Wedding Show at the Ricoh Arena.
  • The Un-Wedding Show – These events are aimed at ‘modern brides’ looking for something different to the traditional matrimonial celebrations. They look tom feature the ‘coolest independent wedding suppliers’.
  • Most Curious Wedding Fairs – Indie, style-focused exhibitions across the country.
  • The Eclectic Wedding Extravaganza – brings together selected UK wedding suppliers.
  • Brides Ip North – Luxury bridal events and industry parties across Yorkshire, the North West and North East
  • Chosen – Three wedding fairs a year (Oxford, Bristol, London) “…celebrating the best contemporary designers, service providers and vintage aficionados”.
  • The Big Welsh Wedding Show – One Spring and one Autumn show, both held in Cardiff. “For stylish couples looking to take their wedding planning to the next level.”
  • The Scottish Wedding Show – Held at the SEC Glasgow. Features over 200 suppliers

Write a business plan

There are numerous places to find a guide on writing a business plan , and it should form a vital part of you clearly understanding more about your own business and its path, not to mention securing stakeholders, and potentially, investors.

Before writing the plan, try to define problem areas that you think you can solve better than existing wedding businesses and can execute better than your competition. For example, write down the top three things that always go wrong at weddings and that potential customers would pay to avert. This is how you can stand out, or ‘differentiate’ in business speak, and is often the key

Complementary businesses

Much additional value can be generated in a wedding business if you get the accessories offer correct. Weddings being such a personal event, there is often ample scope to upsell on the little individual touches and add-ons. It can also help you to maximise early growth and form pathways into new partners or clients.

Cover your bases.

Investigate all the taxes, insurance, liability, VAT, patents, and more that you’ll need to be aware of in order to ensure your business is legally compliant. Read our guide on registering a company here to make sure you can trade legitimately. Go here for advice on registering a website domain name .

Get started – and test, refine, test, refine!

If you have a physical product, start by selling through online marketplaces like eBay and Etsy , where you can gauge what works and gather feedback through your first customers and their reviews.

If you are offering a service, such as planning, be sure to get your organisational skills honed to perfection. You might consider attending courses in event management and perhaps even people management, since your diplomatic and mediation skills will be tested to the max. A good place to go for advice on this sector of the wedding industry is the UK Alliance of Wedding Planners which also runs coaching and training sessions.

Once you’ve planned, you can focus the bit you’re really in this for: Delivering quality wedding services.

Ben Lobel

Ben Lobel was the editor of SmallBusiness.co.uk from 2010 to 2018. He specialises in writing for start-up and scale-up companies in the areas of finance, marketing and HR. More by Ben Lobel

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Partner Content

How to start a party and event planning business

setting up a wedding planning business uk

Our experts

Written and reviewed by:.

As the nation emerged from the COVID pandemic, desperate to reconnect in person, party and events planning became a multi-billion-pound industry with plenty of demand across the UK.

Now, amid a cost of living crisis, there are a few emerging issues that new business owners need to stay aware of. Rising inflation means corporate clients are working to stricter budgets, while consumers won't be as easily convinced to part with their hard-earned money. That means the most successful event planning firms will be the ones that can offer a truly incredible and unique experience that stands out from rivals.

Luckily, with a clear concept, effective marketing and a few key transferable skills, you’ll maximise your chances of beating out the competition and finding success. That's where our experts come in.

We have been helping businesses to set up across tons of sectors, and we understand the challenges and opportunities that are ahead in the events industry. So put the champagne on ice for now, and read on to learn more about the costs, considerations and benefits involved in becoming an event or party planner.

At Startups.co.uk, we're here to help small UK businesses to get started, grow and succeed. We have helpful resources for helping new businesses get off the ground – you can use the tool below to get started today.

What Does Your Business Need Help With?

This article will cover:

Case study: above & beyond solutions, define your event planning business idea, conduct market research, come up with an event company name, develop your business plan, come up with a pricing strategy, understand the requirements, start promoting your event planning start-up, find suppliers and build contacts.

What does the future of the industry look like?

In order to combat the banning of in-person meetings, the events industry had partly pivoted towards online. The new fashion for virtual events has forever changed the way organisations will host and engage with their audience.

That's not to say virtual events are here to stay. Given the option, most attendees will want to go to a physical event – as most of us have been ‘Zoomed' out by pandemic working.

But digital events are a growing new branch in the sector which you should keep an eye on to ensure you stay ahead of the market and your competition.

Flexible working is also accelerating the trend. Corporate events will need to consider their employees that are still isolating and working from home. This means your business will need to provide online, offline, and  hybrid events solutions.

What COVID-19 rules do event planning firms need to follow?

From August 2021, all COVID-19 safety rules and regulations were fully lifted, which means that you don't legally need to require any specific safety measures from customers or staff members if you're planning to host events.

However, cultural changes have still taken place, including a new understanding about the spread of germs that public places can influence.

There are still some basic safety requirements that help to make your event attendees feel safe, such as:

  • Spaced out seating for social distancing
  • Hand sanitiser stations
  • Increased cleaning and disinfecting rota
  • Optional mask wearing

You could consider keeping these rules in place to help returning customers feel more at ease.

Sam Stockmans, founder of the newly found events services company Above & Beyond Solutions, has always had a passion for the industry.

“Everyones first nightclub experience is daunting, and I could feel that amongst my friends when we started going out. I wanted to put on parties and make it a more comfortable experience for everyone, so I started by organising 16+ nightclub events.

“I love the events planning industry, that ability to create moments for others through an event you are organising, there is no feeling like it.”

After dabbling in the nightclub events scene, Stockmans went on to organising exhibitions across Europe, before he decided to go it alone with his own venture, Above & Beyond Solutions.

In terms of the biggest challenges he's faced in his near 15 year career in the industry, Stockmans said:

“The biggest challenge is definitely standing out. There are so many competitors in the events industry space. You need to have a USP and you need to be able to sell it confidently.

“For us at Above, our USP is the level of service people receive. My team is made up of highly experienced professionals and creatives.”

And when asked about anything he wish he'd known before he started in the industry, Stockmans said:

“I wish I'd been less arrogant. I made mistakes in my younger years in the industry because I got ahead of myself.

Attitude is everything in this industry, and it will do any entrepreneur wonders to remember that, as the last thing you want is to burn bridges with other companies in the space that you will be frequently collaborating with.”

When it comes to starting an events company, you’ll first need to decide on the type of events services you want to offer.

Would you like to offer the full event planning service, organising every aspect of an event from inception to execution? Or would you rather focus on one or two particular skill sets? For example:

  • Event decorating
  • Corporate entertainment management
  • Event promotion
  • Catering (find out more in our guide about starting your own catering business )

It’s also key that you decide on the type of events you want to work on. In your early days, you’ll find it easier to market yourself clearly, attract customers and build the right skills and experience if you have a niche.

Events can be classified into four broad categories based on their purposes and objectives:

  • Personal events , such as weddings, birthday parties and family celebrations
  • Organisational events , such as commercial, political and charitable events, conferences and product launches
  • Leisure events , such as sports events and concerts
  • Cultural events , such as ceremonial, religious, art or heritage events

It’s advisable to pick a niche that you’re familiar with and already have a little experience in. If you come from a corporate background, for example, you may have a clearer understanding of what a successful conference looks like than a successful art festival. Remember, you can always take on more specialties as your business grows in size.

Tristan Johnson, founder of TYPE , which provides networking events “that enhance wellbeing and that millenials can afford”, believes drawing on your own experience of the events market as a consumer is a good idea, she says:

“As a young millennial entering the competitive job market fresh out of university, making valuable connections to progress my career was really difficult. Either I’d attend networking events that weren’t relevant for me or find myself spending far too much money. After chatting with a few friends who felt the same, our business model was created.”

NB: If you’d like to become a wedding planner, be sure to also check out our guide to starting a wedding planning business .

Bear in mind that, once you’ve come up with a concept, you should always test it to make sure it has a good chance of succeeding in the market. To do this, you’ll need to…

It’s really important that you understand both your target audience and your competition before you decide how to reach out to potential customers, settle on a pricing structure or – in short – do anything else.

Market research will help you to understand:

  • Who your competitors are
  • How you can differentiate yourself from them
  • How much demand there is for your particular event planning service
  • The type of people who are most likely to want/need your service
  • How much your target customers will be prepared to pay for your events, and whether you can make a healthy profit from this

To answer these questions, try:

Researching the competition online

Often a simple Google search will show you who the events businesses in your local area are, but the ONS, the FSB and the British Chambers of Commerce also hold more specific, publicly accessible information about different businesses.

Try to find out how your competitors operate, how big they are, who their customers are, how much they charge, and what their USPs are. Think about how you can bring something different to the table in order to compete.

Running an online survey

Online surveys are fairly cheap to set up, and you can also take to Facebook and LinkedIn to run questionnaires.

Ask people what they would expect from your events planning service, the budget they would have to spend on an event such as yours, how often they’d use you, what would make them want to use you, and anything else you want to know.

Holding focus groups

Essentially a face-to-face version of an online survey, a focus group gives you the opportunity to discuss your business with potential customers.

As well as asking the above questions, you can also talk more specifically about your own business, asking what they think of your concept and branding, and share ideas.

As fun a task as choosing a name for your party planning business may seem, it’s not something to be taken lightly.

Your name is the first thing most customers will hear about you, and so it’s important that it accurately represents what they can expect from your services. Plus, it needs to be something you’re proud to shout from the rooftops.

To come up with a name, try these tips:

  • Think of the type of events you want to plan and the style of service you’ll aim to deliver. Write down every word that springs to mind – no matter how obvious or abstract. The more, the better. Then single out your favourite words and explore them. Do they have synonyms that are better? How does it sound when you combine them in different ways?
  • Consider your own name. Can you name the business after yourself?
  • If you’d like your business to be one that doesn’t take itself too seriously, try thinking up event-related puns or phrases you might be able to use as a name. Just try not to be too cheesy!
  • Think about existing events planning businesses whose names you really like. Take inspiration from what makes them so great – but make sure you don’t simply copy them.

When it comes to coming up with a name, simplicity is key.

On the concept of coming up with a name, Stockmans says:

“Keep it simple, catchy, and memorable. Keep the name strong and simple, the strapline mission statement simple and the branding clear.”

If the name you choose doesn’t make it obvious that you’re an events planner – if you’ve picked a rather abstract word, for example, or are using your name – we’d advise adding a tagline. For example: Joe Bloggs – Party Planning.

Remember, your event planning business’ name should be:

  • Easy to spell and pronounce.
  • Original, and as unique as possible.
  • A good representation of the services you’re offering (don’t go for something jokey and fun if you’ll be planning serious corporate events, for instance).
  • Appealing to your audience. Ask target customers (whether through friends and family, an online survey or a focus group) for their honest opinion of your name.

Once you’ve settled on a name, you’ll need to check that it’s available – you can do this using the Companies House Register – and also check that it’s free to be used as a domain name for your website: for example, www.joebloggs.co.uk. It’s best to register your domain name as soon as possible.

If your chosen name is available, you’ll need to officially register it as your company’s name .

Your business' name will tie inextricably into your business’ branding as a whole. Its tone will be the starting point for how you design your logo, website, marketing materials and messages, social media posts and more – all together, this should convey the tone and purpose of your business.

Bourlet suggests that you create clear guidelines for targeting your specific target audience with your branding.

Getting professional help

Consulting a graphic designer may help when it comes to creating a logo and other visual assets. Finding yourself a graphic designer is a good creative opinion allows you to brainstorm with an expert third-party.

TYPE founder Johnston says:

“Once you have completed an in-depth persona analysis, ensure all of your work is aiming towards these individuals to gain the greatest results. Building out strong brand guidelines is critical, involving how you deliver your content, the tone of voice, the colour code used on the site and in all branding, and the persona you will be targeting with your marketing.

“Studies have shown our attention span is shortening so branding must be easily consumable, easy on the eye and fitting to your personal brand, be it premium, fun, colourful or sleek.”

A business plan is an important document that takes its reader through every aspect of a business – including how it will run, plans for how it will progress, and forecasts of what it will achieve in the future.

As well as something potential investors and banks will want to see, writing a business plan will give you the opportunity to break down and plan every aspect of your business step-by step – including details of your business model and pricing structure, a marketing strategy, plans for hiring staff in the future and those oft-daunting financial predictions.

Another great way to organise your business plan is to use a project management software. These sophisticated tools are aimed at delegation and multi-project management, and can help you stay on top of deadlines as you design your dream events business.

Check out our  free online comparison tool  to learn more about the providers available and their top deals and discounts.

A crucial part of your business model, to plan your pricing you’ll first need to decide whether you want to charge:

  • A flat fee for the whole service
  • An hourly rate for the time you spend working on the event
  • Commission-based prices

You should use what you’ve learnt from members of your target audience and your competitors to decide on which of these you’ll choose, along with the actual prices you’ll charge.

Remember, while your prices should be attractive to your target customer, they must also cover the operating expenses you spend on planning the event, while still leaving room for a healthy profit for you.

Work out how much it’ll cost you to put on an event based on your plans and ideal suppliers, and see whether you’d still get a decent margin based on what customers want to pay.

That being said, making sure you're giving your clients value for money is crucial.

Don't be afraid to adjust your offering if your pricing seems unreasonable. It may be that you need to re-evaluate how much you’re able to spend on pulling together the event or how many services you can offer as part of your package.

Qualifications

You certainly don’t need a formal education in events and party organising before becoming a party planner.

However, if you would like to study events management, you can:

  • Research your local colleges and universities, or online facilities like the Open University, to see whether they offer something that suits you.
  • Look into specialist event institutions. Event Academy , for example, offers four accredited event management courses which you can choose to undertake online or on a physical premises in London.

Or, as an alternative to studying, you can always build up your events experience (if you don't have any) by volunteering to help out at local events. This will give you a practical insight into the many cogs that form a single event, and you might be surprised at the level of graft involved!

Regulations

Follow this checklist to make sure you’re operating your business legitimately and without fear of costly legal problems:

✓ Obtain licenses

The licenses you need to operate your business legally will be down to your local authority or council (get in touch with them to find out which licenses you need) and also the venues at which you'll be holding events.

✓ Register as a sole trader

Unless you want to set up a limited company (though most start-ups don’t begin life this way), you’ll need to register as a sole trader with HMRC, and understand the tax implications of this.

✓ Set up a business banking account

This, plus you’ll need to get an accounting and cashflow system in order so you can easily manage invoices and outgoings. It’s a good idea to hire an accountant to help you out in the early stages.

✓ Prepare to take payments

Alongside your business bank account you’ll also need a merchant account. After a client pays you, their money will be held in your merchant account until it is approved by the client’s bank, at which point it moves into your business account – so it’s crucial you have one.

✓ Get yourself insured

You’ll need public liability insurance and professional indemnity insurance , plus employers’ liability insurance if you’re going to hire employees.

You might also need buildings and contents insurance if you keep expensive equipment at home or in an office, and vehicle insurance for any vans you use to transport materials to and from venues.

✓ Brush up on your health and safety

While the venues you hold events in will likely have their own set of generic health and safety regulations, it’s vital that you carry out your own risk assessments in advance of your events, detailing the hazards and controls for each.

So, learn how to write risk assessments and consider everything from trips, heavy loads and electric shocks to structural security and food hygiene.

Of course, it’s easy to blame the venue if something goes wrong – but it’ll still reflect very poorly on you if you’ve failed to recognise and manage a risk.

Now you’re ready to get going, it’s time to show your business to the public (and encourage them to use your stellar event-planning services). Alongside traditional techniques such as leaflet drops and putting advertisements in your local paper, you’ll want to try the following…

Set up a website

Having a website is vital for any small business. It’s a place to explain everything you offer, show off your previous projects, list your pricing packages and display your contact details.

It’s also an opportunity to prove that, even though your business is new, you’re a professional who knows exactly what they’re doing. So you’ll need to make sure your site is sleek and professionally-designed, with no spelling mistakes (an erroneous, dated website is a surefire way to turn off potential clients).

Unless you’re a web designer yourself, you’ll want to go with one of the two options:

  • Hire a freelance web designer to build your site for you. The benefit of this is that you’ll have an expert to discuss ideas with, but you may find that your designer charges for any changes you’d like them to make in the future.
  • Use a website building platform . These are often low-cost, and will likely give you more control over your site and a clearer understanding of how it works. Wix , GoDaddy and Weebly are popular options.

Your website should be in-keeping with your branding and appealing to your target customer, and you should adopt SEO best practice to make sure it ranks well when people search Google for a local events business.

If you need a hand setting up a website, be sure to check out our review of the top 5 web design companies in London .

Tom Bourlet of brands Fizzbox.com , which offers group activities and experiences for any event, and stag and hen party organisers The Stag Company and Hen Heaven, says:

“It is important to understand what terms you are targeting, the competition you are up against and what you can afford to spend on PPC (pay-per-click).

“When starting a new business, you can’t rely on organic or direct traffic, therefore PPC will be pivotal, and there will be a turning point where it goes from experimentation to profitable. For this reason, you need to ensure you have the funding to put into the ads, while working on the SEO and UX of the website.”

Websites are a great way to attract and retain customers, as they allow you to build a larger audience base from across the UK.

Read our guide to the  top 7 website builders for small businesses , to learn more about the benefits and methods to making your own online page.

Use social media

Social media is massive and if you’re not on board with the digital world then you will fall flat on your face. Get a good digital marketing plan in place with social media leading the charge.

With social media, you can get the word out about your business for free, sharing details of your services, special offers and – with your clients’ permission – images of your events to give potential customers an idea of what you can deliver.

In particular, Pinterest can be a goldmine for party and events planners. The image-based platform centering on inspiration and idea-sharing, Pinterest is the place to find people looking for ‘inspo' for their next big bash – and show them what you can do.

You might also find Facebook's groups valuable. Brides-to-be, for example, are increasingly joining locally-focused Facebook groups in which they can discuss and recommend local caterers, boutiques, planning services and more. Try joining up to relevant groups and sharing a tailored special offer with members.

Of course, there's no point in spending energy and resources maximising your Pinterest and Facebook profiles if your target market don't spend a lot of time on them.

Instagram is integral to many businesses success, be sure to check out our extensive how to use Instagram for business guide for everything you need to know.

Send emails

Sending engaging marketing emails to both customers and those who have expressed an interest in your services is an excellent way to communicate with the public, sharing updates and special offers, encouraging engagement with your business and keeping interest high.

A CRM (customer relationship management) system will help to streamline this process by personalising emails to make customers more inclined to read them, automating email sends, collating customer data and more.

Attend fairs and exhibitions

Some events, such as weddings, often have regular fairs and trade shows where small businesses like suppliers and party planners can host a stall and show off their products and services to visitors.

This is a great way to get your service in front of the people who need it. Furthermore, chatting face-to-face with potential customers will give you a unique opportunity to explain what you can offer to them specifically. Plus, they’re more likely to remember you if they’ve had a friendly and promising conversation with you.

Make sure, though, that you have professional business cards and leaflets printed so you can give them something to remember you by.

Try cross promotions

Seek out other small businesses in the events industry and see whether you can partner with them to create a promotional offer that you’ll both benefit from.

For example, a local independent caterers and offer a discount from both yours and the caterer’s prices to those who use your services and select that caterer.

As the old adage goes, it’s not what you know but who you know that counts. When it comes to events planning, what you know is obviously crucial – but you’ll also find having a portfolio of industry contacts very useful.

Of course, finding the right suppliers for each event will mean carefully considering your client’s wishes and budget. But building relationships with reliable suppliers will give you options right off the bat, saving you time – provided they fit the requirements.

If you’d like to plan weddings, for example, having contacts at catering companies, local venues, entertainment providers, et cetera will prove handy. If you’re specialising in corporate events, you may need to find contacts at banner printing companies, potential sponsors and more.

Here are a few ways to start building up that contacts book:

  • Visit online event supplier databases . Alive Network , for example, lists thousands of UK event entertainers and suppliers along with reviews and prices.
  • If your competitors run public events, see if you can attend them. Make a note of who they’ve used as a caterer, venue, equipment supplier etc. If any suppliers or sponsors are present, get talking to them and ask for their details.
  • Attend trade shows, seminars and exhibitions where suppliers will be showcasing their offerings. 
  • Join local events groups on social media , where professionals share details of the companies they’ve worked with. Be proactive, joining in with discussions and asking for opinions.
  • Use your personal network . Use LinkedIn to the full as well, make new connections daily and interact with them if only to simply introduce yourself.

As you build your network and liaise with suppliers and customers, you may want to consider getting a business mobile to separate your business dealings from personal calls (more information on our page on business mobile phone contracts .

What's next?

The party and events planning market is hugely competitive, but with the tips, tricks and tools in this guide, you’ll set yourself up with the best chance of success.

Want to get started on building your business now? The first step to opening any business is sourcing finance. O ur  free online comparison tool  can help you to compare the best business loan providers across the UK, and get refreshingly honest quotes for early-stage finance.

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How to become a wedding planner

  • Starting Up

Weddings are big business. In fact, the UK wedding industry is worth an eye-watering £10 billion a year, with each individual wedding day and honeymoon costing nearly £27,161 according to hitched.co.uk .

With such a high price tag, and a lot of pressure placed upon the couple to tie the knot in a picture-perfect way, it’s not surprising that brides and grooms are turning to the professionals to help them organise and manage their wedding.

So if you’re considering setting up a business as a wedding planner, here’s everything you need to know…

Why setting up a wedding planning business could be a good idea

Today’s bride is too busy to pull off the perfect wedding on her own.

