Negotiating with Wedding Vendors

I have read wedding planning books, and magazines, where they say to negotiate with your vendors.  I don’t know any vendors who do this!  Our company provides the highest level of service for the most affordable price that we can offer. Our prices aren’t inflated, so there is no place to cut.  However, we have hired brides to work for us to earn money to help pay for their wedding.   When they work for us, we give them a wholesale discount on their flowers.

It is amusing, and quite satisfying to hire brides.  Their first day of work always produces the same response, “Brides have no idea the amount of work that goes into their wedding.” We grin and reply, “Yes, you are right. Unless you have done this before, you don’t realize the hours involved.  All that people see is the finished product. They don’t see the hours spent searching for products to use, or the time spent calculating their customized wedding. They don’t have a clue that it takes at least three-four hours, or more, just to unpack their flowers, cut them, and prepare them for working with them. They can’t comprehend the number of man hours it requires to make all of those boutonnieres, corsages, bouquets, centerpieces, and to add detail to them. And, all of those glass, cylinder vases and candle holders have to be washed, boxed, loaded, unloaded, and unpacked on-site. No, they don’t have a clue.”

It never hurts to ask a vendor if they would be open to trading services, or allow you to apprentice for them, in exchange for a discount on their services or products.

There are lots of ways to cut costs and save money on your wedding.  You can find many of these tips in my book, “99 Things You Wish You Knew Before You Planned Your Wedding”.  You can also do a search for “blogger brides”  on Google for ideas from brides just like you.   One of my favorites is  The Broke Ass Bride .  Tweet My Wedding brings wedding professionals and brides together, and  at Bravo Bride, you will find HUGE discounts on new or slightly used items from wedding dresses to linens.

There are ways to cut costs, you just need to have Internet savvy.