Wedding Negotiations

Wherever you decide to get married, it is always worth trying to negotiate cost-saving options into each and every contract you sign. Here are some great places to get started:

Provide your own alcohol: Clubs and hotels that require you to purchase their alcohol do it for a reason - selling booze is their bread and butter. If you were to buy in bulk at your local supermarket or wine warehouse, not only would you get substantially better prices, but you should also be able to return unopened bottles after the event. Supplying your own booze for the reception and the toasts is definitely something to explore. In practice, most places that will agree to this will charge you a “corkage” fee (usually between £5 - £10 per bottle). Even with a corkage fee, it’s worth running the numbers, as the potential savings could still be quite large.

Choose an all-inclusive caterer: If you can get your caterer to includes china, tablecloths, and silverware in their price quotes, this can also be a real cost saver in the long run. Unless you’re obsessed with tabletop designs, it’s best to stick with what they have to offer instead of dealing with hiring outside rental vendors and coordinating the whole thing yourself. When all is said and done, do you really care about the difference between moss- or seafoam-colored tablecloths?

Be aggressive with your negotiations: It’s tempting, especially when you are going through a quote with a different vendor for the 5^th time, but don’t just say OK when a vendor quotes a price. There are two types of negotiation techniques. Position based and value based. Most people only consider position based negotiation. That is to say, the vendor wants £100 but you are only prepared to pay £50. There is a lot of research that shows position-based bargaining will usually end up in the middle if a deal is struck is at all, so if you take this route, go in much lower than what you actually want to pay. Be advised though, position-based negotiation is really hard work and wears you down quite quickly. Value-based negotiations are always to be preferred as they are about creating win-win situations and creating value for both parties in the process. For example, the vendor may want £100 but only because it will cost them £25 to get someone to deliver and pick up the items. If you can get someone you know to take care of this, the vendor may well be a lot more willing to give you the discount. In practice, value-based negotiations involve coming up with creative solutions. In order to be successful you need to trade off what is valuable to you with what is valuable to the vendor. Where the value is not equal, there is room for negotiation.

Always read the fine print: You’re in the moment, everyone is dancing and you’re feeling the love. And the clock is ticking. When you signed the contract, you figured four hours would be plenty of time, but now the party isn’t nearly over. Don’t get stuck in that situation. Read the fine print well ahead of time and find out how much extra hours will cost you (if you’re allowed them at all). Some venues charge as much as £500 per hour if you go over your allotted time, not to mention service charges to keep people around. If you have your wedding at an off-time, perhaps negotiate an extra buffer hour as a “value added,” an option or service which is included for free in lieu of discounts on the services you’ve already requested.

 

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