Friends and family members may typically live too far away to pitch in, and plenty of couples feel the pressure to have a fairytale day thanks to the rise of social media. As a result, many couples are turning to professional wedding planners for assistance.

A wedding planner’s calm disposition, head for organisation and eye for detail helps to dial down the stress any couple might feel in the run up to their wedding day.

So, if you’re willing to put your skills and experience to good use, you can help your clients to make it down the aisle feeling cool, calm and collected.

What does a wedding planner do?

No two days will look the same for a wedding planner. One day you’ll be meeting florists and designing table settings, and another day you’ll be liaising with caterers and sending rehearsal invitations.

Some of your duties will typically include:

  • meeting with a couple to discuss their ideas and budget
  • helping to decide upon a theme and colour scheme
  • contacting suppliers to discuss availability and prices, negotiating on your clients’ behalf
  • booking suppliers and coordinating them to ensure it all comes together for the big day
  • managing the day itself to ensure everything runs smoothly
  • offering emotional support to the couple throughout the process, and on the day

Every wedding is unique. So, answering the question, “what does a wedding planner do?” is never as straightforward as it sounds. Your duties will always change, but one thing you can count on is variety and excitement.

The potential costs and earnings of a wedding planning business

Your salary.

The average wedding planner in the UK can expect to earn in the region of £21,000 a year. However, there’s no reason you can’t earn more than this, particularly if you have the tenacity to stay in the industry for a little longer.

With five-plus years experience and a sizeable portfolio, you could command a much higher salary, working with couples with larger budgets and earning referrals through word of mouth.

And once you’ve been in the industry for ten years or more? Well, the sky’s the limit and it simply depends how many weddings you can juggle at once.

The costs of setting up a wedding planning business aren’t as high as other types of businesses.

You’ll certainly need a laptop or computer and perhaps some software to keep track of your clients and the details of their special days. A mobile phone with significant quantities of data and minutes is a good idea too, just so you can always reach your clients or find your way to a supplier’s premises.

But beyond this, your overheads are fairly modest. Just consider taking out insurance for your business for extra peace of mind.

Who’s suited to starting a wedding planning business?

Do you see a empty room and see its potential for a candle-lit reception dinner? And do you care about every last detail that will make your client’s day unforgettable? If so, you might have what it takes to become a wedding planner.

It almost goes without saying, but anyone setting up a wedding planning business needs to be passionate about weddings. You should be a die-hard romantic, a champion of marriage and someone who’s ready to throw themselves into a couple’s special day as if it were your own.

You should also enjoy variety, responsibility and unpredictability. Wedding planning is dynamic and exciting, and perfect for those who want to feel that there’s a real sense of purpose to their work: there’s nothing more rewarding than the heartfelt thanks of a couple who’ve enjoyed a truly perfect wedding day.

Key practical skills

  • Negotiating
  • Problem solving

Interpersonal skills

  • Excellent communication skills
  • Ability to stay calm under pressure
  • A positive attitude
  • Ability to see someone else’s vision
  • Patience (for clients how have a difficult time making decisions or feel easily overwhelmed).

Ultimately, you’ll need to be able to discern what the bride and groom truly wants, and use a little bit of magic to turn their dream into reality.

You’ll need to be every bit as passionate about the 100th wedding you plan as the very first one. You must also be willing to work hours beyond a standard working week: weekends, evenings and holidays (particularly throughout summer) are typical of the wedding planning industry.

And if you can do all of that while maintaining a cool head and remaining calm under pressure? Well, you’re a born wedding planner.

Do you need any experience?

There’s no strict requirement that you have any previous experience of planning weddings in the past. But, it will certainly help to secure contracts with clients if they know that you’ve planned a few weddings before.

See if you can plan a wedding for friends or family members for a discounted fee, and remember that you can count your own wedding too if you can highlight how you learnt from it.

Considerations for a wedding planning business plan

Like any other business, your wedding planning business is going to require a business plan . But, you’ll need to write it in light of particular factors unique to the wedding industry.

Firstly, consider the fact that the majority of your work will be seasonal. Summer is the most popular time of year to get married, whereas significantly fewer couples choose to tie the knot in winter.

You’ll need to consider the fact that you won’t be relying on repeat business… hopefully! But that said, second and even third marriages are becoming more commonplace, but generally not for many years down the line: so you will have to write your business plan knowing that you’ll be scouring for new clients constantly.

As a result, word-of-mouth recommendations are going to be particularly important for your business, so it could be worth considering devising a referral programme of some sort to bring in new clients.

You’ll also need to consider whether or not you’ll be charging an hourly rate or a fixed fee. Some wedding planners charge a percentage cost of the overall wedding at 10 or 20%.

Finally, work out a few packages to offer your clients. Some will want a full wedding planning service (including everything from the initial consultation to managing the big day), whereas others will require assistance for day-of coordination (which includes managing the venue and caterers, seating guests and even rounding up the groomsmen).

Regulations and qualifications for starting a wedding planning business

There are no set entry requirements or qualifications needed to become a wedding planner. But, it will certainly help if you have some real-world experience of planning weddings or other large events. Perhaps you planned your own wedding? Or maybe you’ve been working for an events management company and have some transferable skills?

Whatever the case, there’s no need to take a wedding planning course, unless you want to.

A degree in communications, marketing or events management may prove useful, but again, remember they’re not essential. Building a portfolio of clients by organising weddings for friends and family members will see you off to a good start when it comes to finding paying clients.

Setting up a wedding business – the marketing

Finally, if you want a successful wedding planning business, you’ll need to make sure couples can find you.

One of the best ways to do this is to have a strong website and social media presence showcasing some of the weddings you’ve planned and managed. It will be especially convincing if your website is full of testimonials from previous clients as it will help to build trust with prospective clients.

But just remember – clients will form their first impression of you based on what you’re showing them online. Paying attention to beautiful presentation, including the photography and typography (as well as perfect spelling and grammar), will suggest that you’ll pay similarly high attention to their special day.

Also, contact bridal blogs and websites to see if they’re willing to list you as a professional supplier, and be sure to attend bridal fairs – it’s precisely the kind of place your clients will be hanging out.

Traditional methods of marketing such as business cards are essential too, and there’s no substitute for building relationships – getting to know other wedding businesses (be they caterers, dressmakers, florists or something else) can lead to mutually beneficial relationships… something that’s invaluable when you’re building a business of your own.

So, you think you have what it takes to become a wedding planner?

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How to Start a Wedding Planning Business

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TechRound Team July 23, 2019

setting up a wedding planning business uk

There’s no doubt that the wedding industry is a special one. Being a wedding planner means you’ll be an integral part of some of the most important days in other people’s lives, so here’s our step-by-step guide to starting a wedding planning business.

Although many people come into the wedding industry after planning their own its not prerequisite. If you have planned your own wedding, you may well find it quite a different experience to be planning weddings for multiple people at once.

What Is a Wedding Planner and Is It For You?

The role of wedding planner requires a wide range of skills. The exact definition may be hard to pin down but essentially you are there to help couples plan and execute their ideal day. The role will likely involve planning, designing, negotiating and troubleshooting.

A good wedding planner will be meticulously organised and cool under pressure. Weddings are hugely complex events and chances are that something will go wrong at the last minute so it’s important that you consider whether you’re the kind of person who can think on their feet and find a solution.

Good communication will also be an invaluable skill, as you’ll need to communicate effectively with the bride and groom, their family and a host of venues and suppliers. Weddings can be a stressful time and having a wedding planner who brides and grooms feel comfortable around and can put their trust in will be important.

Around 80% of the work of a wedding planner is administrative, meaning only a small amount of your time will be devoted to the creative side of the wedding. If you’ve previously had experience in a PA or secretary role you may make an excellent wedding planner.

Although the wedding industry is well-known to be a lucrative one, becoming a wedding planner is no route to riches. Particularly in the first couple of years growth is likely to be slow because you will probably be a one-person operation, meaning you’re limited in the amount of work you can take. However, being a part of so many special days may well make it worth your while.

Planning Your Business

As with any business, having a well thought through business plan is essential. You can find our guide to writing a business plan: here .

When writing a plan for a wedding planning business its especially important to consider the seasonal changes, as the amount of work available will change dramatically over the year.

In the UK weddings tend to take place between May and September, when the weather is better. Between October and April, it will be wise to focus on securing new contracts and improving the logistics of your business.

Because work will be seasonal your earnings are likely to fluctuate. Its advisable to pay yourself a modest wage throughout the year instead of taking money at will from the business. You can increase your wage as and when the business can comfortably support it.

One advantage in the wedding planning business is that your upfront costs should be quite low. You may need to factor in the costs of web design but the vast majority of your work can be done from a laptop or phone.

Because wedding planners are unregulated you won’t need any kind of certificate or even experience to set up in business.

However, if you have no prior experience with planning or organising, you could consider specialist wedding planner training. Some recommended option include:

·        UKAWP: Two-day group learning course costing £599

·        Wedding Planning Academy: E-learning course from £70

·        Wedding Planning School UK: Home learning ‘beginner’ course costing £309

As with most self-employed service businesses, you should take out professional indemnity insurance in order to protect your business from a claim if something goes wrong. It’s also worth considering public liability insurance as you’ll be working with lots of guests on the big day.

You will probably want to start off your business as a sole trader, meaning you won’t need to register with Companies House, just register with HMRC.

Pricing Your Services

If you’re offering ‘full’ planning (that’s the entire process start to finish) you should generally charge a percentage of the entire budget of the wedding – typically 10-15%. Ensure that this percentage is subject to a minimum fee to make sure the wedding is worth your work.

Especially in the early stages of your business you may well want to take on partial planning as well. ‘Final eight weeks’ packages, or even ‘on the day’ packages, are popular with brides and a good way to get your name out there. 

Building a Brand

In such a crowded market how well you market and present yourself will be the single most important factor in your success as a wedding planner.

The key to standing out is developing an identifiable brand; a niche. Your brand should be a reflection of you and of the area your business is in. Do you love a Boho beachy vibe? Or is your style sophisticated cocktail party? The important thing is to find something that works and run with it.

It’s worth investing in a good website, it needs to be a clear reflection of your brand. With such a key tool for your business it will pay to hire a web designer to build you the perfect website. Services will generally cost in the region of £300-£500, but will pay for themselves in the long run.

A strong voice on social media will go a long way in this business. Developing a clear style will make clients feel as though they know you and can trust you.

Beyond the normal platforms (Facebook, Twitter etc.) Pinterest has a massive following with brides-to-be and should therefore be a key part of your social media strategy.

Pinterest lets users create virtual ‘boards’ of images centred around a particular theme. For weddings, it’s a perfect way to see what your clients are looking for and for them to get well acquainted with your style and brand.

Most of your business will probably come through word of mouth recommendations, so it’s important to build a strong relationship with your clients and ensure they’re satisfied.

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Creating A Wedding Planner Business Plan

Starting up as a wedding planner is an exciting prospect for many. Your job will be to help couples organise the wedding day of their dreams, which means a large skillset will be needed to facilitate this. But you don’t actually need any kind of certificate or qualification to set up a wedding planning business, which does make a business plan particularly essential.

In this blog post, we will take a look at what is involved in starting up as a wedding planner and how best to plan to help your business succeed.

The Wedding Planner ‘Job Description’

As you will be running this business as a start-up, there will be no specific job specifications out there for your company. However, knowing the job characteristics and business type will help you to realise how ready you are and what strengths to play to.

On top of dealing with the bride and groom’s requirements, you will need to build relationships and negotiate with a range of suppliers such as photographers, venue owners and florists. Due to this, it pays to have networking experience, good communication skills and confidence.

Logic is a particularly important trait to have. As weddings are so important to people and they are often grand, complex events, things will inevitably go wrong. A supplier may not turn up or the weather may be bad, but as a wedding planner you will have to think logically and always have a plan B.

Whilst no qualifications are needed, some event planning experience would be desirable as well as the experience of an office environment. The event planning experience is obvious, but many people do not realise just how much administrative work is involved in wedding planning. On top of this, the ability to put people at their ease and allow them to trust you will be a vital skill. Furthermore, if you are starting a wedding planning business with no prior experience, you could consider specialist wedding planner training.

Building A Brand and Marketing Your Business

How well you market yourself as a business owner will be such an important factor in your success as a wedding planner. Developing a niche, identifiable brand is how you will stand out from the congested market of competitors. To do this, a lot of hard work is required. An advisable starting point would be to build up a portfolio of partial planning contracts before moving onto full planning services, once you have built up a great reputation as a brand.

Creating and building a good website that has been properly optimized for search engine rankings will drive prospective brides to your business and provide them with positive first impressions. Therefore, it must truly reflect your brand. A sense of style across all marketing platforms is also a necessity as a bride is choosing to trust you and your plans to create a beautiful wedding day. This style can be shown through your business name, logo, colour and font style and imagery. These aspects must all demonstrate your keen attention to detail and love of weddings!

Developing an identifiable voice on social media is also important. As weddings are such personal occasions, prospective clients want to feel as though they can connect with you on a personal level, based on the voice of your social media. This will reinforce your brand’s style and mission and help to secure those crucial first few contracts.

Being active across all relevant social platforms is essential for any business type, but for something as visual as a weddings Pinterest is a great way to expose your planning talents. This visual discovery tool has created great interest amongst brides-to-be, and as a wedding planner you should utilise this.

Ultimately, remembering that people are looking for support on an emotional as well as practical level. This means that your marketing communications need to show that you can help people make their ideas for their big day a reality as well as having experience and expertise to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

Forming A Legal Entity And Insuring Your Business

Establishing as an LLC prevents you from being personally liable if your wedding planning business is sued. There are many business structures to choose from including corporations, LLCs, and DBAs.

Even if you're based at home, you'll need to be properly insured as a business. You’ll need to take out professional indemnity insurance in order to protect your business from a claim if something goes wrong.

Creating A Business Plan

Having a clear plan is essential for success as an entrepreneur. It will help you to understand all that is involved in your start-up and you can map out specific details that are unique to your business to help you begin and grow. A few points to initially consider are:

Who is your target market? What are the ongoing costs? How long it will take you to break even? Where can I source a comprehensive list of suppliers?

Having a business plan can help you feel more prepared and ready to focus on your business. Put plainly, similar to the wedding plan you will create for your clients, your business plan should organize your wedding business, from the suppliers to the finances.

Most people in the UK tend to get married between the months of May and September, when the weather is better, so you will be doing the majority of your actual planning during that time. Between October and April, you should look at how to focus on securing new contracts and work on the logistics of your business.

For any business a business plan is a necessity, but this is particularly true for a wedding planning business, as the amount of work available will change dramatically with the time of year and this will need to be accounted for. This is because wedding planning is a seasonal business, so your earnings are likely to fluctuate, meaning proper financial planning is essential. Do not let this seasonal change put you off, as a key advantage of starting a wedding planner business is the low start-up cost. As you won’t need office space or additional transport to begin with, initial outlay should be very low.

What CBM Do

CBM provides comprehensive business plans tailored to your business. There is more to starting a business than just registering it and throwing yourself in at the deep end. A business plan will ensure that your new business is well planned out, registered properly and legally compliant as well as helping you to ease into everything knowing you are prepared.

As someone interested in becoming a wedding planner, you will surely appreciate the importance of planning. Why would you not feel the same about hiring an expert to create a plan for your business?

If you would like help with putting together your business plan, get in touch today! Contact us online using the form on the right or call 01604 420 420.

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The rapid guide to becoming a wedding planner.

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Table of Contents

Everybody loves a wedding – but have you ever thought about becoming a wedding planner and organising weddings for a living? There’s a huge demand for wedding planners across the UK, so it’s definitely a profession worth checking out if you’re interested in starting your own business,

A wedding planner is an individual who helps organise a wedding. This could include coordinating the entire day from start to finish, just the ceremony and reception or even just one specific aspect of somebody’s big day. Anyone can learn to become a brilliant wedding planner, although you will need to develop a certain set of core skills to succeed.

According to the National Careers Service , a typical wedding planner’s salary ranges from £17,000 to £25,000 per year. That being said, the amount you earn will depend entirely upon the type of business plan you’d like to implement. You could choose to work as a wedding planner for a specific venue or company – but if you opt to start your own wedding planning business, you can decide whether you’d like to charge a fixed rate, hourly rate, a percentage of the total wedding cost or something entirely different.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. Before you start thinking about what you’re going to charge, it’s worth walking you through all the basics of how you should set up your wedding planning business. So to help you get started, we’ve developed this Rapid Guide that will walk you through all of the basics of becoming a wedding planner.

Training and qualifications

Setting up shop, getting insured, rules and regulations.

Unlike some professions, there are actually no specific qualifications you’re legally required to obtain to become a wedding planner in the UK. That being said, it certainly helps if you’ve previously gained experience in particular sectors.

A huge number of wedding planners opt to go to college or university, and typically study to gain qualifications in subjects like:

  • Event management
  • Hospitality
  • Project management
  • Public relations

But just because many wedding planners have pursued a degree or college qualification doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll need to do so, too.

Another way you could gain experience could be to look for work as an employee for a wedding planner or an existing event management company.

Even better, you can receive sector specific training from highly experienced wedding planners. Organisations like the UK Alliance of Wedding Planners (UKAWP) – which is the UK sector’s leading body – has been training wedding planners in the UK for over 13 years, and offer a range of training opportunities across the country. You can enrol in one-to-one training sessions, workshops and webinars that are designed to help first-time wedding planners get started.

You can also apply for membership of the UKAWP, which will help you stand out as a wedding planner who has gone above and beyond what’s needed to start a professional business.

Membership guidelines of the UKAWP include the following commitments. You will be expected to:

  • Respond to enquiries within 48 hours
  • Respect client confidentiality
  • Disclose any suppliers you have a vested interest in
  • Pass discounts and/or commission onto clients
  • Ensure your Public Liability insurance is up to date
  • Never give client details to any third party not involved with the wedding
  • Respect copyright from fellow wedding professionals
  • Represent each client fairly and honestly
  • Use legally sound business contracts with clients

You could also arrange training with organisations like the UK Academy of Wedding & Event Planning , which offer a range of online courses you could take in order to obtain a broad understanding of the industry and what you’ll need to do in order to succeed. Before you go enrolling in any courses, it’s worth noting that there is no official or government-regulated accreditation you need to obtain to become a wedding planner. These courses and training opportunities are only to benefit you, and to let your clients know you have worked hard to develop industry insight and learn about best practice.

Useful skills

So, beyond optional industry training, what are the sort of skills a successful wedding planner needs?

As you might imagine, no two wedding planners are alike – and so many of them have got different skills and qualities that make them shine. Yet by and large, as a wedding planner you should at least strive to develop the following basic skills:

  • Organisation skills
  • Communication skills
  • Customer service skills
  • Problem-solving skills
  • Attention to detail
  • An ability to work under pressure
  • Sales and negotiation skills
  • Budgeting skills

If you’ve got all of those skills, there’s no reason you can’t become a professional at planning weddings.

Fortunately, setting up a wedding planning business can be incredibly affordable. There aren’t a huge number of start-up costs involved, and there are plenty of ways to cut corners while you’re trying to get started.

In terms of overheads, most wedding planners start their business from home – which means you’ll benefit from not having to pay any commercial rent or mortgage. You also won’t increase your own personal utility costs by much, and so your day-to-day operating costs shouldn’t amount to much.

Instead, your initial costs should be focussed on the sort of business basics you’d expect any new company to have. These include things like:

  • A computer (if you haven’t already got one)
  • A printer and scanner
  • A business phone or business landline number
  • Web hosting
  • Business cards
  • Insurance (we’ll get to that in a minute)

By and large, the biggest expense you can expect when starting up your business is going to be marketing. Not only will you need business cards, but you may find it useful to print out various types of marketing collateral, such as fliers, brochures or leaflets.

To succeed as a wedding planner in the 21 st century, you’ll also need a business website . If you’ve never created a website before, don’t panic: it’s actually pretty simple. With the help of freemium platforms like WordPress , you can create a simple, drag-and-drop website using a range of free templates. You can even purchase a unique domain name to make your website stand out, which often costs less than £10 per year.

In terms of digital marketing, you’ll also want to set up a formidable social media presence across a range of platforms. Because weddings are so visual, wedding planners tend to post (with permission) videos and photographs from weddings they’ve helped to plan to showcase their work and engage with potential clients. Fortunately, social media is generally a free outreach tool – although you can pay to expand your reach through sponsored posts.

You’ll also want to ensure you’ve got access to a reliable car or vehicle, and budget in petrol to cover the mileage you may need to drive to reach venues and clients.

Another crucial aspect of setting up your new wedding planning business is creating a portfolio of your work. Beyond your own marketing efforts and networking, the best way to sell your services will be to showcase what you’ve achieved through a portfolio (both online and offline). This can admittedly be a little bit difficult to create without much experience, and so you could try including things like:

  • A photoshoot from a mock wedding you’ve staged.
  • Testimonials from friends or relatives for whom you have helped organise an aspect of their weddings.
  • A list of any courses or industry memberships you’ve obtained.
  • A sample of a wedding timeline you’ve developed.

From a business perspective, you may also want to consider registering your business as a limited company . If you choose to form a limited by shares company, your business will become its own distinct legal entity in the eyes of the government. That means you’ll be granted ‘limited liability’, and you will only be liable for company debts up to the value of your shares. That will protect your personal finances if your business does not succeed or if it runs into financial obstacles.

If you’d like more information on limited companies and why you may want to consider setting one up for your wedding planning business, please take a look at our informative blog .

