WEDDINGS
After a very challenging year for businesses that rely on weddings, Boris Johnson’s roadmap out of lockdown confirmed that subject to the key coronavirus data requiring dates to change, weddings with 15 guests can take place again from April 12. From May 17 the number of guests at weddings can increase to 30 and from June 21 there will be no restrictions on weddings.
There are significant opportunities, but businesses will need to manage the rush.
There are significant opportunities for tourism businesses, particularly landowners, property owners, licensed venues and new venues looking to capitalise on the post-Covid wedding boom.
Ready for post-Covid wedding boom? With weddings allowed to take place again from April, Rebecca Edwards from Hazel Parsons Wedding Consultancy outlines the opportunities for tourism businesses in Devon and Cornwall. We are set for a surge in weddings after many couples had to postpone their celebrations during the coronavirus pandemic. Some industry commentators expect over half a million weddings to take place next year, and it could take 2-3 years for the backlog of weddings to clear.
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TALKING TOURISM
More couples may be willing to consider midweek weddings, to ensure they can get married sooner rather than later. Couples may also be interested in booking weddings outside the traditional wedding season, again to avoid having to wait a long time to get married, especially if they were due to marry during lockdown and opted to postpone their big day. Small and intimate weddings will continue to be popular. The pandemic has made small weddings much more socially acceptable, and couples may prefer to keep numbers down in order to allow them to spend more per head. At the opposite end of the scale, some couples will opt for large parties and celebrations and couples who have waited for the restrictions to be lifted will be going all out. Expect to see free bars and couples spending extra on entertainment, styling, florals, décor and catering. We also expect elopements to be popular. