• Serving Durham Region, Toronto, and the GTA (Halton, Peel and York regions)

Couple holding flowers together at their wedding

POSTPONING YOUR WEDDING DUE TO COVID-19

If you are in this situation, remember, you are postponing your wedding to a safer time for your guests and yourselves, this way your guests can still be there to help celebrate your milestone. Family and Friends should for sure understand the reasoning. Although it doesn’t feel good to move the date after all of your work and planning, your celebration will just be delayed.

Here are some ideas to help you manage through this stressful time:

  • VENUE: Talk to your venue and see how they will work with you and what dates are available later in the year or even next year and figure out this new date.  Be flexible. You could always consider having your wedding and reception on two different dates. Possibly hold a date at the venue so you can discuss the date(s) with your photographer and DJ (as these are the vendors who may have less flexibility in date availability)
  • WEDDING PLANNER: If you are using a wedding planner, discuss next steps with that person and see what they can do to help you navigate and create a best plan.
  • PHOTOGRAPHER & DJ: Talk to these vendors to see what dates work best for them from the options you have available.
  • CUSTOM ORDERS: If you have any custom orders with your wedding date on them, try to cancel the order or hold the order until you have a new date. If this is not possible, discuss alternatives to change the date on the items if there is a way to do this.
  • FLORIST AND BAKERY: Talk to your florist to put plans on hold to the new date. These vendors usually have more flexibility to change dates.
  • DÉCOR AND RENTALS: Reschedule all décor and rentals as well as any suit or dress rentals and limo rentals etc.
  • Once you have new and confirmed wedding date that works for the main vendors, be sure to have an amendment done to your contracts – even if it is just an initial to a new date written in the contract.
  • GUESTS: Get the word out to all of your guests – if you can email them or call them (if there are not too many) you should let them know as soon as possible about the change. You can always send out another invitation later or at that time even an electronic invitation could follow.
  • WEDDING DRESS: If you have not picked up your wedding dress yet, you may want to check to see what their policy is for a final fitting based on your new wedding date.  You may need to pick up the dress and then bring it back for a final fitting in the future or some may have storage to hold it for you until you are ready.

Are you facing the possibility of postponing your wedding due to the COVID-19 pandemic? The unfortunate news is that this may still linger as we get into the summer months.  No one wants to postpone their wedding, however with restrictions on gatherings and social distancing, postponing the wedding celebration is the safest idea for all at this time.

Finally, understand your obligation for payment to your vendors. You still have a responsibility to pay their fees and deposits despite your postponement.  Most vendors will now put off the final payment until the week or day before the wedding as before. Many of these vendors are also having a difficult time and still have overhead costs. We still want to support these people so that they stay in business and we have vendors we can count on when times get better.  Should you be struggling financially, this would be a time to discuss alternate payment schedules perhaps that work with your vendor.

Take a deep breath and know that it will all be ok.  There are also alternatives for you to actually have your wedding on your wedding date. Then you can do the larger wedding and reception later.  This can be done via a virtual event. If you are wondering how this can be done, feel free to contact me for more information on this!

Thanks for reading and all the best.

Shani Dion from Dion Events. info@dionevents.com

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