Your job as a wedding planner is to ensure that your clients have the best day of their lives. But when you’re coordinating a big event, sometimes things can go awry. When they do, you may end up getting blamed for a mistake – and so you’ll want to protect yourself with insurance.

The types of insurance you choose to take out will depend largely upon the type of work you’re carrying out in the industry, as well as the types of events you’re planning. Yet by and large, most wedding planners will have at least one (and potentially all) of these types of business insurance :

Professional indemnity insurance

Professional indemnity insurance protects you if a client tries to sue you because they think you’ve made a mistake or have been negligent in some way.

Public liability insurance

Public liability insurance will protect you against any compensation claims that are made by a member of the public who claims they have been injured on your property.

Employers’ liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance is a legal requirement for most businesses that choose to employ staff. This will cover any claims an employee could end up making if they’re injured or become ill due to work.

That list is by no means exhaustive – it’s just the start. You may also want to explore products like business contents insurance, too. When in doubt, do your research and take your time before taking out insurance.

Because the wedding planning industry as a sector is more or less unregulated by the government, there aren’t many statutory regulations you must follow beyond the sort of rules you’d be expected to observe as part of any other sector.

Bearing that in mind, your top regulatory concern will simply be to ensure you’re compliant with the statutory filing and reporting requirements that go hand-in-hand with forming a limited company .

If you’ve opted to form a limited company to protect your business, you’ll need to fulfil several legal obligations on a regular basis. Those obligations largely include simply keeping government bodies like Companies House and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) up-to-date on what’s going on at your business.

As company director, you will be legally responsible for carrying out the following legal duties:

You must send an annual Confirmation Statement (or an annual return) to Companies House at least once per year.

  • You must prepare and submit financial accounts for Companies House.
  • You must notify Companies House if there are any changes to your company details.
  • You must file Company Tax Returns and annual accounts with HMRC.
  • If eligible, you must pay Corporation Tax.

Not sure what this all means? Don’t worry. We cover all of these filing requirements and much more in our blog.

Once you’re happy with your level of training, have set up shop and are aware of the legal regulations you’ve got to observe, you’re ready to start planning weddings. It’s an incredibly rewarding profession, and it can be a lot of fun, too.

But before you start booking venues and ordering around videographers, we’ve got a few basic tips to help you on your way as your business evolves and grows:

Be prepared to work weekends

If you haven’t already, you need to constantly bear in mind that weddings are generally on weekends – and go into the early hours. Moreover, most of your clients will likely be working normal, nine-to-five jobs – and so will normally expect you to be available to meet or have a chat in the evenings or on weekends.

Your top marketing tool is word-of-mouth

At the end of the day, no brochure or sales pitch beats a gleaming review from person to person. After your clients have tied the knot and settled into married life, politely encourage them to write a review online, or pass your details on to any friends or colleagues they know who are considering getting married.

First impressions are everything

As a wedding planner, couples are pinning the successful execution of their big day entirely upon your shoulders. If you want to win business, you need to present yourself as a professional who is neat, organised and business-savvy. If you can’t impress a client as part of their initial enquiry, they’ll often take their business elsewhere.

Broaden your network

Even after you’ve established a rhythm and business processes that seem to work for you, you should always be looking for opportunities to learn more and expand your professional reach. That means joining professional associations, attending industry conferences and getting your name out there to the types of industry professionals – such as photographers or caterers – that you will need at your beck and call to plan the perfect wedding.

The bottom line…

So, we’ve given you all of the basics you’ll need in order to obtain optional qualifications, set up shop and shop around for insurance as a wedding planner. But this guide only covers the basics. As a new wedding planner and a new business owner, you’ll have plenty of burning questions about getting started or trying to further develop your business – and we’re always happy to help.

If you have any questions, our knowledgeable team members are always on standby to offer you assistance. Simply get in touch by tweeting us at our Twitter handle @RapidUKOfficial  and via our  Facebook Page .

Graeme Donnelly Portrait

Author:  Graeme Donnelly

Graeme Donnelly, the Founder and CEO of Rapid Formations, has over 30 years’ experience of creating and running successful businesses. He is devoted to helping fellow entrepreneurs and startup businesses and spends much of his time creating business to business products and services for new and established companies. In his free time, he enjoys competitive cycling, photography, and walking his Chow Chow.

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Live Q&A: How do you start a wedding business?

From dressmakers and caterers to party planners and photographers, the business of getting married is now worth £10bn a year in the UK . On average, Britons are spending between £19,000 and £23,000 on tying the knot, so it's a huge market for entrepreneurs looking to either start a dedicated wedding business or diversify their existing operations.

Today there's more to weddings than the traditional 'meringue' dress, walking down the aisle and throwing the bouquet. Opportunities for SMEs looking to help couples make their big day unforgettable are much wider now than 15 years ago, according to Miranda Eason, editor of You and Your Wedding magazine.

"There is a lot more money being spent and so many more choices," she told the Guardian . "The Marriages Regulations of 1996 really threw the doors open for so many new kinds of reception venues, like country houses and castles, and so people were no longer confined to the local church and village hall."

It's not just the choice of venue which has changed too. Brides are eschewing white dresses for colour, cars for fairytale carriages and bouquets for lanterns. With the law changing to allow gay couples to marry, same-sex weddings also look set to be big business in the UK.

So, how do you start a wedding business? With so many options, how do you find your niche? What should you think about before taking on the industry? And how can an established business successfully break into the wedding market? Join us between 11am and 1pm on Friday 30 August for our live Q&A. Post your thoughts in the comments section below and pop back then to join the discussion.

This week's panel:

Aurora Oriana is the founder and director of fashion boutique Ipilya , which showcases bridal and special occasion wear designers aimed at the over-30s market.

Francesca Cribb is the site editor of the UK wedding website hitched.co.uk . Having been online since 1997, hitched.co.uk helps wedding planning couples find everything from an ideal venue to the perfect honeymoon.

Judy Mansfield is a professional celebrant and the owner of Cherish Ceremonies , designing and delivering bespoke wedding and vow renewal ceremonies for couples in the UK and internationally.

Kate Rivera is the marketing manager for Wedding Rings Direct , an online jewellery company specialising in engagement and wedding rings since 2000.

Bernadette Chapman has 10 years experience as a wedding planner and owns Dream Occasions . She is also the co-founder of the UK Alliance of Wedding Planners .

Niamh Stephenson is the director of Event in a Tent , which hires out tipis for weddings and events. Niamh started the company for her own wedding and now hires out around Europe with her husband. Amber Hunter is the senior tutor at The Wedding Planner School . She owned and sold a wedding planner business in 2004 and now uses her expertise to help over 500 startup wedding businesses and venues to succeed and grow quickly through training and mentoring.

Carolyn Holt is the founder of MuchAdoAboutWeddings.com , a store and directory for couples planning their big day and guests looking for wedding gifts.

Sign up to become a member of the Guardian Small Business Network here for more advice, insight and best practice direct to your inbox.

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How to become a Wedding Planner

setting up a wedding planning business uk

Looking for a new career? We're often approached by individuals who have just gone through the process of getting married and would like to launch a career as a wedding planner . Today we're thrilled to have an in-depth post by Sam Ketterer from Absolutely Perfection Wedding Consultancy on how to do just that! With 17+ years of wedding planning experience, there are few individuals who are better placed to guide you through your first steps.

AP 1

Introduction

Looking for a new career? Or maybe you are planning - or have recently planned - your own wedding, loved every minute and are thinking about training to become a professional wedding planner? It's certainly an exciting, sometimes glamorous and often rewarding career, but it's not an easy job to do. Today, Sam Ketterer from Absolute Perfection Wedding Consultancy in London provides an insight into the wedding planning world and offers some helpful advice on how to set up and run a wedding planning business.

Last year approximately 250,000 couples in the UK choose to tie the knot, spending an average of £20,731 on their Big Day. ( source : Bridebook.co.uk 2019). Interestingly, these figures have remained relatively unchanged for the past 15 years. It follows that the UK wedding industry is worth an eye-watering £5,200,000,000 to the British economy! 

Although the wedding planning sector is relatively new to the UK wedding industry, we have seen a huge growth in this sector in recent years. Last year, at least 25,000 couples hired a wedding planner ( source : Bridebook.co.uk 2019). And this figure is expected to rise considerably over the next few years as more people realise the benefits to be gained from using the services of a professional wedding coordinator.¹ 

Wedding Planning Qualifications

Although you can set up a wedding planning business without any formal training or qualifications, very few people nowadays risk such an undertaking. Instead, most will opt for general events courses or enrol on specialised wedding planning, design & management courses, either through an institution or within an established wedding planning company such as Absolute Perfection Wedding Consultancy. 

Absolute Perfection have been planning weddings since 2003 and training students in the art of wedding planning since 2007. As one of the longest established wedding planning companies in the UK, their Tutor-led online and home study courses are considered to be among the most advanced, comprehensive and extensive wedding planning training courses in the country. 

There are 3 separate courses to choose from and no prior wedding or events planning experience is necessary. Their First-Class Advanced Certification  Wedding Planning, Design & Management is structured to teach you all you need to know about setting up and running your own wedding & special events company and as such, it’s their most popular course. It is also believed to be the most up-to-date wedding course available, with their latest version released in May 2020.

There is plenty more information about the AP Academy and their training courses on their website . You’ll find full details about the course syllabus, structure, format, fees and enrolment process, plus a helpful FAQ page that answers any questions you might have. 

AP3

Wedding Planner Skills & Attributes

Wedding Planners tend to be outgoing, personable characters with strong empathic skills and can communicate well with people of all ages and from all walks of life. The best among them have positive, professional, 'can do' attitudes and possess a diverse set of entrepreneurial skills and attributes. These include:

General management skills: you will be working alongside and ultimately managing a wide variety of people, including the clients, their wedding party & guests, all the suppliers and the venue management team. 

Communication skills: strong communication skills are essential. This is not a job for shrinking violets!

Problem solving skills: planning a wedding is a complex task and a host of potential problems may arise at any stage of the planning process. You need to be prepared with a back-up plan (or two, or three!) should the unforeseen arise.

Negotiating skills: securing the best deal for your clients could save them hundreds, if not thousands of pounds. It can be a major selling point for a wedding planner.

Financial management skills: you are likely to be managing multiple client’s budgets in the region of £25,000-75,000 or more on a daily basis so some sound accounting skills will come in handy.

Time management skills: there are between 150-250 individual and essential tasks to undertake for each and every wedding you organise. Bearing in mind you will be working on multiple weddings at any one time, an established wedding planner's life is governed by deadlines, timelines, schedules, checklists and multiple to-do lists!

Being organised and able to multi-task: it therefore follows that all wedding planners are highly organised beings who are able to multi-task proficiently. 

Creativity: being highly creative, possessing an artistic flair and having a fine eye for detail are excellent qualities that all top planners possess.

Keeping calm under pressure: it's stressful planning a once-in-a-lifetime wedding for someone else, so the ability to remain calm at all times and even thrive on stress is another useful wedding planning attribute.

Business skills: the majority of wedding planners set up and run their own businesses, managing accounts, the bank and HMRC, so it’s helpful if you have an understanding of the basic rules of business.

Sales & marketing skills: if you are setting up your own business, you need to know how to promote yourself, your services and your business to the wider world. Familiarity with a variety of sales and marketing techniques, and even branding and PR, will be highly beneficial.

Research skills: wedding planners spend a significant amount of time researching the latest styles, trends and developments as well as sourcing venues, suppliers and services. With good research skills, you'll spend less time researching and more time designing, planning and coordinating.

AP2

Finding Jobs As A Wedding Planner

For those of you seeking employment after your training, don't just focus on applying to local wedding planning businesses. This is because the vast majority are small operations run by one or two individuals and although part-time or peak-season positions might arise, full-time vacancies are rather scarce. 

For a swifter route into the industry you should also consider applying to all the local wedding venues for a position as an in-house wedding coordinator. You’ll find that there are considerably more vacancies so you'll have a far greater chance of securing a position. And you’ll gain plenty of practical experience for your cv too.

It is also a sensible idea to approach large local catering companies and even some larger florists since some offer full planning services. Like any job hunt, it's a numbers game and can also depend on opportune timing and luck!

AP4

Setting Up A Wedding Planning Business

Another sensible route into the industry is to enrol on a wedding planning training course that also teaches you how to set up and run your own business. Obviously, this path is not suitable for everyone. But for those of you who are determined and willing to invest the time and effort it takes to set up and run your own business, there can be few more rewarding careers than running your own wedding planning business!

Additional Resources

NATIONAL CAREERS SERVICE – UK Government funded careers advice website 

PROSPECTS – UK’s largest graduate careers website 

UK Alliance of Wedding Planners – UK’s leading wedding planning body 

NAPWS – The Wedding Association – National Association of Professional Wedding Services 

¹ If this is a subject you are unfamiliar with, you can find out more on the following links: 

Why Use A Wedding Planner

Wedding Planner or In-House Venue Coordinator

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How to Start a Wedding Venue Business

couple dancing at wedding with purple lights and confetti

If you’re thinking about starting a wedding venue business, the most important first step is taking off those rose-coloured glasses. Running a wedding venue company is more than a labour of love, and far more challenging than you may think. It takes grit, honesty, and resources — not unlike the institution of marriage itself.  

Read on to learn the 11 essential first steps to take before opening a wedding venue, and get answers to top questions about the process.

Discover how to start a wedding venue business in a few simple steps:

Step 1: ask yourself the hard questions.

Don’t rush into starting a wedding venue business. According to Simply Business, 11% of small businesses fail within the first year .

You need to be prepared for the bumps and roadblocks that come with running a small business and realistic about your capacity to manage these challenges. Here’s what to ask yourself before you start hashing out your wedding venue business plan :

  • Can you afford the financial risk? Because of the data shared above, it’s essential you’re prepared for the possibility that the business goes under and you lose your investment.
  • Are you prepared for a busy schedule that includes weekend work? Typically, weddings take place in the evenings and on the weekends. Hopefully, you will have backup to help you manage, but be prepared to be busy when most people are kicking back. 
  • Is the timing right? We all go through challenging life phases, and opening a wedding venue business (or any business) is a definite stressor. Try to minimise the other stressors in your life as much as possible before diving into the small-business life.
  • Can you open the business and keep your day job? This approach will definitely require a business partner or partners who can share the responsibilities of running the venue. Have enough backup so you can manage the new venture without dropping the ball at your day job. It will provide a sense of security to start because you are launching your business with a safety net.
  • After asking the above questions, are you still excited about the prospect of opening a wedding venue business? It takes a lot of passion and energy to run a venue; if imagining your business in full swing makes you happy, then you are probably ready.

Step 2: Research the event venue market in your area

What is the demand for wedding venues in your region? Every business needs a market to be successful. You have to do your research and some legwork to make sure you are opening a wedding venue business that will draw customers. Here are the essentials to research and explore:

  • Wedding venues in your geographic area. Look up wedding venues in your region. Are there scores of popular wedding venues already? You will have to have a specific offering that makes your venue special. Is your venue a lakefront property in a lake region? How many other lakefront wedding sites are there? Are those venues booked solid, so there’s overflow demand?  
  • Online reviews of competitor venues. There is a treasure trove of information about competitive venues in the reviews on sites such as Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Google. Read them carefully and go back in time. Look for consistent complaints and chronic problems, such as lackluster menus or inexperienced staff. Can you fill in the gaps where those venues fall short?
  • Talk to people you know about competitor venues and visit them yourself. Message friends and family to see if anyone has firsthand experience of competitive venues. Also, many sites include restaurants and cafes for the public. Visit several times in the evenings and on weekends. You will get an idea of the overall operation, and you may even see the arrival of guests for an event.
  • What is the population density of your region? What are the age demographics? Of course, people of all ages get married and throw parties. But most people across Europe get married in their late 20s or early 30s. Additionally, you’ll need a density of population that supports your venue (and any other popular venues in the area). Unless your venue has a spectacular setting or special features that will attract people from across the state and country, avoid areas with a sparse or aging population.

Let us help you earn more business!

Step 3: Write your wedding venue business plan

Open business, book clients, make money. Repeat.

If only writing a business plan were that easy. No matter how straightforward your business is, you need to write a brief but detailed plan. This document will serve as a guideline for you and your team, as well as marketing for investors and partnerships you may be seeking.

The good news: You’re well on your way if you’ve done the market research above. The U.S. Small Business Administration has a helpful guide to writing business plans . Here’s how it would look for a wedding venue business: 

  • Summary: Think of this as the “About” section of a business website. Describe your business niche and what makes your business unique. Include your passion for running a wedding venue.
  • Market: Share the market value you determined in your research.
  • Your business organisation: Are you the sole owner of the business? Do you have one partner or several? Are you a limited liability company (LLC)? How many permanent and temporary employees will you have? Will you have an onsite, fully staffed catering offering? Or will you provide a fully equipped kitchen that catering vendors can use? 
  • Your timeline: When will you build/renovate the venue? When do you plan to do a soft open? When will you be fully open for business?
  • Marketing plan: How do you plan to get the word out about your business? Get specific. How? Check out Step 8 below for a detailed look at building your marketing strategy.
  • Business projections: What are your financial and growth goals? Do you plan to open other venue sites?  

Step 4: Figure out your finances

Opening a wedding venue is an investment, but the size of that investment depends on many factors.

Are you building a facility from the ground up or renovating an existing building? Is the venue located in a rural area with low taxes and low real estate prices or in a city with high taxes and high real estate prices? Does the venue feature extensive grounds that require tending? Are you buying an existing wedding venue? Or are you leasing the property?

Clarify how much (if any) of your own money you are willing to use for a down payment. Will you have business partners contributing to the funding? What type of financing are you looking to use?

Clearly, you want to avoid endangering personal assets or emptying your retirement savings account. Talk with trusted family, friends, and financial advisers about realistic personal investments and safe business loans.

Step 5: Choose your wedding venue location

Perhaps you have a barn on a rural property you already own and want to convert it into a wedding venue — a highly popular setting for weddings! Or you may be interested in opening a venue but haven’t selected the location yet. Perhaps you have your eye on an existing venue that’s for sale.

Before you start building your business, you have to find a location. Start exploring properties or land based on your business capital. If your funding is low, consider leasing a property before buying — you can invest the profits in the permanent facility. If you have abundant funding, you may be able to build a brand-new facility.

Now is when you’ll decide how much to provide onsite. Perhaps you want to have a caterer use your kitchen facility, rather than manage event catering yourself. You could scale back even further and offer space for food trucks near a large wood pavilion with a gorgeous view. Will couples need to rent their tables and chairs from a supplier, or will you provide them? If you offer tables onsite, know you’ll need storage space for them in case the couple prefers a different style of table and decides to rent.

Step 6: Create and register a catchy wedding venue business name

Create a unique, appealing, and memorable name for your new business. When coming up with wedding venue name ideas , the options should evoke the style of weddings and clients you hope to attract to your venue. A stately and sophisticated venue calls for a refined name that makes people think of elegant galas and white-glove service (think Rushing River Estates, Sterling Lakeside Manor, Sleepy Hollow Banquets). A rustic and laid-back venue should call to mind joyful times minus any stuffed shirts (e.g. Bear Den Inn, Ivy Lane Lodge, Aspen Farms).

Step 7: Refine what makes your wedding venue special

Why will couples clamor to book your venue? What will have them set the date and reach out to you immediately? This is your unique value proposition. Some possibilities include:

  • A one-of-a-kind view.
  • A pastoral landscape and grounds.
  • Outstanding menu options.
  • Sophisticated décor and stunning details.
  • A historic property.
  • Rustic charm.

Other selling points are pretty surroundings at an affordable price, proximity to an airport (for out-of-town visitors), and all-inclusive capacity, such as tables, chairs, table settings, décor, tents, catering, and flowers, so couples won’t have to worry about hiring multiple vendors. Whatever the unique value of your venue, make sure you continue to refine and improve upon it after your business opens.

Step 8: Launch your venue marketing strategy

Your wedding venue marketing strategy is how you get the word out about your venue’s exceptional setting, décor, and food. It makes you easy to find and builds word of mouth. Here’s what your venue marketing strategy should include:

  • Hire a photographer. You need beautiful pictures of the space to share across multiple channels. Before opening, set up your venue for a wedding and get glamour shots from every vantage point.
  • Put your property on wedding venue sourcing sites. Couples visit sourcing sites such as Wedding Spot and the Cvent Supplier Network . You’ll add details such as your location, the venue style, and guest capacity. You’ll also include your unique service offerings, such as catering, included amenities, wedding ceremony space, parking capacity, and a link to your website.
  • Design your website. With services such as Wix and Squarespace, it’s easier than ever for any business to build a wedding venue website . Use those beautiful photographs and include all the details that make your venue special. Write appealing copy that includes keywords that people will likely search to find wedding venues in your area. In other words, if you are opening a rustic barn wedding venue, make sure your website includes those exact words. If you find the process challenging, reach out for help from tech-savvy friends and family, or hire a freelance website designer to help you build the site. As you get reviews from happy couples and permission to share their wedding pictures, you’ll be able to add galleries and quotes.
  • Create your social media accounts and handles. Usually, your handle will be the name of your venue, but watch for the formation of unwanted words when you squish the name together! For wedding venues, the most important sites are Instagram and Facebook. Establish social accounts before opening so you can build interest and attract bookings. 
  • Advertise in local magazines. Though most information is online today, couples will flip through magazines that advertise local businesses while they wait at the doctor’s office or while trying on wedding dresses. Make sure your beautiful venue is among the listings in wedding-specific publications, as well as planner- and luxury-focused magazines such as Cvent Meetings .
  • Watch for online reviews after you open. Keep an eye on review sites such as Yelp and Google Reviews. Respond to both positive and negative reviews promptly. With positive reviews, try an authentic “Thank you! We’re so glad we helped make your wedding a special experience!” For negative reviews, apologise sincerely and ask that they reach out to you offline to understand their complaint better. Listen with an open mind; often, being heard is what people want the most.

