Wedding Vendors 101: Building Your Vendor Team
- Sarah Sullins Weddings
- Jun 8, 2020
- 7 min read
Vendor is one of those wedding industry buzz words that you will constantly hear once you begin planning. Although not wedding industry exclusive, when you hear the word vendor you probably think Weddings. Vendor is a blanket term to describe any business providing a product or service for your Big Day! Let me walk you through which vendors you need to hire for your big day and my opinion on the order in which you should hire them.
1)Venue
First and foremost you have to book your venue. You have to know where and what day you will be getting married, before you can begin booking other vendors. Your other vendors will not be able to hold multiple dates while you are still venue hunting, so securing your venue with a contract and retainer/down payment is the very first thing you should do.
Now a venue is the location you will have your wedding, and some people actually have two venues...a separate ceremony location and reception location. For example, you may desire to get married in your family church but then celebrate at your local Country Club for the reception. If you will have two locations make sure you have both secured for the same date. Make sure you schedule tours at any venues you are interested and ask all the right questions to make sure you are making the best decision for your wedding. Need help knowing what to ask? See my blog post: 10 questions to ask your venue before booking.
2)Wedding Planner
The next vendor you should book is your Wedding Planner, if you are planning on using one. This is especially true if you are interested in Full-Service Planning. Your wedding planner will be able to help you find and connect you to the rest of the vendors you will need, that meet your style and budget, and you'll be able to trust that they are great being recommended by a professional.
Wedding Planners typically provide several levels of service ranging from basic coordination type packages where you are still very hands on in your planning, all the way up to Full-Service in which the planner is with you every step of the way. Whichever level of service interests you, go ahead and lock them down early!
3)Photography and Videography
Right behind your planner you should book the vendors that will help you document your big day!
After all, when it is all over your photos and video will be what you get to take away, so these are arguably some of your most important vendors! As the backbone of the wedding industry ( I mean none of us would be able to show the world what we do without them!) great photographers typically book out as much as a year to a year and a half out. So do not wait! Decide the style of photos that you want of your wedding day and then find photographers that have that style. Same goes for Videographers.
4)Florist
A wedding isn't a wedding without flowers, am I right?! So, once you have a venue, a planner, and at least a photographer booked, go ahead and begin searching for your florist!
Like other vendors each florist has a unique style, so do your research and make sure you consistently like the arrangements and bouquets posted or shown by the florists you are considering. Flowers are a major part of your wedding design, so if your planner isn't providing you with design services, make sure your florist can help you bring your design goals to life.
5)Bridal Gown
Did you know your bridal gown store is considered a vendor?
It is important to get your bridal gown ordered early on in your planning. The look of the rest of your wedding needs to fit around what your dress looks like!
I mean it is often the star of the show, so it only makes sense to knock this one off your list early. Also, wedding gowns can take anywhere from 6-10 months to come in depending on the designer and other factors.
6)Catering
What's a good party without great food? Next up, you must book a professional wedding catering company! It is a big job to feed 200 people so you need to make sure you are entrusting it to a talented team with an outstanding reputation. Not only does your food need to be served safely, and hot, it also should be beautiful! Whether you want a more casual buffet line or a gorgeous plated dinner, the food should look as good as it tastes.
7)Bakery
Along the same lines, you should hire your wedding cake baker next. Your wedding cake is often a major design element at your reception as well as dessert for the evening.
You need to find a bakery that can achieve the size and level of artistry you are hoping for. Also, due to the nature of cake delivery it is best to find a bakery as local as you possibly can to your wedding venue. Transporting a wedding cake is tricky business, so it's probably not the best idea to have your cake travel across the state.
8)Music and Entertainment
You have the major stuff booked...venue, planner, photo/video, florist, bridal gown, and food! Whew! Your vendor team is beginning to round out now but there's still a few important vendors you will need for your wedding. Next up: MUSIC! It is possible that you will need two vendors for this category...ceremony musicians and reception entertainment. This is all dependent on your personal preference. A lot of couples choose to have a live musician sing or play for their ceremony, or maybe even a small group of musicians like a string quartet. Make sure whoever you choose for this important role does have wedding experience.
