The Bridal Expo. A large maze of every type of venue and vendor imaginable, displaying their best work, cool new effects and wares for every bride in the area. The goal for brides is to find the vendors that will be a part of the all-star team present on the wedding day, and the goal for vendors? To educate, inform and sell themselves to as many brides as possible in a short amount of time.
Most brides aren’t 100 percent sure what to expect if they’ve never been to a Bridal Expo before. We’ve put together some pro tips to have you in the doors with a mission and out the doors with a clear picture of what you want and who you need on your big day!
1.You May Want to Leave the Groom at Home
You May Want to Leave the Groom at Home We’re going to be pretty frank and honest about this one. Bridal Expos are like a large, crowded window-shopping experience and you will walk away with a lot of pamphlets, rack cards and brochures. Although we know you want the groom involved in every step of the planning, understand it’s okay to have him sit this one out. You won’t have time for deep soul-searching convos with each vendor, but you will have the opportunity to get their contact information and set up an appointment to meet with them to go over next steps and learn a lot more about each other. Your groom should definitely tag along to vendor meetings, but the expo is probably an experience that will bore him to tears.
2.Wear Comfortable Shoes
3. Have a Solid Idea of Your Wedding Style in Mind
We’re not saying you need to have every single detail picked out and the clearest plan yet, but if you know the kind of event you want, size, theme and style, this will help you narrow down your vendors pretty quickly. Price point is not everything, we promise you would rather have a vendor who can deliver your vision rather than one that can save you tons of money. Chances are, saving money on your wedding comes at a cost as well. Choose your vendor for how well they fit your vision for your big day.4. Come Prepared to the Bridal Expo
These three things will make your life 100 times easier at a bridal expo.
- Pre-printed cards or labels with your name, your grooms name, your wedding date and your contact information on them to provide to even the busiest of vendors with a quickness.
- A set of dates that you are available to make consultation appointments with vendors on. This will be so much easier than both of you leafing through your calendars while hundreds of other brides float by.
- Your wedding date. Before you go to an expo, you should probably have your wedding date pretty solid. This will be so much easier when finding out if the vendor you like the most is even available on that date.
5. Try It All
From cake samples, photo booths, and fancy new gadgets, try it all. You’ll want a hands on demo of how it’ll appear and work on your wedding day, and if the cake is dry or the caterers meatballs are bland at the expo, chances they will be on your wedding day as well!