For more ideas on attracting planners and couples, check out The Venue’s Guide to Booking Wedding Event Business  and our blog post detailing What Couples Want From a Wedding Venue .

Step 9: Select an event management system

You and your team need to stay organized and on the same page to run a wedding venue successfully. Event management software is an invaluable tool for venue teams. You can detail the size and scope of incoming events, store contact information for your top vendor partners, manage guest seating, and track special requests.

The best event planning tools allow you to collaborate with wedding planners on table layouts. You’ll be able to share optimal banquet floor plans , seating charts, and special dietary requests, as well as monitor any changes the planners make. If they add a configuration that doesn’t work for the space, you can let them know immediately.

The system will then be the guide for the wedding reception, ensuring a streamlined guest arrival, seating, and meal service.

Step 10: Hire and train a friendly and detail-focused staff

You can’t run a wedding venue by yourself. You’re going to need to hire an outstanding staff to help you make these special days extra special. The size of your team will vary, depending on the scope of your venue. A barn venue that depends on food trucks for catering, for example, will not have nearly the same staffing requirements as an all-inclusive wedding venue. Here are job roles you may need to fill:

  • Venue coordinator. This is the person who coordinates with wedding planners, couples, and vendors in the runup to the big day. In the early days of your business, this will likely be you. If you expand your venue business to include more properties, however, others will have to take on this role.
  • Maitre d’ or event captain. This is the front-of-house person on the wedding day. They will interact with the couple and their guests and coordinate with the back of the house to keep the event running smoothly and the newlyweds happy.
  • Kitchen staff. This includes the head chef, who designs the menu; the line chefs, or cooks who help the head chef prepare the food; and food-prep cooks who clean, chop, and prepare the food for cooking.
  • Servers. These key employees serve guests their food, either at the buffet table or during table service. They also deliver drinks, cocktails, coffee, tea, and water to guests.
  • Bartender. This staff member makes drinks for guests at the bar and for the servers to deliver.
  • Coat check attendant. If you offer this service, you’ll need someone who takes coats and gives coat-check tickets to guests at the beginning of the event, and then returns coats at the end of the night.

These workers may or may not be employees of your business, depending on how busy you are. If you plan to use temporary workers, research reputable agencies in your area, because these employees play an essential role in the success of a wedding and your business.

The next step on the list? Booking dates for your venue and hosting your first wedding! When you follow the above steps, you should be ready for the big day and avoid unwelcome surprises.

Now you’re ready to begin your wedding venue business!

Learn how Wedding Spot can help you attract couples who are planning their own weddings. Then, check out Social Tables’ Event Services Solution to streamline your wedding venue business.

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Cvent is a leading meetings, events, and hospitality technology provider with more than 4,500 employees and nearly 21,000 customers worldwide.

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Setting up a weddings business takes hard work, creativity and commitment – but get it right and this type of business can be highly profitable and rewarding.

Where to start

Firstly you need to assess your assets – can you accommodate up to 150 people in large rooms within your house, barns or converted outbuildings? These days 72 per cent of all weddings involve a civil ceremony, therefore those venues that can provide the complete package, including facilities for civil weddings, receptions and overnight accommodation, are particularly successful.

You will also need a kitchen area, bar, guest WCs, storage, on-site office, service areas, parking and attractive gardens for drinks receptions and outdoor ceremonies. Providing guest accommodation, often as part of the wedding package, is another lucrative option and will help attract couples from further a field.

Business acumen is just as important as the venue

Consideration should be given to whether you have the skills and appetite to run a successful trading business. Running a weddings business in-house means recruiting staff to market, sell, administrate and deliver events. Some landowners chose to outsource the operation and management to a third party, with an easier arm's length agreement.

Remember competitor research

Know who your competitors are and what they offer to help differentiate your venue. Understanding your target market, local population size and local demographic profile will also help determine the offer.

What licences are needed?

To operate any venue for weddings and events successfully you will need to obtained the correct licences. An Approved Premises Wedding Licence is required for civil wedding ceremonies and partnerships and a Premises Licence for the sale of alcohol and the provision of ‘regulated entertainment’ (for example, live or recorded music and performances).

You will also be responsible for carrying out a general Risk Assessment of the entire site and a Fire Risk Assessment for the all areas covered by the Wedding Licence and Premises Licence by a qualified independent consultant. You will need Public Liability Insurance in case of injury and accidents.

Consider catering options

As flexibility is valued in this market, venues should offer the choice of three or four nominated caterers who typically pay the venue a 10 per cent commission. Once the business is established many venues take control of all drink sales as the profit margins are so high.

Marketing your wedding business is key

The emphasis for marketing and promotion should be on digital channels. An excellent website, containing informative concise text and good quality images and videos that showcase the venue will help to attract more high quality enquiries.

An effective Search Engine Optimisation (S.E.O) service is essential to improve the visibility of the website and ensure it is well positioned in Google. It is also important to use social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube accounts and keep them regularly updated. Expensive print advertising should be kept to a minimum.

Seasonal and unseasonal bookings

Demand for weddings is less seasonal than it used to be and therefore offering permanent facilities that can be used throughout the year is preferable. Furthermore, many couples are getting married mid-week or in low season to save cost and promoting the venue for mid-week corporate events, helps to generate useful additional income.

Further information

Contact Savills Commercial Heritage

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Start a Successful Wedding Planner Business

  • Miscellaneous
  • WeddingGuideDawn
  • No Comments
  • 12th August 2022

Wedding planning can be an incredibly exciting yet stressful time for many couples. With a high price tag and lots of pressure placed on the big day by friends and family, couples will certainly appreciate all the help they can get.

Here is where you step in! If you have a creative side, enjoy organising innovative events, are patience, constructive and have great negotiating skills, you could be just the person to assist these newlyweds. Here are some tips on how to start your own successful wedding planner business.

Gather relevant experience

When first starting out, it’s always worth shadowing or working under someone else with more experience .  Gaining an understanding of the industry is vital. Learning the tricks of the trade will ensure that you are able to maintain a successful and profitable business.

Before jumping in feet first, you need to learn the ins and outs of planning and the wedding industry. Making strong connections with relevant suppliers and potential new clients is essential. You can also undertake relevant qualifications to learn how to run your own business. Do remember though, practical experience cannot be replaced by qualifications.  Helping at weddings and seeing how days unfold is absolutely essential if you want to complete with experienced planners.  Work a bar, be part of the waiting team, help out at venues – free of charge if necessary – to gain experience and to see if planning is actually for you.  It’s not all dress shopping and choosing flowers!

It is also important to pull together a business plan that is unique to the wedding industry. Ensure to factor in that most of the work will be seasonal and you won’t be relying on repeat business!

Spread the word

Getting your name out there is crucial to attracting new clients. Create an eye-catching company logo or image that will easily stand out and demonstrate what exactly you can offer potential customers.

Design and create booklets to hand out at events such as wedding fairs so people can learn more about your business. If you have the budget, you should also consider advertising online or planning an effective marketing strategy that will help you to spread the word.

Using social media is a cost-effective and easy way to ensure your name is getting noticed by a wider audience. Creating an online page for your business on multiple social channels will allow you to deliver updates and post photos of your work online for the world to see.

Sort out the legal side

Consider asking for some legal advice when starting out with your wedding planner business so you don’t incur any complications along the way. Make sure you know about accounting, tax, NI, protection of personal assets and registering your business name.

Search around for the best business insurance for your company. Make sure you and your business are covered from the very start. It’s also worth constructing client contracts and quotes so that you have everything down in writing.

View some of our experienced Listed Wedding Planners here

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Setting up an Event Planning Business

All you need to know about starting and running your business.

In this article

What is an Event Planning Business?

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the events industry in the UK was worth an impressive £42.3 billion. Although the industry took a huge hit during the pandemic, the revival of the industry and the huge increase in the number of events has resulted in a quick recovery, making now a great time to set up an event planning business.

An event planning business entails planning, coordinating and managing events such as:

  • Conventions and exhibitions.
  • Corporate events, such as seminars, workshops and tradeshows.
  • Religious ceremonies, such as christenings and bar mitzvahs.
  • Virtual events.
  • Fundraising and charity events.
  • Festivals, fairs and music events.
  • Sporting events.
  • Pop-up events.
  • Outdoor events.
  • Organised events, such as parades.
  • Social events.

You could choose to specialise in one type of event, such as weddings, focus on events set in a particular location (by partnering with a venue or venues) or organise a variety of event types, depending on your clients’ specifications.

Some event planning businesses are made up of multiple event planners. Alternatively, you could choose to be the sole event planner in your business.

As a professional event planner, you will be involved in planning events, usually from start to finish.

Your responsibilities can be extensive, and may include:

  • Meeting with clients.
  • Creating a budget.
  • Establishing a timeline.
  • Finding and reserving an appropriate venue.
  • Planning a menu.
  • Selecting or contacting attendees.
  • Arranging activities, entertainment or speakers.
  • Arranging transport and/or accommodation.
  • Making arrangements with contractors, such as for food, drinks and entertainment.
  • Communicating with on-site staff.
  • Acquiring the relevant permits and licences.
  • Arranging the programme and coordinating timings.
  • Arranging equipment, facilities and decorations.
  • Managing risks.
  • Handling payments and invoices.
  • Setting up on the day.

In order to plan the events as smoothly as possible, many event planning businesses partner with other businesses and contractors. This ensures you always use companies that you know provide a good service and are reliable.

To be a successful event planner, there are certain characteristics you will need to have. In particular, good organisational skills and good communication skills are key to the success of your business.

As events do not always go to plan, you will also need to be able to think on your feet, have creative problem-solving skills and not panic under pressure. A flair for business and a true passion for what you do is also necessary for the success of your business.

Types of Customers

Determining your typical customer base is an important step when starting up an event planning business.

Your typical customer base will depend on several factors:

The types of events you plan:

If you choose to specialise in a particular type of events, such as wedding planning or corporate events, this will significantly impact your typical customer base. Determining the type of event you plan to organise can help you to determine your typical customers, your branding, and your marketing and advertising strategies.

The services you offer:

Are you going to organise the entire event, meaning you will need to offer a variety of services, or will you specialise in specific services? Some of the most popular services offered by event planners include venue sourcing and hiring, organising catering, venue decoration and event promotion. The service you offer will appeal to specific customers.

Your pricing strategy:

Your pricing should reflect your services, the level of planning you do, and the types of events you will plan. Some customers will be looking for a budget-friendly event planner, whereas others will prefer a high-end more luxurious event planner. The types of events you plan and how long they will take will have a significant impact on your pricing strategy. For example, planning an annual music festival is likely to be much more time-consuming and have a significantly higher price point compared to planning an anniversary party.

Your location:

Many event planners focus on a particular area. For example, if you are based in London, you will likely primarily plan events within the city. This can impact the types of customers you are likely to attract.

Event Cartoon

Equipment You Will Need

Your equipment requirements can vary, depending on several factors:

  • The type of events you plan.
  • Whether you work with external contractors and companies.
  • Whether you choose to rent or buy the equipment.
  • Whether providing equipment is included in the services you offer.

Below is an extensive list of the equipment that may be required by an event planning business. Consult the list to help you determine what equipment your business requires.

A laptop is an essential piece of equipment for your event planning business. The portability allows you to transport your laptop to every event you attend. If you hire additional event planners or other staff, they will need their own laptops. Mid-range laptops usually begin at £500, up to £3,000 for a high specification laptop.

A desktop monitor

This can be plugged into your laptop for times when you need a bigger screen, such as when creating and viewing large spreadsheets, project plans and floor plans. It also gives you the option to work multi-screen, which can be beneficial if you are planning more than one event at the same time. Desktop monitors start at approximately £100.

Mobile phones

You will need a business mobile phone that can be used for contacting clients, replying to emails and accessing event information. Each member of staff will need their own mobile phone. Mobile phones usually range from £200 to £1,500.

A website is essential for an event planning business. Your website will be a key advertising tool. You can showcase your previous work and provide your contact information, business information and pricing. Your website can also act as your sales platform. You can set up your website yourself or pay to have it set up by a professional.

Backups and storage

Backing up all your data and previous work is recommended in case your computer is lost or broken. You can choose external hard drives or cloud storage. You may need to pay a one-off cost or a monthly or annual fee.

You may need to print off invoices, seating plans, permits, stage passes, schedules and other essential information. A printer can cost as little as £40, although you may opt for a more expensive, higher specification printer to ensure your items look professional.

Any personal information about your clients and other businesses needs to be disposed of correctly. This helps to protect sensitive data and ensures your business operates in line with data protection laws. A shredder can be purchased for as little as £20.

Some office furniture you may require includes desks, chairs and secure filing cabinets. The amount of furniture you will need will depend on whether you operate your business from an office or other workspace or whether your business is run from home.

Business cards

These can be used for advertising purposes. You can give them to potential clients and other businesses you partner with or leave them at locations and venues you host events at. Business cards are a fairly affordable marketing tool and can cost between £15 and £200 for 500. The price can vary depending on the material used, the quality of the finish, and the design.

Many event venues may be inaccessible by public transport. Even if a venue is accessible, having a vehicle will help to save you time on travel. If you need to transport any equipment to the events, your vehicle will need to be large enough to store it. The cost of a vehicle varies depending on the make and model and whether it is a new or used vehicle.

Extension cords and outlet cords

It’s recommended to always keep spare cords with you in case you ever arrive at a venue and find there aren’t enough cords, or the plugs aren’t where they need to be.

A first aid kit

Even though venues should have their own first aid kit, carrying a first aid kit with you is recommended in case any accidents or injuries occur. A fully stocked first aid kit can be purchased for as little as £10.

Event Planning

Typical Pricing

Being aware of the typical costs associated with setting up and running an event planning business can help you to better plan your business.

Your expected costs will vary depending on the size of your business and the types of events you plan.

Consult the list below for the approximate costs associated with an event planning business:

The cost of equipment can vary based on how much equipment you require. The bigger your event planning business is, the more equipment you will require. You may choose to purchase less equipment initially and expand your equipment as your business grows. Purchasing equipment could cost between £1,000 and £30,000.

Some event planners operate their businesses from an office or other premises. An office could be beneficial to your business if you hire other employees or need to conduct in-person meetings. If you choose to rent your premises, rental costs are usually calculated per square metre and can range significantly, from £500 to £15,000 per square metre annually, depending on your location.

Branding can help you to establish your business’s identity and set you apart from your competition. Branding could include creating your business’s visual identity, a logo, your business name, and creating your business’s website. You can hire a professional to help you with branding or do some of the work yourself. Branding can cost between £500 and £10,000, depending on the amount of branding you require.

Marketing and advertising

Marketing and advertising are essential ways to attract clients and grow your business. To ensure your event planning business attracts clients and earns an income, you must invest in marketing and advertising. It is recommended that you spend between 1% and 3% of your annual turnover on marketing. For example, if your annual turnover is £50,000, it is recommended you spend between £500 and £1,500 per year on marketing. You may need to invest more money in advertising and marketing when you first set up your business, in order to ensure your business is well-known and potential clients are aware of you.

Maintaining, repairing and replacing equipment

Repairs, maintenance and replacements are ongoing costs you will need to factor into your budget. Maintaining equipment and ensuring it is used correctly can extend its life, but repairs and replacements are still inevitable.

Running costs

The running costs associated with your event planning business could include electricity, gas, water and council tax. If you utilise a vehicle, you will also need to incorporate costs such as petrol, MOTs, services and insurance.

You may initially operate your business independently and then hire staff as your business grows. You could hire staff as permanent employees or as independent freelancers. If you hire staff permanently, you will need to pay them at least the national minimum wage of £9.50 per hour and account for other expenses such as holiday pay, sick pay and maternity/paternity pay.

Business insurance

Some of the insurance you may need for your event planning business includes:

  • Public Liability Insurance.
  • Property Insurance.
  • Event Cancellation Coverage.
  • Professional Indemnity Insurance.
  • Employers’ Liability Insurance.
  • Equipment Cover.

Once you have calculated the typical costs associated with setting up and running your event planning business, you can then determine your pricing policy.

On average, event planners charge between 10% and 20% of an event’s total cost. This means your earnings will depend on the scale and budget of the events you plan. For example, if an event you plan has a budget of £50,000, your fees will be between £5,000 and £10,000.

When calculating your pricing policy, you must decide whether to:

  • Charge a percentage of the event’s budget.
  • Charge a flat fee for your services.
  • Charge an hourly rate.
  • Charge based on commission.

Safely Running an Event Planning Business

It can be more difficult to ensure that your events are run safely and safety procedures are implemented when your venue, contractors and staff change for every event.

Many safety considerations will be the responsibility of the venue. However, to protect your business and your clients, you should ensure that every venue and independent contractor is properly implementing safety measures.

Some safety procedures your event planning business should follow include:

Ensure events are properly staffed

Ensuring events you plan have the correct staffing levels is an important way of ensuring your clients’ and guests’ safety. Consider how many guests will be attending and the types of responsibilities your staff will have when calculating your necessary staffing levels.

Ensure cleaning procedures and policies are implemented

Every venue will have different cleaning policies and ensuring they are effective and followed properly before and during the event will be one of your responsibilities. Ask the venues to provide you with their cleaning policies and review them in advance.

Ensure staff have health and safety training

This can help to ensure safe practices at all times, even if you are not present. Every venue will have different training requirements for its staff, and if your hire outside contractors, their training may also differ. Using staff that have undergone training on Fire Safety, COSHH Awareness, Electrical Safety Awareness, and Covid-19 Awareness can help to ensure your events are run safely.

Planning Events

Pay attention to noise hazards

Noise levels can sometimes be high in an event planning business, especially if loud music is played. Manage noise hazards and make sure you are aware if noise levels are too high. If you or your staff regularly attend loud events, purchasing noise-cancelling headphones can help to protect you from harm.

Keep records

You should keep up-to-date records of any risk assessments, health and safety policies, staff training, and equipment maintenance. You should also record any accidents or injuries that take place.

Implement emergency procedures

Each venue should already have implemented emergency procedures. Familiarise yourself with the procedures, provide a copy of them to your clients and ensure they are correctly displayed for guests to see. Emergency procedures could apply to fires, floods, explosions, chemical spills and terrorist incidents.

Request a copy of any licences

Requesting licences from venues, contractors and companies can help to protect your business. Ensure you only partner with companies and individuals who are properly licensed and request a copy of these licences so you can determine their validity.

Legal Requirements

Ensuring you comply with all legal requirements can help to protect you, your business and your clients.

Some legal requirements will be the responsibility of the venue where you are holding the event. However, as the event planner, you should ensure you check that they are complying with legal requirements.

When setting up and running your event planning business, some of the legal requirements you should be aware of are:

Comply with the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (DPA)

You must comply with both pieces of legislation when storing or sharing personal information. You must also apply for a Notification to Process Personal Data Licence. You can apply for this licence with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) . If you use a CCTV system or process personal information such as payroll information or client accounts and records, you will need to apply for a licence with the ICO and renew your registration every year.

Ensure venues have a Premises Licence

Any venue that you use for an event must have a Premises Licence. This licence is a requirement for any venue that holds licensable activities. This licence covers selling and supplying alcohol, regulated entertainment and late-night food or drink. The venues must also have a Designated Premises Supervisor who has a Personal Licence.

Ensure all events challenge underage drinking

It is against the law to serve alcohol to those under 18 years old in the UK. Events you manage must request to see ID for any individuals you believe are underage. Adopting the Challenge 25 policy by requesting ID for any individual who looks younger than 25 can help to prevent your business from mistakenly serving alcohol to an underage person.

Carry out risk assessments

You should identify any potential hazards and risks and how these can be reduced or eliminated. You should consider hazards related to manual handling activities, electrical and gas safety, food, entertainment, fireworks and any temporary structures. You will need to do new risk assessments for every event you plan.

As part of your risk assessment, you should:

  • Identify hazards.
  • Determine who could be at risk.
  • Evaluate any potential risks.
  • Implement relevant safety measures.
  • Record the results of the risk assessment.
  • Review the risk assessment regularly.

Comply with the Equality Act 2010 and ensure you have disability provisions

The Equality Act promotes equality for people who are disabled and ensures they are protected from discrimination. You must comply with the Act and meet all legal requirements regarding disability provisions. Consider physical accessibility, such as wheelchair access and disabled toilets, and event accessibility, such as large print event programmes, hearing loops, captioning and the welcoming of guide dogs.

Comply with safety checks regarding temporary electrical equipment

If any of the events you manage require you to temporarily install any electrical equipment, such as lighting, speakers, stage constructions or generators, you may need to apply for a certificate of permission and ensure the person who is installing the equipment has the correct qualifications.

Ensure fire safety

Some of your fire safety requirements as an event planner include:

  • Conducting fire safety risk assessments.
  • Having a recorded evacuation plan.
  • Reviewing your risk assessment and evacuation plan regularly.
  • Conducting fire drills.
  • Ensuring escape routes are unobstructed.

Comply with the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992

Manual handling regulations can help to protect you, your employees, and any external workers or contractors from sustaining an injury or illness as a result of manual handling tasks. The regulations apply to the lifting or moving of any objects, bending down and reaching high and repetitive movements.

Comply with the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013

RIDDOR states that you must report all injuries, diseases and dangerous events that occur when your business is operating. Reports must be made to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) using an appropriate recording document.