If you decide you want a DJ for your reception entertainment, they may also be able to run sound for your ceremony in which case you would only need the one vendor. Another option to consider for your reception entertainment is a Live Band.
A live band is a personal favorite of mine, but you should know that bands typically require the venue to have certain things available to be able to function properly. So if you are considering a band, you'll want to make sure your venue can accommodate the band's requirements before booking.
9)Rentals
There's a good chance there will be at least a few things that you will need to rent from an event rentals company for your wedding. Think linens, china, chairs, tables, props, lounge furniture, tents, staging for your band, etc.
Some venues will provide you with the basics like tables and chairs. But you may need to rent more than what they provide or you may need a different type of chair for your wedding design. You may need to use several different rentals companies to get everything you need. Definitely go in person to view and select your rentals, and take the advice of your planner and/or florist on what they suggest you need for your event.
10)Hair and Makeup
Professional hair and makeup is so important for your wedding day! It makes the hugest difference in your photos and should last throughout the day very well.
I mean, you are spending a pretty penny on that amazing photographer and videographer, so professional hair and makeup will insure you look your absolute best! Plus, who wouldn't want to sit back, relax, and get pampered the morning of their wedding?
Popular HAMU artists book out pretty far in advance, so if you've been following that amazing makeup artist in your area on Insta long before you were even engaged and never miss her tutorials and stories, don't wait to reach out and make contact!
11)Drapery and Lighting
I like to call these two categories the icing on the cake...kinda like finishing touches! Drapery can really transform a space totally, or can be just the perfect romantic touch on your ceremony arch!
Now, your rentals company may be able to provide this service too, but if not you will need a vendor that specializes in drapery. Same goes for lighting. I think lighting is a good idea at any wedding! It has the ability to create whatever ambiance you are shooting for, and can be strategically placed to highlight certain elements (hello cake spotlight!) or even disguise an area you aren't thrilled about. Talk with your planner about where you could implement lighting for your big day.
12)Extras
To finish rounding out your all-star vendor team there may be a few other vendors you will want to consider.
-If custom stationary is your style then you will want to begin working with a stationer about 8-10 months before your big day.
This will allow them to be involved with your design from the start. And with save-the-dates usually going out at about 6 months before the big day, you will need enough time for them to complete your order.
-Along the same lines is a calligrapher. If you want every envelope carefully scripted for a beautiful, upscale presentation to your guests, you will want to hire a calligrapher early on to make sure they will have enough time to get your order done by your mail date deadline.
A lot of calligraphers also offer signage so you may can get all of your wedding day signage through them.
-If you want a fancy getaway car for your send-off you
will need to find a car rental company.
-Dying for a fun photo booth experience for your guests? You may need a separate vendor for that or it may be something one of your other vendors offers as well.
- Maybe you want a fun late night dessert option for your guests while you are dancing the night away...maybe a food truck style donuts or ice cream experience is something you would be interested in!
-Another favorite of mine would be hiring a live event painter to have yet another way to document your special day; in my opinion you can't document it enough!
-Finally, you need bridesmaid attire and menswear. You may find bridesmaid gowns at the same salon as your gown, but you may need to shop elsewhere. Make sure you shop early enough...bridesmaids gowns typically take 4-6 months to come in. And then you will need to decide if the guys will rent or buy suits or tuxes, and then choose a store to go through. The men can wait longer than the ladies to have their attire booked/purchased, but I still recommend having this done no later than 4 months before the big day.
As a general rule, I have my brides try to have all of their full vendor team booked by 6 months out. A few things can wait a little longer, but it's always best to just get booked as soon as you possibly can. You will feel so much more at ease knowing every detail of your wedding is being handled by a team of professionals! Happy Planning, Friends!
If this list has your head spinning a little bit and you feel like you need professional planning services to help you build a vendor team, I'd love to chat. Head to www.sarahsullinsweddings.com/contact and submit the form to get started! Don't want to miss a blog? Make sure you visit my homepage and scroll to the bottom to subscribe to emails!
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