1-Stop Shopping for Brides-to-Be : Weddings: Bridal fairs offer the opportunity to compare a lot of goods and services in a little time.
With recession in the air, bridal fairs offer brides a chance to find a few bargains and do a lot of one-stop comparison shopping, instead of driving all over town spending gas and time to price florists, photographers and caterers.
“So many brides are working today, they don’t have time to go to 10 different photographers or caterers,” says Diane Pechenick, whose company, West Coast Bride, has produced shows in Los Angeles each spring and fall for five years. Her Bridal Fair ’91 is scheduled for March 17 at the Universal City Hilton.
“There’s a definite increase in the marriage market, but people don’t have a lot of time to plan. In a single day at a bridal fair, a bride can meet a large number of wedding merchants that would normally take months to contact.”
Most commercial bridal fairs offer showings of the latest in bridal gowns, tuxedos and other wedding wear, and displays and exhibits by photographers, videographers, florists, caterers, bakeries, jewelers, stationers, travel agents, hotels, bands, banquet facilities, caterers, limousine services and wedding consultants.
Prospective brides can compare merchants’ services and consider discounts some offer for orders placed at the fair, Pechenick says. Most shows offer door prizes, often a wedding gown or a honeymoon trip, and some give out bridal coupon books.
Recently, Pechenick says, she has noticed a trend toward renting wedding dresses: “You can rent a gown for about $80. The nicer ones are $125 and up. But when you consider what they cost to buy, that’s quite a savings. The absolute minimum would be $300 to $400. Anything decent-looking would be $800 to $1,200. That’s not talking about designer gowns.”
Bridal Fair ‘91, which features three fashion shows, costs $6 at the door.
In addition to fashion shows and wedding displays, some fairs offer workshops.
Bridal Productions of San Jose will offer six seminars at its Feb. 24 fair at the San Diego Convention Center.
Renee Monroe, owner of Bridal Productions, which also publishes Weddings West magazine, calls the workshops “How-to for I Do” events. Seminars cover choosing a wardrobe, decorations, music, invitations and photographers.
Admission is $6. Seminars cost $2 each, four for $6 or six for $10.
Monroe, who has produced bridal shows for six years, had planned to add a March show in Los Angeles this year, but cancelled it because of the recession. “We’d like to go into the Los Angeles and Orange County markets,” she says, “but we’re going to wait another year be cause of the economic situation.”
Monroe advises brides to attend the bigger bridal fairs, ones with 100 or more exhibits, “because the 15 to 20 booth shows just don’t offer enough variety.”
Geary’s will offer its 10th Bridal Fair Feb. 9 at its main store in Beverly Hills. Bruce Meyer, Geary’s president, says the free event is “a terrific learning experience for customers.”
“As a comparison with the other commercial ones, ours is more oriented towards what we have--china, silver and crystal and other giftware. We have factory representatives there to answer the multitude of questions people have. What’s the difference between bone china and regular china? What can go in the dishwasher? Can you put the dishes in the microwave?”
Like the other bridal fairs, Geary’s also has displays of wedding cakes, invitations and chocolates, and a bridal fashion show.
Although most of the people who attend Geary’s shows are women--brides, mothers and prospective mothers-in-law--Meyer says more men are attending.
“There is much more awareness on the groom’s part to take part in the selection,” he says. “And we’re seeing a real return to the traditional things. You can see that in our top-10 gift list. It emphasizes intimacy, hearth and home. After a decade of conspicuous consumption, elegance, not extravagance, is shaping up to be the major trend in weddings.”
The beauty of bridal fairs, Meyer says, “is that people can come and see everything that’s available, see what the trends are, then choose what they like. I advise people to choose something they will feel comfortable in using today and something that they will use.
“The recession and the war probably will dial the average gift price back a bit, but the brides are still coming in, war or no war.”
Gift-buying consumers also can learn from a bridal show, says Meyer: “They can see what clever gift buyers are buying for wedding presents and put a little more thought into it, whether they buy it from our store or wherever.”
COMING BRIDAL FAIRS
Geary’s 10th Annual Bridal Fair
* Where: 351 N. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills
* When: Feb. 9 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
* Admission: free
Wedding Faire & Workshop
* Where: San Diego Convention Center
* When: Feb. 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
* Admission: $6; Children age 12 and younger, free
Bridal Fair ’91
* Where: Universal City Hilton
* When: March 17, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
* Admission: $6