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974

If you employ any staff as part of your business, you will need to comply with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act. This Act lays out the duties of all employers in the UK in regard to ensuring the health, safety and welfare of everyone in your workplace. As you are the business owner, you will be responsible for protecting the health and safety of your employees and any clients or guests.

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) 2002

COSHH is the law that states that you (the business owner) must control any substances that could be potentially hazardous to health. You must assess, control and reduce any risks or potential hazards and protect individuals from harm.

Implement health and safety policies

Health and safety policies are legally required for all businesses in the UK. You should have policies in place that protect your clients, event guests and any employees or contractors. Your policies should also include fire safety procedures and emergency procedures.

Have the correct insurance

Although some types of insurance are only recommended for your business, other types are legally required. All event planners in the UK must have Public Liability Insurance and Employers’ Liability Insurance.

Register your business

You must register your business with HMRC before you begin operating. You can register as a sole trader or as a limited company. You will need to register your business name and any other relevant information.

Register for self-assessment tax

This allows you to calculate and pay your own taxes each year. You will need to track your finances every month and submit any expenses as part of your tax assessment.

Meeting Event

Positives of Owning an Event Planning Business

Starting up an event planning business can be extremely rewarding in many ways.

Some positives associated with owning this type of business include:

Varied work

An event planning business will never be boring. You can plan a variety of events and every event is likely to be different. You will be working with different clients at different venues and will be doing different tasks every day. Even if you are working on an event for a long period of time, you will still be working at a varied pace and involved in different organisational aspects, depending on what phase of planning you are at.

Meet interesting people

You will meet a huge variety of people, from clients to event guests, entertainers, speakers and other business owners. If you enjoy meeting new people, this can be a great positive.

Grow your network

You will have contact with many different venues, businesses, contractors and companies in your line of work. This allows you to grow your network and gain valuable industry insight. You could even choose to form connections and partnerships with businesses and contractors to help you grow your event planning business and coordinate events more smoothly.

It can be fun

As part of your role, you may be required to attend events, tour different venues, audition entertainers and plan catering. This can be enjoyable and fun.

Choose the events you plan

You will have the power to choose your own clients. You can specialise in specific events that you enjoy the most or are more profitable and only take on clients who you believe you will have a positive working relationship with.

Choose your working hours

As a self-employed business owner, you will be able to choose how little or often you work. You can operate as a full-time event planner or only work part time. If you plan a holiday or need some time off, you can decline any events that would overlap. Planning your own working hours is one of the biggest pros of being self-employed.

It’s a growing industry

Events are on the rise and event planners are becoming more and more popular. Now is a great time to set up an event planning business with lots of opportunities for your business to grow and become successful.

Low start-up costs

Compared to many other businesses, an event planning business has few start-up costs. This makes it easier to set up your business and will allow you to launch it more quickly. Low start-up costs also enable you to begin making a profit faster.

Rewarding work

Planning someone’s dream event and seeing events succeed can be extremely rewarding. Your clients are likely to be very grateful and may even recommend you to their friends and family or offer you repeat business. Not only can this be financially rewarding but knowing that you are doing your job well can be personally rewarding.

Unlimited income potential

Event planning businesses can be extremely lucrative. Depending on the size and complexity of the events you plan, you can charge your clients high prices and earn high profits. You could also expand your business by hiring additional event planners, allowing you to further maximise your profits.

Gain exposure and experience

Event planning is a great industry to gain exposure in. Planning a high profile or successful event can help your business to become well-known and open doors to other events. Other businesses who work within the industry may also recommend you, allowing you to expand your client base and your business.

Work within your local community

Many event planners operate within their local area, for convenience. Not only will this allow you to source local products and utilise local businesses, but it also allows you to make connections within your local community. This can benefit both your personal and professional life.

Baby Shower Event

Negatives of Owning an Event Planning Business

Setting up a business can be difficult and demanding. Not being aware of the potential cons or the difficulties you may face can make it more difficult for your business to succeed.

Some of the potential cons you may experience when setting up and running an event planning business are:

Unsociable hours

As an event planner, you will be expected to work long hours. Many of the events you plan will take place in the evening and at weekends. Many events are also more popular over Christmas and during the summer, meaning you may not be able to take time off or go on holiday during these times. Even if you don’t attend the events, you will need to be available in case there are any problems or issues.

It can be stressful

Event planners have a lot of responsibility and will have to coordinate with a lot of people at the same time. If a problem occurs, as the event coordinator, both the client and other professionals are likely to hold you responsible. This can have a negative impact on your business and create additional stress for you.

It can be tiring

Event planning can be both physically and mentally demanding. On the day of an event, you may be involved in physical activities such as lifting and carrying and may be on your feet for a lot of the day. You may also work long days if you are setting up and overseeing the event. Even in the lead up to the event, the number of responsibilities you have can be mentally demanding.

Some clients may be difficult

Some clients may have a lot of demands and expect too much from you. They may be demanding and difficult to deal with, and as the event planner you will be the one they expect to deal with their issues. Keeping your clients, the guests and staff and contractors happy can be difficult to manage.

The industry is heavily affected by the economy

In periods of recession, economic downturn or situations such as the Covid-19 pandemic, event planning is one of the hardest-hit industries. You may experience periods where you are unable to work or make enough profit to finance your business.

Work can be inconsistent

Certain times of the year, such as Christmas and the summer, are likely to be busier. This could mean you experience other times of the year when you have little or no work. This can make it very difficult to predict your income and plan your outgoings. If you hire staff, inconsistent work can be detrimental to your business, as you will still be expected to pay your staff, regardless of how little work you have.

Experience is usually required

Starting up an event planning business from scratch can be very difficult, especially if you have no previous experience. In order for your business to succeed, you may need to first work within the industry, volunteer at other businesses and make industry connections.

A lot of travel

Even if you work locally, your job will still require a lot of travel, especially if you are touring different venues and visiting different clients and contractors. This can be both time-consuming and expensive.

Planning Your Event Planning Business

A business plan is a great tool for ensuring your business’s success. A business plan can help you to plan each stage of your business, create an effective strategy for growth, calculate your finances and predict your profits.

Your business plan should include information such as:

  • Your company information.
  • Your company description.
  • The event planning services you will provide.
  • Your branding, marketing and advertising plan.
  • The structure of your business.
  • The operational plan for your business.
  • The financial plan for your business.

When planning your business, there are some important considerations you should make:

What type of events will you plan?

Will you specialise in one type of event or offer event planning for a variety of events. Making this distinction is the first step to setting up your business and can help you determine your target customer base and your pricing policy.

What services will you provide?

Event planners can be involved in a huge number of services, from finding the venue and entertainment, to handling the finances. Determine which services you are realistically able to provide and consider whether you can partner with other companies or contractors for the remaining services.

Who will your typical clientele be?

Once you have determined the types of events you will plan and the services you will offer, you can then determine your typical customer base. Knowing your typical clientele can help you to plan your advertising and marketing strategy and how to make your business most attractive to prospective customers.

Will you hire other staff?

You could hire other event planners, enabling you to plan multiple events at one time, or hire other staff, such as hospitality staff and photographers. You may choose to run your business without other staff initially and then hire employees as your business grows.

What are your equipment requirements?

Consult the list above to help you determine your equipment requirements. You will need to decide what equipment you require and research which equipment will be provided or hired by other sources. Consider the services you will provide, the types of events you will plan, your budget, and your clients’ needs when determining your equipment requirements.

Consider your local competition

Are there other event planning businesses in your local area or ones specialising in the same niche as you? If so, consider their pricing, the services they offer, their branding, marketing and advertising strategies and what they do well.

What are your start-up costs and running costs?

Consult the list above to help you calculate your start-up costs and running costs. Being aware of your approximate costs allows you to determine how you will finance your business and when you are likely to start making a profit. It can also help you to determine your pricing strategy.

What is your pricing strategy?

Once you have calculated your start-up costs and running costs, you can then calculate your pricing strategy. Consider your location, equipment, experience and the event you will plan when determining your pricing.

What are your business objectives?

Planning your event planning business and creating a one-year, three-year and five-year plan can be pivotal to the success and growth of your business. Having clear business objectives and a business plan can make your business more likely to succeed.

Your business objectives should be SMART:

  • S = Specific
  • M = Measurable
  • A = Achievable
  • R = Realistic
  • T = Time-bound

Have you complied with all legal requirements?

Consult the list of legal requirements above to check you have complied with all requirements and regulations and that all your paperwork is accurate. Failure to comply with legal requirements could have a detrimental effect on your business or could result in a fine, the forced closure of your business or, in serious cases, prosecution.

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How to Start a Wedding Planning Business

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Starting a wedding planning business can be very profitable. With proper planning, execution and hard work, you can enjoy great success. Below you will learn the keys to launching a successful wedding planning business.

Importantly, a critical step in starting a wedding planning business is to complete your business plan. To help you out, you should download Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template here .

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here

14 Steps To Start a Wedding Planning Business :

  • Choose the Name for Your Wedding Planning Business
  • Develop Your Wedding Planning Business Plan
  • Choose the Legal Structure for Your Wedding Planning Business
  • Secure Startup Funding for Your Wedding Planning Business (If Needed)
  • Secure a Location for Your Business
  • Register Your Wedding Planning Business with the IRS
  • Open a Business Bank Account
  • Get a Business Credit Card
  • Get the Required Business Licenses and Permits
  • Get Business Insurance for Your Wedding Planning Business
  • Buy or Lease the Right Wedding Planning Business Equipment
  • Develop Your Wedding Planning Business Marketing Materials
  • Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Wedding Planning Business
  • Open for Business

1. Choose the Name for Your Wedding Planning Business

The first step to starting a wedding planning business is to choose your business’ name.  

This is a very important choice since your company name is your brand and will last for the lifetime of your business. Ideally you choose a name that is meaningful and memorable. Here are some tips for choosing a name for your own wedding planning business:

  • Make sure the name is available . Check your desired name against trademark databases and your state’s list of registered business names to see if it’s available. Also check to see if a suitable domain name is available.
  • Keep it simple . The best names are usually ones that are easy to remember, pronounce and spell.
  • Think about marketing . Come up with a name that reflects the desired brand and/or focus of your wedding planning business.

2. Develop Your Wedding Planning Business Plan

One of the most important steps in starting a wedding planning business is to develop your wedding planning business plan . The process of creating your plan ensures that you fully understand your market and your business strategy. The plan also provides you with a roadmap to follow and if needed, to present to funding sources to raise capital for your business.

Your business plan should include the following sections:

  • Executive Summary – this section should summarize your entire business plan so readers can quickly understand the key details of your wedding planning business.
  • Company Overview – this section tells the reader about the history of your wedding planning business and what type of event planning business you operate. For example, are you a full-service wedding planner, partial-service planner, or a day-of coordinator?
  • Industry Analysis – here you will document key information about the wedding planning industry. Conduct market research and document how big the wedding industry is and what trends are affecting it.
  • Customer Analysis – in this section, you will document who your ideal or target customers are and their demographics. For example, how old are they? Where do they live? What do they find important when purchasing services like the ones you will offer?
  • Competitive Analysis – here you will document the key direct and indirect competitors you will face and how you will build competitive advantage.
  • Marketing Plan – your marketing plan should address the 4Ps: Product, Price, Promotions and Place.
  • Product : Determine and document what products/services you will offer 
  • Prices : Document the prices of your products/services
  • Place : Where will your business be located and how will that location help you increase sales?
  • Promotions : What promotional methods will you use to attract customers to your wedding planning business? For example, you might decide to use pay-per-click advertising, public relations, search engine optimization and/or social media marketing.
  • Operations Plan – here you will determine the key processes you will need to run your day-to-day operations. You will also determine your staffing needs. Finally, in this section of your plan, you will create a projected growth timeline showing the milestones you hope to achieve in the coming years.
  • Management Team – this section details the background of your company’s management team.
  • Financial Plan – finally, the financial plan answers questions including the following:
  • What startup costs will you incur?
  • How will your wedding planning business make money?
  • What are your projected sales and expenses for the next five years?
  • Do you need to raise funding to launch your business?

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3. choose the legal structure for your wedding planning business.

Next you need to choose a legal structure for your own wedding planning business and register it and your business name with the Secretary of State in each state where you operate your business.

Below are the five most common legal structures:

1) Sole proprietorship

A sole proprietorship is a business entity in which the owner of the wedding planning business and the business are the same legal person. The owner of a sole proprietorship is responsible for all debts and obligations of the business. There are no formalities required to establish a sole proprietorship, and it is easy to set up and operate. The main advantage of a sole proprietorship is that it is simple and inexpensive to establish. The main disadvantage is that the owner is liable for all debts and obligations of the business.

2) Partnerships

A partnership is a legal structure that is popular among small business owners. It is an agreement between two or more people who want to start a wedding planning business together. The partners share in the profits and losses of the business. 

The advantages of a partnership are that it is easy to set up, and the partners share in the profits and losses of the business. The disadvantages of a partnership are that the partners are jointly liable for the debts of the business, and disagreements between partners can be difficult to resolve.

3) Limited Liability Company (LLC)

A limited liability company, or LLC, is a type of business entity that provides limited liability to its owners. This means that the owners of an LLC are not personally responsible for the debts and liabilities of the business. The advantages of an LLC for a wedding planning business include flexibility in management, pass-through taxation (avoids double taxation as explained below), and limited personal liability. The disadvantages of an LLC include lack of availability in some states and self-employment taxes.

4) C Corporation

A C Corporation is a business entity that is separate from its owners. It has its own tax ID and can have shareholders. The main advantage of a C Corporation for a wedding planning business is that it offers limited liability to its owners. This means that the owners are not personally responsible for the debts and liabilities of the business. The disadvantage is that C Corporations are subject to double taxation. This means that the corporation pays taxes on its profits, and the shareholders also pay taxes on their dividends.

5) S Corporation

An S Corporation is a type of corporation that provides its owners with limited liability protection and allows them to pass their business income through to their personal income tax returns, thus avoiding double taxation. There are several limitations on S Corporations including the number of shareholders they can have among others.

Once you register your own business, your state will send you your official “Articles of Incorporation.” You will need this among other documentation when establishing your banking account (see below). We recommend that you consult an attorney in determining which legal structure is best suited for your company.

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4. Secure Startup Funding for Your Wedding Planning Business (If Needed)

In developing your wedding planning business plan , you might have determined that you need to raise funding to launch your business. 

If so, the main sources of funding for a wedding planning business to consider are personal savings, family and friends, credit card financing, bank loans, crowdfunding and angel investors. Angel investors are individuals who provide capital to early-stage businesses. Angel investors typically will invest in a wedding planning business that they believe has high potential for growth.

5. Secure a Location for Your Business

When looking for a location for your new business, it’s important to think about the needs of your customers. You’ll want a space that is big enough to accommodate your staff and clients with adequate parking and public transportation. You’ll also want a neighborhood that is safe and convenient for your clients.

6. Register Your Wedding Planning Business with the IRS

Next, you need to register your business with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) which will result in the IRS issuing you an Employer Identification Number (EIN).

Most banks will require you to have an EIN in order to open up an account. In addition, in order to hire employees, you will need an EIN since that is how the IRS tracks your payroll tax payments.

Note that if you are a sole proprietor without employees, you generally do not need to get an EIN. Rather, you would use your social security number (instead of your EIN) as your taxpayer identification number.

7. Open a Business Bank Account

It is important to establish a bank account in your wedding planning business’ name. This process is fairly simple and involves the following steps:

  • Identify and contact the bank you want to use
  • Gather and present the required documents (generally include your company’s Articles of Incorporation, driver’s license or passport, and proof of address)
  • Complete the bank’s application form and provide all relevant information
  • Meet with a banker to discuss your business needs and establish a relationship with them

8. Get a Business Credit Card

You should get a business credit card for your wedding planning business to help you separate personal and business expenses.

You can either apply for a business credit card through your bank or apply for one through a credit card company.

When you’re applying for a business credit card, you’ll need to provide some information about your business. This includes the name of your business, the address of your business, and the type of business you’re running. You’ll also need to provide some information about yourself, including your name, Social Security number, and date of birth.

Once you’ve been approved for a business credit card, you’ll be able to use it to make purchases for your business. You can also use it to build your credit history which could be very important in securing loans and getting credit lines for your business in the future.

9. Get the Required Business Licenses and Permits

Licenses and permits that are typically required to start a wedding planning business include a business license and a zoning permit. In some cases, you may also need a contractor’s license or a special event permit.

Contact your local municipality to find out if there are any other licenses or permits you need to operate your business.

10. Get Business Insurance for Your Wedding Planning Business

The type of insurance you need to operate a wedding planning business will depend on the services provided. 

Some business insurance policies you should consider for your wedding planning business include:

  • General liability insurance : This covers accidents and injuries that occur on your property. It also covers damages caused by your employees or products.
  • Workers’ compensation insurance : If you have employees, this type of policy works with your general liability policy to protect against workplace injuries and accidents. It also covers medical expenses and lost wages.
  • Commercial property insurance : This covers damage to your property caused by fire, theft, or vandalism.
  • Business interruption insurance : This covers lost income and expenses if your business is forced to close due to a covered event.
  • Professional liability insurance : This protects your business against claims of professional negligence.

Find an insurance agent, tell them about your business and its needs, and they will recommend policies that fit those needs. 

11. Buy or Lease the Right Wedding Planning Business Equipment

You will need a computer with reliable internet access to create a website and research wedding planning ideas. You will also need a phone or email account to communicate with clients. Additionally, you will need access to a printer to print out contracts, flyers, and other wedding planning materials.

12. Develop Your Wedding Planning Business Marketing Materials

Marketing materials will be required to attract and retain customers to your wedding planning business.

The key marketing materials you will need are as follows:

  • Logo : Spend some time developing a good logo for your wedding planning business. Your logo will be printed on company stationery, business cards, marketing materials and so forth. The right logo can increase customer trust and awareness of your brand.
  • Website : Likewise, a professional wedding planning business website provides potential customers with information about the services you offer, your company’s history, and contact information. Importantly, remember that the look and feel of your website will affect how customers perceive you.
  • Social Media Accounts : establish social media accounts in your company’s name. Accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and/or other social media networks will help customers and others find and interact with your wedding planning business.

13. Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Wedding Planning Business

There are various software programs you need to be a successful wedding planner. You’ll need accounting software to trace your expenses and income and project management software to track your progress on individual weddings. You may also find it helpful to use a customer relationship management (CRM) system to keep track of your clients and their contact information. Finally, you may want a good email marketing program to stay in touch with your clients and keep them up to date on your latest offerings.

14. Open for Business

You are now ready to open your wedding planning business. If you followed the steps above, you should be in a great position to build a successful business. Below are answers to frequently asked questions that might further help you.

How to Finish Your Ultimate Business Plan in 1 Day!

Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your wedding planning business plan?

With Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template you can finish your plan in just 8 hours or less!

How to Start a Wedding Planning Business FAQs

Is it hard to start a wedding planning business.

It is not hard to start a wedding planning business. In fact, there are many resources available to help you. The most important thing is to have a clear vision for your business and be organized and efficient in your planning.

How can I start a wedding planning business with no experience?

One way to start a wedding planning business with no experience is to do some research on the industry. Learn as much as you can about the services people typically look for when planning their weddings, and what kind of pricing structure to use. You can also join online groups for wedding professionals, network with other wedding planners, and read articles about the topic.

What type of wedding planning business is most profitable?

There are many types of wedding planning businesses, but the most profitable type is the full-service business. This type of business offers a wide range of wedding planning services, from wedding planning and coordination to catering and floral arrangements. They typically cost more than other types of wedding planning businesses, but they also generate the most revenue.

How much does it cost to start a wedding planning business?

The cost of starting a wedding planning business will vary depending on the size and scope of your business, as well as the location. Generally, you can expect to spend somewhere between $5,000 and $10,000 to get your business off the ground.

What are the ongoing expenses for a wedding planning business?

The ongoing expenses for a wedding planning business include things like marketing, salaries, and office supplies. Wedding planners often need to market their services to attract new clients, so they may need to invest in advertising and website design. Salaries can be another significant expense for wedding planners, especially if they have a team of employees. Wedding planners need to be aware of all the costs associated with their business to stay profitable.

How does a wedding planning business make money?

Successful wedding planners make a commission from wedding service providers for referring them to weddings. They also make money by charging the bride and groom a fee for their services. Additionally, they may earn money from selling wedding planning products.

Is owning a wedding planning business profitable?

Yes, owning a wedding planning business can be profitable. One reason is that the demand for wedding planners is high, as couples want to ensure that their weddings are perfect. Most wedding planners also charge a premium for their services, which results in a good profit. Finally, the wedding industry is growing, which means there is excellent growth potential in the wedding planning business.

Why do wedding planning businesses fail?

One of the main reasons wedding planning businesses fail is because they do not have a clear business plan. In order to be successful, a wedding planning business needs to have a detailed plan that outlines how it will operate, what services it will offer, and how it will attract customers. Without a solid business plan, a wedding planning business is likely to flounder.

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I'm Candice, your new tell-it-like-it-is BFF (and purpose cheerleader). Are you ready to grow and scale a profitable business with purpose–and one that gives back to your meaningful life? Thought so!

What's your brand cocktail for success?

*cues up to the bar* Let's start the tab, shall we? Take the quiz and find your brand cocktail for success.

setting up a wedding planning business uk

OK – you've made this HUGE decision that you want to start a wedding planning business. But not just ANY kind of wedding planning business. You want to build a business that gets amazing clients, is successful, and allows you to build and grow something that's YOURS.

