Those big days are still up in the air
Uncertainty prevails in the wedding business
Although weddings and other big celebrations are going back on the calendar, business owners who make those events happen expect a slow recovery from the impact of COVID-19.
Lauren Schaefer is getting more inquiries about her wedding coordination services now that President Biden has sped up the timetable for all adults to be eligible for vaccinations.
Schaefer’s company, the Get Together Events Co., does business in New York, Chicago and Nashville, and has booked 60 weddings this year, close to the 69 she did in 2019.
But Schaefer still sees a lot of caution; Couples whose dream is to have a big wedding aren’t sure about booking a date amid continuing restrictions on the size of gatherings in many parts of the country. Some state and local governments also have limits on wedding traditions like cocktail hours and dance floors.
“I tell clients, if you feel comfortable having a wedding under today’s restrictions, let’s move forward, hopefully, things will get better from there,” Schaefer says.
Even as inquiries and bookings pick up, uncertainty hangs over event planners, caterers and other businesses involved in putting on events. It’s not just government restrictions — many people are still uneasy about large gatherings.
Many of the new bookings at halls and other events spaces are for the end of this year and 2022. These businesses may already have a full calendar for the late spring and summer because weddings and other celebrations were postponed from 2020, but with restrictions on the size of gatherings still on the books in many states, the future remains uncertain.
“The next few months are still a little vague on events.
“We have a very slight handful in April and May and although the restrictions have been lifted, clients need time to plan,” says Nick Cascio, co-owner of Giorgio’s, an event space in Baiting Hollow, L.I. Weddings in New York can now have up to 150 people since the state government raised the limit from 50 last month.
Giorgio’s did have 20 weddings with fewer than 50 guests after the pandemic began last year, but that was far below its 500-guest capacity. It has 150 weddings a year, typically with 200 guests.
But Cascio says he’s optimistic that with more people vaccinated and the infection rate lower, his business will eventually return to normal. It’s gotten about 60 bookings since the start of the year.
Heidi Hiller, a planner for corporate events as well as weddings and other celebrations, is concerned about the loss of people with lighting and other expertise who have found other work during the pandemic.
“Many of our suppliers have had to downsize their staffs significantly and it will take some time to retrain and ramp up,” says Hiller, owner of Innovative Party Planners, based in Owings Mills, Md.