Before the pandemic, engaged couples could take their time picking their ideal wedding planner, their perfect venue, their favorite flowers. But this spring, amid surging demand and tight supplies, planning a wedding can feel like a cutthroat race to the altar.
After two slow years under the shadow of COVID, brides and grooms are surging back down the aisle this year. Roughly 2.5 million marriage licenses are expected to be issued in 2022, the most in nearly four decades, according to The Wedding Report, a market research firm. That’s almost twice as many as were held in 2020, and about a third more than in 2021.
As couples who postponed their weddings or popped the question during the pandemic rush to recite their vows this year, wedding industry vendors — from planners to florists — say they’re feeling the pressure.
“Weddings are back, and it’s good to see,” said Renée Sabo, founder of Boston-based wedding planning company Urban Soirée. “But that also comes with challenges.”
Inflation, supply chain snags, and staffing shortages are shaping up to be big issues for the wedding industry. Add in this year’s extra-strong demand and conditions are perfect for a crunch, said Joe Rogers, owner of Boston-based wedding planner Contagious Events, which is on track to plan 44 weddings this year, instead of a typical 20 to 30.
“I would caution against calling this a normal wedding season,” said Rogers. “It’s not normal to be fully booked. Usually there are openings in the calendar, but we’re not seeing that because we just have a much larger number of people trying to plan a wedding right now.”
Coronavirus restrictions halted wedding celebrations for months in 2020. Even after lockdowns lifted, many couples avoided crowded ceremonies packed with family and friends, for fear of a superspreader event.
For Karen Tungett, co-owner of Rhode-Island based Blackstone Caterers, 2020 was the “hardest year” her company has ever seen. After moving most of its business to 2021 and 2022, Blackstone is now completely booked this season, with the 2023 calendar filling fast.
“It’s wild,” said Tungett. “We are sold out every Friday, Saturday, Sunday night, and we have been for quite some time. I’ve been sold out from the last two Saturdays of March, and now we just go straight until December.”
Faced with skyrocketing demand, many wedding vendors aren’t holding dates for couples so they can ponder their offers, said Aarati Naidu, co-owner of Firgun Events.
“In 2022, things are moving at such a fast pace, if you have a contract in your inbox, you better get to that contract within 24 hours and sign it,” said Naidu. “If not, it’s going to expire.”
As the owner of floral studio Table & Tulip, Andrea Halliday said she’s had tough conversations with clients looking to reserve her blooms. With multiple couples eyeing the same date, securing her services has become a competitive race against time. Halliday has hit her limit in 2022, and 2023 dates are rapidly filling up.
“It gets people into a panic mode, and it’s just not what I want to be doing,” said Halliday. “It’s hard to say no, but when the time comes, we want to be able to have our staff ready for the event.”
Businesses are noticing several changes this wedding season in response to the demand: to reserve available vendors, some couples are opting to hold their nuptials on weekdays, or beyond the traditional wedding season of late spring to early fall.
“It’s not so much a seasonal business anymore,” said Tungett of Blackstone Caterers. “It’s becoming almost year-round, which is great in a lot of aspects, but that means there’s just no downtime.”
Bridal shop Flair Boston on Newbury Street has seen a surge in brides looking for their perfect gown before the big day — dress sales at the store have increased 30 to 40 percent since 2019, said owner Stacey Kraft.
“Everyone’s getting married,” said Kraft. “It’s a lot of work. Since we were able to open back up, it has been wild.”
Vendors have increased their prices to keep up with the rising pace of inflation, leading to larger wedding budgets. From 2020 to 2021, the cost of an average wedding in the United States went up 25 percent to over $27,000 and is forecast to grow an additional 3 percent this year, said Shane McMurray, CEO of The Wedding Report.
“Just as [inflation] is impacting your everyday shopping experience, it’s also impacting those that are providing service for weddings, especially when it comes to getting supplies,” said McMurray.
Rising food costs have forced catering companies like Blackstone to increase their fees. The average check for Blackstone’s catering services at one of its exclusive venue partners — Blithewold Mansion in Bristol, R.I. — is up $4,000 to $5,000 from before the pandemic, said Tungett.
“I had to call a couple and say, ‘Listen, if you want filet mignon, the menu price will increase,’ ” Tungett added. “So it’s been tricky.”
Those elaborate floral arrangements in bouquets and on tables are more expensive, too. Flower prices are surging, said Halliday of Table & Tulip, who has seen flowers priced as high as $30 a stem. Even vases are scarce these days, thanks to a clogged supply chain.
“It can take you hours to source something that was once basic,” said Halliday. “You can’t get your hands on some materials until December 2023.”
And in a tight labor market, finding staff to work this year’s weddings is a mounting problem. In an effort to attract workers, Blackstone Caterers has advertised at job fairs, on the radio, and in print. But hiring, especially when many employees left the hospitality industry during the pandemic, is hard.
“I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about staffing,” said Tungett. “We’re really struggling with that this year, and I was at an industry event the other night and everybody is in the same boat.”
Wedding demand will probably return to pre-pandemic levels in 2024 or 2025, said McMurray, depending on how the economy performs. In the meantime, vendors across the industry have welcomed the increased demand for weddings, even if it comes with additional challenges.
“I came out of [the pandemic] even more proud to be part of the wedding industry,” said Rogers. “These issues are just another obstacle, and I have nothing but confidence that we will be able to navigate it and get through to the other side.”
Annie Probert can be reached at annie.probert@globe.com.