You want to plan gorgeous weddings, work with incredible clients, get featured in magazines, and spend your days obsessing over linen swatches, pretty flowers, candles, and of course, the logistics that make all the pretty happen.

In this blog post, I've put together my 12+ years of experience in running a profitable, multi six figure, multi-country wedding planning & design business so you can learn how to start a wedding planning business you love quicker, faster, and better.

First, let me say how delighted I am for you. In other words, when I started my wedding planning and design company back in 2007, I had the same feelings you did about creating the life and career I wanted.

I was excited, nervous, energized, and willing to consume any information on starting a wedding planning business.

(Back in 2007, that information was hard to come by. There were not a lot of resources on how to start a wedding planning business. However, you've got a lot of information on hand to guide you.)

I'm going to break down how to start a wedding planning business–but not just any kind of wedding planning business–one that will be profitable and scalable.

Here are the 11 steps you need to take to start and grow your new wedding planning business:

I'm going to break down how to start a wedding planning business–but not just any kind of wedding planning business–one that will be profitable and scalable.  In this blog post, I've put together my 12+ years of experience in running a profitable, multi-6-figure, multi-country wedding planning & design business so you can build a business you love quicker, faster, and better.

Step 1: Know What Kind Of Wedding Planning Business You Want to Build

Before you do anything, knowing what kind of wedding planning business you want is the first step. I've got an easy exercise for you to figure this out, too.

We call it vision casting.

It's important to know what kind of business you want, which will help you write strategies to make that business come to life.

In addition, we can't know what we're really building until we see the destination we want to arrive at, right?

That's what vision casting is. It's knowing the destination you want to arrive at–the business that you want.

To make this even easier for you, I've recorded an entire podcast episode on how to vision cast for your business. 👇

Episode 42 of my podcast for wedding pros, The Power in Purpose Podcast gives you step-by-step guidance and action on how to start your wedding planning biz with vision casting.

Everyone is building a different kind of business under different circumstances. For instance, you might want to have a career that allows you to raise your family at the same time. Or, you might want to build a million-dollar empire.

This is why it's important to know what kind of business YOU want so that you can reverse engineer the strategies that it will take to get there.

Don't skip this step. And listen to this podcast episode to get started.

Step 2: Write A Business Plan For Your Wedding Planning Business

Yes, I know you wanted to skip this part–biz plans are so 2007, aren't they?

No. They're essential. To build the wedding planning business YOU want (the one you're going to vision cast for!), you have to write a strategy to get there.

That's what a business plan is: an overarching strategy for getting from where you are today to where you want to go. And it cannot be overlooked.

Writing your business plan doesn't have to be challenging or overwhelming. You don't need an MBA or a fancy degree to start a business.

Instead, you just need to discover a problem that needs solving, and then your business becomes the solution.

With that said, I know that writing a business plan isn't the easiest (or sexiest) task.

That's why I've created my Free Business Plan Outline + Guide , a way to jumpstart your efforts and get you to write a plan for your wedding planning business.

Write a wedding planner business plan with this free guidebook and outline. It'll take you from stuck to start. I take all the guesswork out of how to write a business plan and even teach you some strategies. Plus, it's free! That's why I want to make sure you grab it.

Step 3: Know The “Ideal Clients” Your Wedding Planning Business Will Serve

The #1 reason why businesses fail is they don't know who their customers are. They don't really, truly, and personally know their customers. 

Their values.

Their problems.

However, this isn't going to be you; you're here to learn how to start a wedding planning business–and a crucial step is knowing your ideal clients!

Instead, you're going to create a business that fully understands who your ideal clients are so that you can solve their problems quicker, faster, and better than anyone else.

You must get specific about your ideal clients and why they need you to solve their problems. Knowing more about what motivates them, what they value, what challenges they face, and yes, what problems they have means you can position yourself as the solution.

I want to clarify that knowing your ideal clients is more than knowing what kind of car they drive, their favorite color, and their age range. Moreover, those things are essential but only tell you part of the story.

If you want to book high-end clients in the wedding industry, you need to check out The Client Cocktail . In this mini-training, I teach you how to call in dreamy clients and magazine-worthy weddings.

When you start your business, you'll be tempted to serve everyone and anyone. That's one of the biggest mistakes new entrepreneurs make: they reason they'll cast a wide net, increasing their chances of customers. After all, the wider the net, the more you can catch, right?

What ends up happening is you become too watered down, too unspecific, and too generic. However, by appealing to everyone, you appeal to no one because no one can really connect with your company.

They don't look at what you offer, your message, and say, “This is for me.”

Step 4: Create A Wedding Planning Brand That Gets Noticed

There are a lot of wedding planners out there. What makes you different?

One of the cornerstones of marketing is that people buy with their eyes, and your brand–aka the visual manifestation of your company–is what sets you apart.

You need to create a visual brand that gets noticed.

One that makes YOUR ideal client stop in their tracks.

One that makes your perfect client buy with their eye.

Your visual branding helps to accelerate the know/like/trust factor with your customers. The couple who wants to hire someone like you lands on your website or sees some of your marketing, and because of its polished nature and overall experience, they want to know more.

After you've set a vision and written your business plan, don't let it all fall apart by having a bad logo and website.

Your clients will notice immediately that your business doesn't live up to what it offers. And they will click off.

You have a matter of seconds to capture someone's attention (sometimes, it's a fraction of that number!). How will you capture the attention of your ideal clients with your marketing and branding?

Here are some quick resources for you to start creating a kick-ass wedding planning brand from DAY ONE (bc that's how we roll!)

  • Showit Website Platform : To create a GORGEOUS website (it's my website platform!)
  • Sourced Co : For incredible stock images created JUST for wedding pros. You can find images for marketing and your website, making it easy to start without a portfolio. Use code PLAYBOOK to get a special discount.
  • Hautestock : Use code CANDICE for 15% off gorgeous stock images that don't look stock. Firstly, Hautestock's images are great for your website to fill in the gaps where you might not have a portfolio. Secondly, they make perfect social media posts so you can start marketing TODAY – even if you don't have any clients or work!
  • Styled Stock : Another fantastic styled stock membership for beautiful stock images that don't look like “stock images.”

I'm going to break down how to start a wedding planning business–but not just any kind of wedding planning business–one that will be profitable and scalable.  In this blog post, I've put together my 12+ years of experience in running a profitable, multi-6-figure, multi-country wedding planning & design business so you can build a business you love quicker, faster, and better.

Step 5: Work More On Your Wedding Planning Business Than In It

You had the idea to start a wedding planning business because you want to be a wedding planner. However, when you decide to open up your own company, you're a business owner first. Wedding planner, second.

They say that businesses fail not only because they don't know their ideal clients but because the owner of that business doesn't work on their business. 

You toil away at being the best wedding planner, focusing all your time on planning weddings and serving your clients, but what about the business owner side? 

I want you to work more ON your business than IN your business. Consider yourself a business owner above all other roles you might have in your business.

Owning a business is like having a classic car: it needs love, care, and attention. It needs you to tune it, fix what's broken, and invest in its care.

If you're serious about owning a wedding planning business, consider yourself an entrepreneur first and a business owner second.

My advice? Seek education to help you build and grow your wedding planning business from the ground up correctly. Find mentors and business owners who are where you want to be and hire them to help you.

In addition, you should invest in courses , conferences, and other educational avenues to learn all you can and speed up your results.

Always learning, always moving forward. That's my motto.

Step 6: Network With The Right People

The wedding industry is mostly about connections, and some of the most incredible business comes from referrals (if you sign up for The Client Cocktail , you'll know how important this is!).

You have to seek out new connections as much as possible–but not just any old “links”–and focus on the right ones.

As you set out to market your business, you must get in front of the right people. Ideally, the people and companies that are already in front of your ideal clients.

They have the power to refer to you and to help lift your business alongside theirs.

Do you want to know one of the first things I did when I started my business?

I networked my butt off. Networking with the right people was one of the first things I did when I started my business, which paid off. I was armed with my biz plan, a vision for the future, and a nice-looking brand/website. I sought out businesses that were already in front of my ideal clients.

And it paid off in dividends. 

Step 7: Know Your Marketing Message And Market Your Wedding Planning Business As Much As You Can

Marketing is simply sharing your message so that it reaches the right people. What's your message?

Your company's mission, vision, and purpose are vital. They connect you to your customers and ground you when the going gets tough.

You need to have a clear, concise message about what your company does, how life looks for your customers after you do it, and why you do it in the first place.

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Step 8: Make Mistakes, Try New Things & Do It Your Way

When you start a business, you follow the same path as those you admire. No doubt you've rapidly followed a bunch of people on the ‘gram who are killing it in their wedding planning biz right now.

And you're probably thinking: I need to do it this way too.

Maybe. Or maybe not. Don't fall into the trap of copying what other folks are doing. That's their business–their vision–not yours.

I want you to feel empowered to do it YOUR way. Sure, you can seek out roadmaps and blueprints on how to build your business, but make sure you adapt what you learn as it fits your unique circumstances.

Don't build someone else's business. Build yours.

If you want to hear some of my epic wedding planning mistakes, check out my tales from the clipboard email series.

Step 9: Give Your Business Time To Grow & Take Root

As a business coach for wedding planners and pros, I've seen biz owners quit just when the going gets going. Owning a wedding planning business is a marathon and not a sprint. It takes time for your efforts to start to take root.

When I started my company, it took me six months to land my first client. Imagine if I had quit five months and two weeks in? 

I want you to know that things take time. Give your business time to take root. It will happen with consistency and perseverance. Don't quit at the first failure. 

Remember, your failures lead you toward your successes.

Patience is necessary for business (just like with most things in life). The strategies you implement today may not show results for 3-6 months. But they will see results if you give them a chance. 

Step 10: Hire A Wedding Planning Mentor And Learn, Learn, Learn

Let me ask you a serious question. Why not hire someone to help you do all the above and teach you the ropes so that you can accelerate your business quicker and faster?

There is no greater gift you can give your biz than enlisting the help of someone who has been where you want to go.

As a wedding industry business coach and mentor , of course, I will advocate for what I do. And that's because I've seen the results my expertise brings to those that I humbly help.

If you're serious about starting a wedding planning business, pay for an expert to teach you the road to success. 

I want you to be open to learning as much as you can from trusted sources as you navigate the tricky road of entrepreneurship. Recognize that you don't know everything, be 100% coachable, and apply what you learn in your business.

The truth is, you'll achieve the results you want quicker, better, and faster than you had expected.

Step 11: Believe In Yourself

Finally, I want you to believe in yourself because you were put on this earth for great things.

No, seriously, I want you to believe in your abilities to design a business you love, a business YOU want. While you may lack experience in certain areas, you have a wealth of knowledge about how things work.

You're smart. You're driven. And you're here for the right reasons. Believe in your abilities to learn as you go and apply your knowledge and unique life experiences to the services and products you provide.

For instance, too many people quit because they lack the confidence and belief in themselves to do what they want to do. I don't want you to be one of those people. 

I believe in you. So believe in yourself. All things are possible, and you CAN design a business that you love–and one that gives back to your meaningful life.

And if you're ready to take your wedding planning dreams to the next level, I want to invite you to check out my coaching program for wedding planners .

The Planner's Playbook is your secret weapon for planning, designing, and coordinating high-end weddings like a pro. The doors to this program are open now for a limited time. Click here to learn more about The Planner's Playbook!

Not ready for that? Then grab my free course on how to start your wedding planning business!

Let's summarize this post so you can start your wedding planning business:

How do I start a wedding planning business?

Follow these steps to start and launch your wedding planning business:

It's important to know what kind of business YOU want so that you can reverse engineer the strategies that it will take to get there. Don't skip this step.

Every business needs a strategy to grow and scale. Sit down and write your business plan using your vision as a guide for the strategies you'll create in marketing, sales, services, and pricing.

Businesses exist to serve their customers. Who are you serving? Know your ideal client as well as you know your BFF–and then create products and solutions that help them.

The wedding industry is a saturated market. You'll need to create a brand that stands out from the competition and gets noticed. How will you be different from the rest?

Initially, it'll be easy because you won't have many clients. But as your business grows, it's important to continue working on it more than in it.

The wedding industry is a people industry. Form relationships and connections with the right people–the businesses already in front of your dreamy clients–and watch your biz grow.

Marketing is simply sharing your message so it reaches the right people. Know your message and watch your ICAs start knocking on your door.

Resist the temptation to copy others and be confident that you can do things your way. A signature way of doing anything for your customers will set you apart from the competition.

Nothing happens overnight. It could take months to land your first wedding, so give your business time to take root. Don't rush the brush, so to speak. That moment you feel like quitting? Keep going.

Why try and figure this out all on your own when you could hire someone to help you achieve your goals quicker, faster, and better? Hire a mentor who has been where you want to go and watch how quickly you scale.

A little confidence goes a long way. Believe in your worthiness, experience, creativity, and capabilities. You can do this.

If you're serious about starting your wedding planning business, here are some resources I offer to help:

  • Free Business Plan Outline + Guide
  • Free Course To Launch Your Wedding Planning Business
  • The Client Cocktail
  • The Planner's Playbook
  • WeddingPro Insiders
  • Wedding Planner Business Tools

Know that I'm cheering you on and believing in you. 

Explore More Wedding Industry Resources

  • How To Become A Wedding Planner With No Experience
  • 9 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting Your Wedding Planning Business
  • How To Build Your Portfolio As A Wedding Planner When You’re Just Starting Out
  • Why You Need To Create A Client Journey As A Wedding Planner
  • How To Get Wedding Clients When You’re Just Starting Out
  • Day of Coordination: The Pros and Cons as a Wedding Planner
  • How Much Should You Charge As A Wedding Planner? Learn How To Figure Out Your Wedding Planner Pricing
  • 5 Contracts Every Wedding Planner Must Have To Be Legally Set
  • The #1 Reason Why You’re Not Booking The Right Wedding Clients (And How To Fix It)
  • 5 Online Wedding Planning Tools You Need to Use
  • How To Become A Destination Wedding Planner
  • 4 Strategies That Will Help You Book MORE Of Your Ideal Clients
  • 5 Tips On Crafting a Business Plan To Book Out Your Biz With Your Ideal Clients And Get Paid
  • What A Business Plan Will REALLY Reveal About Your Business
  • 6 Reasons Why I Recommend Asana for Wedding Planners
  • Are You a Disorganized Wedding Planner? Let’s Fix That With These Organized Wedding Planner Tips!

For More Wedding Planner Business Secrets Follow Me On Instagram

Did you read the timeline?🙄 One of the biggest problems wedding planners have to deal with is unprofessional colleagues. It’s one of the hardest parts of our job - and we don’t talk about it enough. I talked about this and more in my latest YouTube video! #weddingplannereducation #weddingplanning #weddingplanners #weddingpros #weddingvendor #weddingvendors #weddingpro #weddings #candicecoppola #plannersplaybook

setting up a wedding planning business uk

Is your website built like a museum or an airport? Engagement sales season is here, and I’m not gonna lie - your website probably needs a little refresh! But before you blow some dust off your homepage and start adding your most recent weddings, I’d love for you to listen to my conversation with @alexcollierdesign. She’s a Showit and Brand designer for wedding pros, and in this episode of The Power in Purpose Podcast, Alex shares how your website sets the tone for your client experience. As a business coach for wedding pros, I know how obsessed you are with giving your couples and clients an amazing experience. You invest in software, templates, service providers, gifting experiences, and business coaches to help you make your client experience the best on the block.... but what about your website? What role does it play in your overall client experience, and what does it tell a couple about what life will be like for them once they start working with you? We chat about all this and more - in today’s episode! #thepowerinpurposepodcast #candicecoppola #showit #showitdesigner #weddingpros #weddingindustry #weddingwebsite #weddingpro #businesspodcast #weddingpodcast

I’m making today a decision day in my business. I do this when I’ve let a lot of decisions pile up to the point where it feels overwhelming to make ANY decision about anything. I feel super stuck on where to focus my energy right now because so many things are ‘hanging in the balance.’ Can you relate?! So, today is a decision day - and I’m working on laying out my calendar, figuring out my marketing strategy for the year, deciding on new products, launches, roadmaps, and lots of other things. If you ever find yourself stalled and stuck because you’ve ignored making decisions about big and small things - consider having a decision day in your business, too! PS - would you like to see more reels and videos like this from me on IG? I’d love to know if you found this helpful! #candicecoppola #honeybook #weddingpro #weddingindustry #businessowner #businessstrategy #decisionmaking #weddingplannereducation

We’re back! I’m so happy to share that the newest season of The Power in Purpose podcast is here, and just in time for you to build your business this year. Today, I’m joined by one of my most favorite guests to date, @annadkornick! Anna is a time management coach who shows you how you can win your week before it even starts. One of the many challenges we face as business owners is finding the time to do #allthethings. Even if you start your week with the best of intentions, things can quickly spiral out of control and devolve into utter chaos. If you feel like you end the week accomplishing NOTHING that was on your original to do list, Anna gives you a new way to think about time and tasks with her simple but brilliant productivity method. We also talk about how to get back on track when things go off the rails. You know, when one task or email opens up a huge can of worms that you spend the next week having to fix. #lifeofaweddingplanner So grab a cup of caffeine, your new 2024 notebook, and your AirPods! You’re going to love this episode. #thepowerinpurposepodcast #powerinpurposepodcast #candicecoppola #weddingpro #weddingpros #timemanagementtips #weddingindustry #honeybook

Want more? Check out this video on my YouTube channel ↓

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Wedding planning business can be very successful career, if you work properly before establishing it. Many people learn the basic etiquettes about wedding planning while event planning course. If you want to get basic knowledge you can also get a course from a good institution and start up your business. Though it is a very interesting and joyful business for those, who love thrill and fun, but at the same time it demands commitment lots of energy and stress. Before starting up your business for wedding planning if you follow some important points, you can get better result in start and get good grip over your business soon.

Great post! I read your blog fairly often and you’re always coming out with some great stuff. I shared this on my Facebook and my followers loved it! Keep up the good work. 🙂

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setting up a wedding planning business uk

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How to Start a Wedding Planning Business: A Step-By-Step Guide

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If you love love and have stellar organizational skills, you may have considered starting a business in the wedding industry. When it comes to how to start a wedding planning business, it pays to keep calm and carry on. In fact, these very qualities have helped generate a growing income stream for Eileen Kaden Dean, owner of a successful wedding planning business in the New York City and New Jersey area.

“To be successful in this business, you have to stay calm and realize that a wedding emergency isn't your emergency. You can’t make the stress about you because it’s not your day,” says Kaden Dean, owner of An Affair to Remember and a go-to wedding planner.

Kaden Dean, who opened her company more than a decade ago, is among the many small business owners who make up the nearly $60 billion wedding services industry in the U.S. The lucrative industry covers an array of wedding service providers, including wedding venues, apparel retailers, florists, photographers, and wedding planners, according to market research firm IBISWorld.

The average wedding in the U.S. cost over $44,000 in 2018, according to Brides.com. Wedding costs vary greatly depending on where you live and your budget, but Manhattan is the most expensive place to get married, with the average couple spending a whopping $96,910 according to The Knot.

Although websites like The Knot and WeddingWire make it easier for couples to plan their big day themselves, many still turn to professionals like Kaden Dean. An Affair to Remember helps plan the wedding, deals with vendors, and coordinates the chain of events at the wedding and reception to make sure the day goes off without a hitch. In a nutshell, wedding planners are in the business of creating happiness and keeping everything organized, so the couple doesn’t have to worry about all the little (and big) things, says Kaden Dean.

If you're wondering how to start a wedding planning business, know that there are many moving parts, from picking out a bridal dress and venue to choosing invitations, to hiring a band or DJ, to selecting a menu. And the list goes on. Even small weddings—in vogue right now—aren't as simple to plan as you might think.

“There’s a need for wedding planners as couples are busy doing other things, like looking to buy a house and working long hours in their careers. Having someone to manage things is attractive, and this way couples can enjoy themselves and be present on their wedding day,” says Kaden Dean.

setting up a wedding planning business uk

How to start a wedding planning business in 7 steps

There are a ton of different ways you can learn how to start a wedding planning business, but we'll give you a few steps to help you get your business started.

Step 1: Choose the type of wedding business you want to start and a name

Before you can do much else, you need to decide what kind of services you want your wedding planning business to offer. Wedding planners can offer all types of different services, and you should pick which ones you'll offer before you get to the nitty-gritty of planning your business and setting it up. You should also choose a business name during this step, and check with your state's Secretary of State resources to make sure that the name you want is available. You can usually do this using an online database on their website.

Kaden Dean started her wedding planning business out of a bridal dress store in New Jersey and expanded it from there. Her business offers everything from the full package to smaller day-of planning.

Although her clientele is in the greater New York area, Kaden Dean recognizes that not all couples can afford to spend upward of $50,000 on their weddings, which is part of the reason she offers several packages. Deciding what types of services and packages your own wedding planning business will offer will be important as you plan the business, market your services, and meet with potential clients.

For context, An Affair to Remember offers three pricing packages:

1. Full planning

For this most expensive option, Kaden Dean will plan the entire event from soup to nuts. This includes helping couples find the perfect venue, lining up all the vendors, helping choose invitations and centerpieces, and just about everything else. “Sometimes I even help pick the colors of the ties.”

The cost: about $5,000 and up.

2. Day of the wedding

This least expensive option is ideal for couples who want to do the planning themselves, but need some organizational help on the day of the wedding. For a typical wedding where Kaden Dean is hired for the day only, she creates a minute-to-minute timeline of when events will happen, like the hour the flowers will be delivered to the site and the exact time when the bridesmaids will arrive. On the big day, Kaden Dean is there to ensure that all goes according to plan.

She also handles any snafus. “One time a couple in the wedding party left a diaper bag in a taxi with their passports in it.” She went to work and tracked down the diaper bag, so that the couple could participate in the wedding stress-free. An hour later, the bag arrived at the venue.

The cost: about $1,750 to $2,250. The exact pricing depends on the amount of time Kaden Dean puts in, the number of assistants hired, and so on.

3. Day of “plus”

This is An Affair to Remember’s most popular offering. Couples hiring Kaden Dean for this package will plan their own weddings but rely on her to handle events on the wedding day, as well as any last-minute planning issues. “I take everything they have, shake it out, and see what pockets are missing to make sure everything is cohesive.” This package usually entails five hours of consultation time, 12 hours on the day of the wedding, one hour for the rehearsal, and 15 hours of virtual legwork to put all the ducks in a row.

The cost: about $2,500 to $3,000.

How much do you need?

with Fundera by NerdWallet

We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.

Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.

Step 2: Choose a business entity

The next step in starting a wedding planning business is deciding how you'll structure your business for legal and tax purposes. You'll likely want to choose a business entity that protects you personally from any legal ramifications your wedding planning business might face. A great option for this would be to choose a limited liability company (LLC) as your business entity. An LLC is a registered business in which owners are not personally liable for the business's debts or obligations. You might also choose a limited liability partnership if you want to have a business partner but the protections an LLC can offer you. Once you choose a business entity you can move on to step 3 which is writing your business plan.

You'll also want to register the business with the state once you have the entity and name decided on. Now would be a great time to consult a business attorney familiar with your type of business who can help you make sure everything is up to par and that you aren't missing any steps. This person can also help you choose which business entity is best for your wedding planning business.

Step 3: Write a detailed business plan

If you're starting a wedding planning business, hopefully, you're already a good planner and this step should come naturally to you. You'll need to write a business plan before you can get your business up and running. You can use a business plan template or business plan software to make the process easier, but there are some specific things you should be sure to include in it, no matter how you write it.

You should include a summary of your business in the plan as well as a market analysis, a detailed list of the products and services you'll offer, your marketing and sales plan, your financial plan and projections, and more. Think of your business plan for a roadmap that will lead you through the early stages of building your business and making it profitable.

Your business plan should also include some of the vendors and any other businesses you plan on working with. During the first year of starting her business, Kaden Dean focused on developing such relationships. “It was a challenging first year, but I spent the time introducing myself to the local wedding vendors so I could find people to recommend and work with. I set the groundwork for my business and established myself.”

An Affair to Remember’s start-up costs the first year maxed out at $10,000, including the rent and furniture for the small space in the bridal shop, along with signage, business cards and brochures, a website, and advertising on WeddingWire. Kaden Dean also had to pay to attend bridal shows, hire an assistant to help her track advertising inquiries, and cover her childcare costs. The costs Kaden Dean had are the kind you should plan to face and include in the financial section of your business plan.

Step 4: Get an EIN

If you plan to hire employees to help run your wedding planning business, you'll need to obtain an EIN, also known as an employer identification number. However, even if your business is a one-person show at the moment, you'll likely want to get an employer identification number for your business to make things easier on yourself down the line. The good news is that it's fairly easy to apply for an employer identification number and you can apply online through the IRS' website and get one in a matter of minutes.

An EIN comes with a number of benefits and can be extremely helpful for your business. It can help you when it comes time to file your business taxes, get a business credit card, open a business bank account, or any other number of business necessities.

Step 5: Get a business bank account and business credit card

Now that you have an EIN, you'll use this number when applying to open a business checking account and business credit card . This next step of starting a wedding planning business is crucial, as you'll want to keep your business finances separate from your personal finances. When you're still working on setting up your wedding planning business maybe you'll be working out of your house as a home-based business or maybe you'll have a small storefront. Either way, you'll probably want to spend on some decor, or at least on some marketing products, and you'll likely want a credit card to use for that.

Keeping the business finances completely separate from your personal finances will be huge when it comes time to file your taxes and it will help you boost your business credit score as well.

Step 6: Get any funding you need

The next step in starting a wedding planning business? Funding your new venture. The startup costs associated with opening a wedding planning business don't have to be too high, especially if you're working out of your home or another business's space. However, you will still have some upfront expenses you may not have the savings to cover. In that case, this is the time when you might need to work on getting a business loan or other funding option.

And because you have a great business plan already, you can use that to show potential investors or lenders that you have a well thought out business and a plan for turning a profit quickly. Of course, getting a loan as a new business isn't always easy. If you're finding your options to be limited, you might turn to a 0% introductory APR business credit card as an interest-free loan of sorts. With this type of credit card, you won't pay any interest on the balance you carry over for the length of the introductory offer (this will depend on the card, but at most will be 12 months). Just make sure you have a plan to pay off your balance by the end of this intro period, when a variable APR will set in, or this won't be the most effective funding tool.

Step 7: Market your services and start doing business

Once your wedding planning business is up and running and have the services you're offering laid out, you can start marketing them and hopefully bringing on new business. Consider marketing at trade shows and with any bridal boutiques in your area, or forge relationships with wedding venues to find clients. Once you get your first client, you're off to the races and can consider yourself fully in business.

The brides and grooms you work with will be grateful for your services and you can help them make their special day as stress-free as possible.

"Hiring a planner is so important to your big day," says Kaden Dean. The last thing a bride needs is for someone else to show up to handle the details: “They trust me. When you hire me, you get me. I’ve never missed a wedding.”

And keep in mind, happy customers can provide referrals and word-of-mouth marketing that can give you business the boost it needs to take off.

ZenBusiness

Start Your Dream Business

The bottom line

If you want to survive and thrive in the wedding planning business, you’ve got to put on a happy face and mean it—all the time. Also, you’ve got to be nice—all the time, says Kaden Dean.

It might seem like a simple recipe for success, but if you do a great job and you’re happy and people know it, the referrals will flow and you’ll stay busy, she says.

This article originally appeared on JustBusiness, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.

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How to Open a Wedding Venue in 2024: Step-by-Step Guide

10 Min Read

wedding venue business

If attending a wedding has ever left you surprised at the beautiful setups and sparked the thought of when you could launch your wedding venue, then you’re in the perfect place.

Jumping into the wedding venue industry opens up opportunities in a constantly in-demand market for celebration locations while also giving you the freedom of creativity. This business demands attention to detail, satisfactory customer service, and the flexibility to create a personal touch to the preferences of each couple.

Whether your goal is to earn additional income or to build a more substantial business, this detailed guide is designed to help you start and grow your own wedding venue business.

We cover everything from selecting the ideal location to understanding the legal and financial aspects. All the information that you need to begin and succeed in your perfect wedding venue.

Let’s take a closer look at the operation of a wedding venue business.

Wedding Venue Industry Overview

The wedding venue industry plays a significant role in weddings that happen all around the world. It provides a space where couples celebrate their big day. This business includes a variety of locations such as:

  • Banquet halls
  • Outdoor areas with natural beauty
  • Restroom facilities

Each place is different and helps make a wedding day special and personal.

The wedding planner industry is a highly customizable business that allows for niche expertise. This means that businesses can come up with solutions that reflect their target market, especially in industry trends having rapid growth.

By understanding the unique challenges and sector-specific needs of their clients, businesses can provide customized solutions that cater to their client’s needs.

Start a wedding venue business with 7 easy steps

  • Understand the market and competition
  • Write a wedding venue business plan
  • Figure out your finances
  • Select your wedding venue
  • Zoning laws, licenses, and insurance
  • Wedding venue renovation
  • Market your offerings
  • Start and promote your wedding venue

Making sure every aspect of a wedding is perfect from beginning to end is key to creating a memorable day. It’s important to remember that not only the big moments but also the way the event ends can significantly create a lasting impact on the guest’s experience.

Highlighting the same, Jeff Stillwell, the founder of Stillwell Events, shared his perspective in a conversation with Bride & Blossom.

He said, “If the band stops abruptly, the lights come on while some of your guests are still eating dessert and the party doesn’t have a smooth ending, this last impression will overshadow the beautiful decor and heartfelt moments of your wedding. My job is to make sure this doesn’t happen”

This viewpoint emphasizes how careful planning and effective management are crucial to ensure the conclusion of a wedding is as unforgettable as its beginning.

1. Understand the market and competition

Research the wedding venue market in your geographic area. Look up wedding venues in your region and identify what makes your venue special.

For example, suppose your venue is a lakefront property in a lake region. In that case, you will need to research how many other lakefront wedding sites are there and whether those venues are booked frequently so there’s overflow demand.

Here are a few things you can try answering to make your research comprehensive:

  • How many Local Wedding Venues are there around you?
  • How many weddings, on average, are held in my region annually?
  • What pricing models do competitors use, and what is the average cost of hosting a wedding in the area?
  • What amenities and services do other venues offer?

Gathering answers to these questions will not only help you measure the current state of the wedding venue market in your area. It also identifies opportunities to make your venue stand out and cater to the needs and preferences of your target audience.

2. Write a wedding venue business plan

Before getting things done, it’s important to have a detailed business plan. It helps to understand the start-up costs of your wedding business would incur.

Figure out ways to maintain the balance and seek financing options to source funding. You can find a wedding venue business plan template online to help you get started.

A successful wedding venue understands its goals, services, and strategies, and a business plan is a great way to conceptualize the practical aspects of business management.

This approach will ensure you have a solid foundation to build upon and navigate the path to establishing your successful wedding venue.

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setting up a wedding planning business uk

3. Figure out your finances

Knowing how much cash you need and finding ways to get it is key to turning your dream into a reality. Let’s help you determine your starting costs, create a budget, and discover funding sources.

Start by evaluating your finances.

Consider the following question to answer:

  • Should you buy or lease your space?
  • Do you have enough for a down payment, or do you need a loan?
  • Do you plan to construct something new or renovate an existing building?

Figuring Out Starting Costs

It’s vital to know your initial costs, which include buying or leasing space, fixing it up, getting licenses, paying for insurance, starting marketing efforts, and buying equipment or decor to ready your venue for weddings.

Understanding these expenses helps you see how much you need to start.

Making a Budget

Next, put together a budget that compares your start-up and running costs with how much money you expect to make. It’s smart to plan for both good and bad financial times.

This keeps you ready and financially sound.

Looking for Money

After you’ve got a clear budget, you’ll know if you need more money to begin. If you don’t have enough funds, think about options like:

  • Loans for small businesses
  • Getting investors
  • Crowdfunding
  • Grants for businesses

These are some ways to find the extra money needed for your wedding venue business.

4. Select a location for your wedding venue

First, think about what kind of weddings you want to host. Are you dreaming of a barn wedding venue or something more modern? Knowing this helps you decide where to look.

Look for a place that’s easy for wedding guests to get to. This means not too far from main roads or public transport. If you want to open a destination wedding spot, think about what makes a location special for couples who are planning their big day.

Chat with wedding planners, wedding professionals, and other wedding venue owners. They can give you tips on what makes a successful wedding venue.

By following these steps and focusing on what makes your venue unique, you can start your wedding venue successfully and become a beloved part of the wedding industry.

5. Zoning laws, licenses, and insurance

After deciding on a place, ensure that you can legally run a wedding venue there. Each location comes with its unique set of regulations and requirements concerning business operations.

Understanding these legal necessities is a must, as they vary widely based on the nature of your business and its geographical setting.

Before starting any construction, hiring staff, or officially opening your venue, ensure you have:

  • Insurance for your property.
  • Insurance for employees, protecting them in case of work-related injuries.
  • Liability insurance

Remember, each permit and policy is a step towards realizing your vision of bringing joy and celebration to people’s lives. With careful planning and attention to detail, your wedding venue can be countless stories of love and happiness.

6. Wedding venue renovation

Initially, identifying the perfect location is a must. Whether it’s a barn venue that offers rustic charm or an outdoor space that provides a natural beauty, the choice of venue impacts its appeal to potential clients.

Once the site is selected, focusing on renovations becomes important to transform the space into a dream destination for couples.

Renovating an existing venue demands a broad approach. It involves upgrading the aesthetics to ensure the venue is visually stunning and more appealing.

Essential services like water and electricity need to be taken care of, especially in outdoor venues where such amenities might not be readily available. This may require engaging with local utilities or might be the need to invest in generators to ensure the venue can accommodate events seamlessly.

The development of restroom facilities is equally important.

Creating a catering space or kitchen area is also needed in many wedding venues.

Parking solutions also form an integral part of the venue’s infrastructure. Finally, the venue size to provide the clients with unforgettable experiences also plays an important role in the business growth.

A venue that captures the imagination, offering beautiful and unique settings for ceremonies and photographs, will stand out in the competitive wedding industry.

7. Staff recruitment and training

When you run a wedding venue business, having a great team is key. Consider factors such as the number of staff you need, their qualifications, and their training requirements.

Finding the Right People

  • Know What You Need: First, think about what jobs need to be done at your venue. You might need people to set up tables, serve food, or keep the place clean.
  • Look in the Right Places: Share your job openings online or in your local community. Sometimes, asking friends or people you work with if they know someone looking for a job can also help.
  • Interview Carefully: When you talk to people who want the job, ask them about their past work and why they want to work with you. It’s important to choose people who not only can do the job but also are excited about making weddings wonderful.

Teaching Your Team

  • Provide Training: Once someone is a part of your team, it’s important to teach them about their responsibilities. This might involve the correct way to arrange tables, the best way to interact with guests, or even the steps to take in unexpected situations.
  • Keep Learning: The wedding business changes a lot. New trends come up all the time. Have meetings with your team to talk about what’s new and how you can make your venue even better.
  • Say Thanks: When your team does a good job, tell them! A simple “thank you” can make people feel happy and appreciated. This helps them want to keep doing a great job.

Having a team that knows what to do and is happy to be there makes a big difference. It helps your wedding venue run smoothly and makes sure that every wedding is as special as it can be.

8. Start and promote your wedding venue

Guide yourself through the process of starting and promoting your wedding venue. Consider factors such as marketing, advertising, and social media.

With the internet and social media, finding a wedding place has changed. Now, people can look up places online and see pictures and reviews. This means that your venue should offer to use the internet and social media properly to show off the venue.

Moreover, your team should be good at talking to engaged couples planning to get married at your wedding venue.

Starting your own wedding venue business is an exciting journey that combines creativity with entrepreneurship. You’ll pick a beautiful place, fix it up, and make it the perfect spot for weddings. This job is all about giving couples a wonderful place to get married and make lasting memories.

To be successful in the wedding venue industry, understand what your client needs. It’s equally important to manage your finances with care and spread the word about your wedding venue.

Creating a detailed business strategy is essential in this process, and utilizing a business plan app can be helpful in planning and would pinpoint your goals and financial forecasts accurately.

Remember, your success will be measured by the happiness and memories you create for the couples who celebrate their special day at your beautiful venue.

The Quickest Way to turn a Business Idea into a Business Plan

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Frequently Asked Questions

How to choose your wedding venue location.

To select a wedding venue, start by setting a budget and estimating how many guests you are inviting. Choose a style for your wedding and find a venue that fits. Make sure the venue is free on your chosen date and offers the facilities you need.

Visit the venue to see it firsthand, look up reviews, prepare for bad weather, and don’t hesitate to inquire about details with the wedding venue owner.

Steps to Starting a Wedding Venue Business?

How to start a wedding venue business, is as easy as it sounds through proper planning, begin by researching the market and understanding your competition. Next, plan to secure a location that aligns with your vision and obtain the necessary permits and insurance.

Create a business plan outlining your services, pricing, and marketing strategy. Invest in making the venue appealing and functional for weddings. Lastly, promote your business through various channels and provide exceptional service to build a positive reputation.

How Much Does It Cost to Start a Wedding Venue?

The cost of starting a wedding venue can vary widely depending on location, venue size, and the extent of initial renovations required. Initial expenses often include purchasing or leasing property, renovation and decoration costs, obtaining permits and licenses, and insurance fees.

Some investments may involve purchasing furniture and equipment for the venue, and marketing.

How to Fund Your Wedding Venue Start-up?

To fund your wedding venue business, consider several options. You could use personal savings or obtain a small business loan from a bank. You can also consider seeking investors who are interested in your business concept and can provide additional capital.

Explore partnerships with other businesses in the wedding industry that could benefit from your venue and might be interested in contributing financially.

How to Make People Aware of Your Wedding Venue?

To make people aware of your wedding venue, implement a multi-channel marketing strategy. Start with creating a professional website showcasing your venue with high-quality photos and virtual tours. Utilize social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest to reach potential clients and engage with them by posting regular updates, events, and promotions.

Networking with wedding planners, caterers, and other vendors in the industry can lead to referrals.

About the Author

setting up a wedding planning business uk

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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How to Plan a Wedding: A 33 Step Guide to Wedding Planning

Wedding planning needn't be stressful - not when you have a handy wedding planning guide like this to help you, anyway!

Once the excitement of announcing your engagement draws to an end, it's time to start thinking about wedding planning !

You might be wondering how to plan a wedding, but before we get into the nitty gritty of it all, there really is no right or wrong way to plan a wedding in the UK or abroad.

However, what we can give you is a simple wedding planner guide that’ll help you stay organised and ensure you genuinely enjoy this exciting time - and as well as this useful guide, our wedding planning checklist  will help you every step of the way.

Wedding Planning: Your Step by Step Guide to Planning a Wedding

Our step-by-step wedding planning guide covers all of the most important wedding planning tasks that every couple should have on their to-do list.

This simple guide to wedding planning will support you right from setting that wedding budget to the wedding day itself - we've got you  completely covered!

How to Start Planning a Wedding? 

How long does it take to plan a wedding , a step by step guide to planning a wedding.

From figuring out your priorities and beginning your vendor search, to organising transport and knowing when to send the invites out, this step by step guide to wedding planning will ensure no stone is left unturned when it comes to your special day. 

Follow this simple guide on how to plan a wedding to guarantee an easy, simple and most importantly, fun wedding planning process! And don't forget, you can download our free wedding planning app to help you plan on the go.

According to our latest National Wedding Survey , it takes the average UK couple between 12 and 24 to plan a wedding. 

"A minimum of 12 months gives couples a comfortable time frame to plan a wedding, as vendors like wedding venues, popular photographers and videographers often get booked up quickly," explains Rima Barakeh, Hitched Deputy Editor and bride-to-be.

"Things like ordering bespoke wedding dresses can take the best part of a year to design and order in, so having time on your hands will give you more flexibility when wedding planning.

"Having said that, weddings can be planned on much shorter time scales if couples are willing to be flexible, and there are often deals and wedding packages up for grabs for those working with a shorter time frame. Couples who are planning small or elopement weddings will also be able to work to a much shorter time frame."

No matter your timeframe, here we have your ultimate wedding planning guide to help you plan the day of your dreams. It details all the things you need to know about how to plan a wedding in the UK, although many of these can be used for those planning destination weddings abroad, too. 

1. Set a Budget (and Stick to It!)

GETTY / PROSTOCK-STUDIO

One of the first things to think about when planning a wedding is your wedding budget and how much you can afford to spend.

We've broken down planning your wedding budget  into seven simple steps, but the key things you need to do are sit down together and have an open discussion about your finances. How much can you both afford, will anyone else be contributing, and how much will you be able to save over the coming months?

If you think that your parents may help pay for the wedding , it’s helpful to talk to them early in your planning stages so you know exactly what they might be able to contribute. Not planning a wedding budget can lead to avoidable financial wedding stress later on in the process.

The Hitched Budget Planner  will be a helpful tool to help you estimate and record your spending.

We also have plenty of  money saving tips  and ideas to help save the pennies and make the most of your wedding budget once you've planned one.

2. Discuss Your Priorities

Going into wedding planning blind as to what yours and your partner's priorities are is not the recommended thing.

One of the most important parts of any wedding planner guide is to both sit down and discuss what is most important to you when it comes to wedding planning. Priorities will differ from couple to couple, but some common priorities are: 

  • Your wedding location (UK or abroad)
  • Having a big guest list with  everyone  there
  • Live music at your reception
  • Children or no children
  • A particular person doing a wedding speech
  • Honouring loved ones at the wedding who are no longer with you

Whatever your priorities are as a couple, once you have decided them together, write them down somewhere.

They are a great thing to be able to refer back to if you are trying to save money during wedding planning or choose between two things.

It helps you to stay focussed on what's  really important to you and will ensure you have all the main ingredients to your dream wedding. 

3. Get Organised

Getting yourself organised, whatever that may mean for you, is key to ensuring your wedding planning journey is smooth sailing.

From buying a planner book and downloading the Hitched app , to making a wedding budget plan (remember step 1?) and getting that wedding planning checklist printed and on the fridge - feeling organised at the start will set you up so well for the remainder of the journey.

Hitched Expert Tip: " Before you start doing anything, pick a timeframe that works for you," says Rima Barakeh. "Don’t pressure yourself to get married within the year if that will be too much of a rush.

"As we said, between 12 and 24 months is the average but take as long as you need and talk to other married couples. Ask them what worked and what didn’t. After all, experience is the greatest teacher.

"My wedding date is almost two years away from my engagement, but I'm not planning anything until the 12-month mark as I'm prone to changing my mind, however for some, the ideal timeframe to plan a wedding would be the more time - the better - so figure out what works for you."

4. Research Wedding Styles

Before you start booking anything, you’ll want to collect lots of wedding ideas and inspiration so you can narrow down the style of your big day. There are so many sources of wedding planning inspiration out there which can make everything a bit overwhelming, but remember they are  just ideas.

Just because you love lots of different things, it doesn't mean you need to have them all at your own wedding. 

As well as looking at inspiration on social media and checking out celebrity weddings , take a look at some examples of real weddings to see what real UK couples have done. 

5. Choose Your Wedding Style

Susana Ríos

After a little time browsing, it’ll become clear what style of wedding is for you, and the fun part of wedding planning can begin.

Whether you choose a few key colours or an actual wedding theme (like a festival theme or a vintage theme, for example), it’s important to choose a style or colour scheme to base your wedding around.

Making supplier decisions will be much easier once you know what kind of wedding you're planning, and what you're after, and it will then be much easier to ensure everything matches.

Hitched Expert Tip:  Nina Beer , wedding consultant, expert and one half of the What Not to Do When Planning a Wedding podcast advises, "It's simple, ensure your wedding style is something you both love and will still love in 50 years' time.

"It's an opportunity to bring out your personality, and individualise your wedding - it should be an enjoyable part of planning your day.

"With that said, be mindful of trends that you could start to think were a flash in the pan, and keep your options open as you discover more of what is possible for your day. You won't know all the possibilities at the start so be flexible as you go through your wedding planning journey."

6. Make a Wedding Planning Checklist

Okay, so you have your budget, know your style and have a list of priorities that you definitely want at your wedding - now it's time to get that wedding planning checklist sorted.

We have a to-do list on the Hitched app and website which can be tailored to your wedding needs. You can use that, or you can take ideas from online checklists and use them to create your own bespoke one.

Whichever way you decide to do it, having one comprehensive list of everything you need to do will help you to manage both your time and your budget better.

If you're making your own, don't panic about remembering  absolutely everything - you can always add extra bits and bobs to the list as you go. 

Hitched Expert Tip: " Work as a team with your other half – don’t try and do all of the wedding planning yourself, and remember that communication is key," says Zoe Burke, leading UK wedding expert and Editor of Hitched.

"You can also delegate to friends and family you trust if, after making the checklist, you are feeling overwhelmed."

7. Set a Date

Deciding when you want to get married will have a domino effect on so many other aspects of your wedding planning. When deciding this, you want to consider what season/weather you want on your wedding day and what day of the week you want to get married.

When thinking about specific dates, there are some wedding dates you'll want to avoid due to sports event clashes, unlucky numbers and national holidays. It's also worth remembering that the date you choose for your wedding can impact your budget significantly.

We go into much more detail in our  wedding season article , but getting married on a Saturday in August will cost you much, much more than if you get married on a weekday in January or February. 

Deciding on your wedding date will also allow you to book a wedding venue, send save the dates, and get the ball rolling with suppliers. 

8. Make a Wedding Guest List

Where do you start with  planning your guest list ? The truth is, you have probably already thought about it and you know the key people you want to invite, however, you might need to a bit of time to decide who to invite to the day versus the evening and what to do about the wedding guest list drama such as plus ones and the ever-pressing issue of whether or not to invite your colleagues...

Hitched Expert Tip:  Nina adds, "The pressure to invite the whole world and their children is real, but remember that how you feel on your big day will largely come down to who you are surrounded by. So, ensuring that these are the people who mean the most to you, will be there for you during both the highs and the lows.

"This is hard though if say, your parents have influence over the guest list (especially if they are financially contributing) but see if a compromise can't be reached. If you keep communicating with them as to why it is important to you then they should understand that the significance of the day is the commitment you are both making."

9. Find Your Perfect Venue

Birtsmorton Court

Once you’ve set a budget and decided on a theme, you can start to think about  choosing a wedding venue which fits in with it all. Securing and booking your wedding venue will determine your wedding date, location and your maximum guest numbers, so make choosing your venue a priority.

Before you start the hunt for your venue, sit down together and talk about what you both want from your wedding and what type of venue will fit with the theme you’ve chosen. This is where you go back to your wedding vision and priorities. If one of you is picturing a fairy-tale castle wedding venue and the other is dreaming of a rustic barn venue then you may need to compromise.

Think about other important factors such as whether you want to have a wedding venue with accommodation, whether you want to use your own caterers and what your evening guest number is likely to be. All these factors will play a part in determining which wedding venue you choose.

Hitched Expert Tip: "You can use the Hitched wedding venues section  to browse beautiful wedding venues throughout the UK and beyond," advises Rima.

"You can search by county or style, as well as filtering by practical features such as catering options, capacity, parking and more. This helps you to find a wedding venue that ticks all of your boxes, both visually and practically."

10. Send Your Save the Dates

Although you've probably already told everyone your plan for wedding celebrations, now is the time to make it official.

Your wedding invitations should be sent out approximately three to six months in advance of your big day, but it’s never too early to choose a design, style or stationery supplier that you love.

In order to give your guests as much notice as possible, we'd recommend sending out  save the date cards  as soon as the venue is booked to announce your wedding and ensure your guests keep that date free, with an ‘official invitation to follow’ note.

Hitched Expert Tip:  Nina adds, "as soon as you have the date and location, it's a great idea to get those save the dates out. That way people can earmark the date and know not to book anything else in.

"Doing so as early as possible also enables you to start to get an early gauge of anyone who isn't able to make it already."

11. Choose Your Main Wedding Suppliers

Of all the things in our wedding planning guide, this is probably one of the most important steps, as choosing your wedding suppliers will shape the overall theme, style and cost of your wedding.

Start by making a list of all the suppliers you’re going to need to hire. Your wedding venue may already have a list of recommended suppliers which is a great place to start, but make sure you widen your search if you want something a little different before you book and pay deposits.

Here are your main suppliers to look for:

  • Photographer
  • Bar and Drinks
  • Music and DJ
  • Hair and Makeup
  • Wedding Planner

Contact the wedding suppliers you think suit your wedding style and then sit down with your partner and spend some time comparing prices and services to find what suits your style and your budget. Don’t be afraid to shop around.

Hitched Expert Tip: "Only choose wedding suppliers you’re comfortable with and who understand your style and vision," says Zoe.

"The last thing you want is a photographer who you don't gel with as they'll be around all day, and they should feel like a friend to you both. Read reviews, find out about cancellation policies and get clued up on their payment methods – it’s always better to be safe than sorry."

12. Decide on Additional Wedding Suppliers

Olivia Coleman Celebrant

Aside from the wedding suppliers many people have at their wedding, choosing additional and unique wedding suppliers can really set your day apart from the rest. 

When deciding on extra suppliers, it’ll help to visit our suppliers  page and the sections below to find some amazing wedding professionals who you'll most certainly want at your big day.

Find everything from dog chaperoning companies and wedding firework display artists, to circus performers and incredible floral arch companies. 

  • Photo Booth
  • Entertainment
  • Wedding Transport
  • Wedding Favours
  • Marquee and Tipi Hire
  • Wedding Décor and Styling
  • Unusual and Unique Wedding Suppliers

13. Set Time Aside to Review Contracts

Before you agree to any wedding supplier, or venue for that matter, it's really important to take some time to review the contracts. These contracts are legally binding and you want to ensure that you, and your supplier, are both fully protected by them.

Nine times out of ten there won't be anything you want to amend, but hiring wedding suppliers and venues often involves handing over a lot of money, for the most important day of your life, so guarantee yourself that peace of mind and check over all of your contracts before signing on the dotted line. 

It may not be the most fun part of planning a wedding, but it's one of the most important.

14. Buy Wedding Insurance

According to our latest  National Wedding Survey , the  average UK wedding costs £18,400 .

Now, a budget of almost £20,000 may seem like a lot but when you consider the cost of your venue, catering, alcohol, the dress and the many other wedding essentials, you’ll soon see how much they add up to.

While it’s not very romantic to think about what might go wrong with your wedding, it’s always best to be prepared. Purchasing wedding insurance from the moment you start spending money on your wedding could really help with peace of mind for both your wedding and honeymoon spend.

Wedding insurance can also be a great way to reduce stress throughout your wedding planning journey – it’s one less thing to worry about!

Hitched Expert Tip: Even if you are dealing with friends, family friends or friends of friends who are doing you a bit of a favour or a special deal, get everything to do with your wedding in writing.

Having an email trail will really help in the very unlikely situation that something doesn't quite go right.

15. Make it Legal

One of the most necessary wedding planning steps (for some, anyway!) is the task of making things legal. In the midst of dreaming about colour schemes and wedding reception playlists, you also need to make time to get your marriage license .

This might not be one of the first things you actually need to do, but it should be in the back of your mind from the off-set. Research what you need and start to gather the necessary marriage documents from early on in your wedding planning process.

This is also important if you're planning a humanist or celebrant wedding in England or Wales, where they're not legally binding - you'll need to sort your official ceremony to ensure you're legally married. 

If you’re planning on getting married abroad, the paperwork you need is likely to be different and slightly more complex. Just remember, marriage licenses are typically only valid for a couple of months so you’ll need to plan accordingly.

16. Choose Your Wedding Party

You may instantly know who your maid of honour, bridesmaids, ushers, best man, flower girls and page boys will be, or you might need a little bit of time to think about it. When making these decisions, it's important to understand what the different wedding roles consist of. Who do you trust to carry out the important duties?

If you’re not sure then don’t feel rushed into your decision. Think carefully about who will be the best people to support you and your partner on this special day and in the run up to it.

You may also want to consider the cost as your wedding party will need outfits, bouquets, buttonholes and thank you gifts, so the more people you have, the more this could impact your budget.

One of the most fun parts of wedding planning is often asking your chosen friends if they’ll do you the honour of being part of your wedding party, so plan this out and make sure you have your phone to capture the moment.

Below are the traditional roles most commonly imposed at a wedding, along with what their duties entail. But don't feel like you need to be shoehorned into a particular set up - you can have gender neutral wedding roles like a bridesmate, flower boy, mate of honour and all kinds of alternative roles that suit you and your crew best. 

  • Maid of Honour Duties Explained
  • Best Man Duties Explained
  • Bridesmaid Duties Explained
  • Usher Duties Explained
  • Flower Girl Duties Explained
  • Page Boy Duties Explained
  • Ring Bearer Duties Explained

17. Arrange Transportation and Wedding Accommodation

Lil & Blue Pippa Volans Photography

With your venues and suppliers sorted, it's time to think about the practicalities for planning your wedding day. You need to think about how you, your wedding party and your guests will arrive at the wedding. Thinking about an unusual wedding car ?

Research transport links so you have some information handy for your wedding website and when guests ask you. It's also worth checking ahead to see what the parking situation is at your venue.

If you're getting married at a wedding venue with accommodation, how many rooms are there, and will some of your guests need to find their own accommodation?

If so, it's always a nice touch to research nearby hotels and even negotiate a group rate if you know you'll have lots of people staying over.

If you're getting married locally, perhaps a few local taxi numbers would be good to have handy for guests who aren't such a whizz with Uber, or prefer to book something in advance. 

While these wedding planning tasks may not seem all that fun - unless you're the Monica-from-Friends type - doing research and organisation like this ahead of sending your wedding invitations out will mean you have the answers at hand when the questions from your wedding guests come piling in.

18. Make a Wedding Website

If you want a hub where your wedding guests can find  all the information they need about your big day in one place, making a wedding website is a no-brainer. Not only does it save you answering questions about parking or local hotels one-by-one, but it can also save you money on your wedding stationery. Discover the best wedding websites here.

Rather than turning your wedding invite into a wedding leaflet by cramming a load of information onto there, keep all of your wedding info on your wedding website.

It's also a great way to make announcements to all of your guests without having to contact everyone individually. If there are planned strikes or roadworks on the day of your wedding, you can post solution-based updates there.

Finally, if you don't want to pay postage for all of your guests to RSVP by mail, you can set up a RSVP section on most wedding websites where people can submit their RSVP, food menu choices and also access your wedding gift list. What's not to love? 

19. Send Wedding Invitations and RSVPs

With the majority of wedding planning and organisation taken care of, you can now send out your wedding invitations and RSVPs. Having already posted your save the dates, it's likely that anyone who can't make the wedding will have informed you by now that they have a date clash.

There are certain things you need to include on your wedding invitations such as location, RSVP information, menu choices if applicable and other practical notes.

If you want to avoid guest list drama, ensure your wedding invitation wording is really clear as to who is invited, whether or not a plus one is included, and whether they are invited as an all-day wedding guest or just for the evening. 

The clearer you are now, the less awkward conversations you'll have coming your way.

Hitched Expert Tip: " If you're posting wedding invitations, you may be able to cut costs by posting a number of invites to one person who lives near some of your other guests," says Rima.

"For example, if you have lots of family in Scotland who you want to invite, and they all live near each other, consider sending to just one address and asking someone trustworthy to distribute them."

20. Buy Your Wedding Dress Dress, Bridesmaid Dresses & Groomswear

Greta Louise Photography

Choosing your wedding dress will be one of the most exciting and emotional parts of your wedding planning. A lot of designer wedding gowns can take up to six months to make, so give yourself plenty of time to find the dress of your dreams.

Browse our list of  bridal shops near you  to find inspiration.

Once you have chosen your wedding dress, you can think about bridesmaid dresses that will complement your wedding gown, and groomswear that will suit the style of your big day.

If you're not in the market for a wedding dress, shop for affordable wedding suits, or non-binary wedding outfit ideas  instead.

21. Check In On Your Wedding Budget

Whether it's ad-hoc checking in here and there, or a weekly reminder of where you're at with your cash flow, we want to stress the importance of regular check-ins on your wedding budget.

Remember at the beginning of the wedding planner guide when you spent all that time planning it out and working out costs and what you can afford? Well what's the point if you just forget about it altogether?

We understand it can be daunting to see costs add up, but checking in on your budget throughout wedding planning will not only help you to keep your spending on track, but it enables you to remain in control of your wedding planning process and spending. 

Hitched Expert Tip:  "Make sure you're keeping track as you buy items and book suppliers for your wedding," advises Zoe.

"Either set yourself up a spreadsheet or buy a wedding planner book  and be consistent with noting everything down. The Hitched app is great for this also! Make a folder for print-outs as you get receipts too, or take photos and add them to a specific folder on your phone or computer."

22. Create a Wedding Gift List

Some decide to do this before they send out their wedding invitations, but that's completely up to you. If you decide to set up your  wedding gift list  afterwards, you can always update your wedding website with the details so everyone knows what you'd like. 

Although it may feel strange telling guests what you want as a gift, it will actually make the whole process easier for them. Your guests are going to want to buy you a wedding gift, so save them the stress of trying to decide what to buy and create a wedding gift list.

If you ask your guests for money and they're not sure how much to give, we have a brilliant wedding gift calculator which advises people on how much to spend depending on their relationship with you and their own financial situation. 

Hitched Expert Tip: " If this is something you're really not comfortable with, consider giving your guests a list of charities you'd like them to donate to on your behalf - people will always want to give you  something so it's better to be upfront about yours and your partner's wishes," recommends Rima. 

23. Buy Your Wedding Rings

One of the most fun and exciting tasks on the wedding planning guide is the job of shopping for your wedding rings!

There's not much to advise here - decide a budget beforehand and choose the ones you like. Why not make a day of it and have some non-wedding planning time together?

24. Collect RSVPs and Create a Table Plan

You have sent your wedding invites and now you are awaiting your RSVPs. Although you will have given your guests a deadline, be prepared that there may be a few guests that you need to chase up!

Once you have your final numbers, you will be able to start working on your table plan. The table plan may seem a daunting prospect, but the Hitched Table Planner  will help make it feel more manageable. Put your wedding guests into family and friend groups and then play around with your tables to see who will fit where.

It may also be worth considering whether you have any guests that will need easier access in and out of the room, such as those with young children or the elderly, as you might want to seat those guests nearer the doors.

Once your table plan is complete then it’s time for the fun bit… you can get creative and think about what table names you are going to use and how you are going to display your table plan.

Hitched Expert Tip:  Speaking to this, Nina says: "Honestly, anyone can sit with whoever they want, however, just remember that these people will be sitting together for a good few hours, if not more, so if you want to be kind, make sure it is people they like.

"Personally, I think in order to create a great atmosphere quickly, and a lot of memories for your guests, they will have the best time sitting with friends and family they know and love rather than going with, say, people who are merely their age or from the same location."

25. Create a Schedule of the Day’s Events

At this point, it’s important to create a schedule for the day’s events . Not only will this give you and your suppliers something to work from, but it’ll remind you if there’s anything you’ve forgotten. What’s more, writing everything down will help you create your ‘Order of the Day’ cards or signs which you might want to match with your wedding invitations.

On your schedule, include things like when your vendors will arrive, what time the ceremony will take place, what time you’ll take photos and what time you’ll sit down to eat. You can also include what time the first dance will happen and what time you’ll cut the cake.

Be sure to give a copy of your run of events to your photographer, venue, maid of honour, DJ, ushers and anyone else who should be in the know!

Hitched Expert Tip:  "Consider figuring out a social media strategy for your big day," suggests Zoe. "Is it important to you that no-one is distracted by their phones, or that day guests don’t post photographs until the evening guests arrive?"

Check out our guide on how to have an unplugged wedding for more information.

26. Decide on Toast, Speeches and Readings

This is something that you need to give people plenty of notice for. No  maid of honour speech or best man toast should be written the day of!

Decide who you want to do your speeches, readings and toasts - this is also a really nice way to include those people who weren't chosen for a main wedding role. They can still feel they played a big part in your day despite the fact they aren't in a bridesmaid dress or walking you down the aisle. 

Hitched Expert Tip:  "Make your wedding personal and don’t get too bogged down by tradition," says Zoe.

"If there’s something traditional to weddings which you’re keen to get rid of, then do! The best weddings are always the ones which showcase the couple’s personalities - and this goes for the speeches and readings too!"

27. Arrange Stag & Hen Nights

Hopefully your awesome wedding party and amazing I-do crew will have this covered, but make sure you know if there’s anything you need to prepare for, pack or pay for so you can factor this into your planning and your budget.

You also want to ensure that the timings suit both you and your partner – gone are the days where stag and hen parties take place the night before the wedding (eek!) so make sure the dates and arrangements are appropriate.

28. Book Your Honeymoon

Booking your honeymoon will be one of the most fun parts of your wedding planning – you are basically planning your dream holiday!

If you have planned your honeymoon costs and budgeted for them then you can book something straight away, or you may have chosen to use your gift list to subsidise some of your honeymoon. If this is the case, you might want to wait until after the wedding to book.

If you are still feeling budget conscious, then you could always plan a minimoon for straight after the wedding – giving you a few days to escape, relax and enjoy your newlywed status. You can then spend some time after the wedding saving towards a bigger trip later in the year that will be your official honeymoon.

Hitched Expert Tip : "Honeymoons don't have to cost the world, we scoured the globe and found some incredible cheap honeymoon destinations that look and feel like a totally expensive and luxurious holiday," says Rima.

29. Write Your Vows 

Carla Thomas Photography

With the big day fast-approaching, it's time for you and your partner to start thinking about your wedding vows. Whether you're the type to write yours down in a wedding vow book , or speak straight from the heart, it's still worth writing some notes or key pointers so you have some prompts on the day. 

30. Check in With Your Wedding Venue and Suppliers

Within the week leading up to your wedding, we'd recommend arranging calls with your key wedding suppliers and your venue just to iron out any last minute requests and so you can enter your wedding day with complete peace of mind.

31. Arrange Final Fittings

As you near closer to your wedding day, it's important to ensure you have your final fittings booked. If you know you had a lot of alterations on your wedding dress or suit, try to book your final fitting in around two weeks before your wedding so you have plenty of time for any additional or last minute alterations. It's important to factor your alterations into your budget too. 

Hitched Expert Tip: On the topic of wedding fashion, Nina adds, "De-label everything before the day. The last thing you want to do is try to scrape white bits of paper off the bottom of your new shoes or find scissors to cut the tags or vents on your suit.

"Try to do as much beforehand to make the morning as stress free as possible. Oh and definitely learn how to tie a bow tie beforehand too, YouTube is your friend."

32. The Finishing Touches

Now you have all the main things covered, it’s time to think about those little details.

Decide on your wedding songs and wedding readings for the ceremony, and order any thank you gifts that you want to give to those who have really helped during the planning process.

If you have additional budget leftover then you might also want to buy some last minute additional décor items.

The joy really is in these little details, so enjoy piecing together all the finishing touches!

Hitched Expert Tip:  As well as the first dance song, Nina had a corker of a tip for nearlyweds, explaining: "A lot of time and effort is put into what song will be played for your first dance but think even more carefully about what your second song will be.

"If the song after your first dance isn't an all-out banger then you can guarantee half your guests will leave the dancefloor and go back to the conversation they were just having. You want to create a lot of fun and a great atmosphere right from the start."

33. Squeeze in Some Non-Wedding Time

Though the past year(s) may have felt like everything revolved around the wedding - there's so much more to it than that. That's why we'd always recommend taking some time, just the two of you, to talk about your marriage. What do you want from it? What do you picture it looking like? What are you most excited for in the future? 

Weddings are amazing, but it's a marriage that you're really after.

Hitched Expert Tip: " Consider some annual leave the week before your wedding off work to organise any last minute details and spend some quality time with your partner - or for a cute and cosy date night," suggests Zoe. "The last thing you want is to feel stressed when your wedding day finally arrives!"

We hope our wedding planning guide has given you a great outline of what you need to do to plan your special day.

For more detailed help, sign up to Hitched and use the  wedding checklist  to create your full list of tasks and set yourself deadlines – it will be much easier to plan your day by doing lots of small steps and don’t be afraid to delegate jobs to other people.

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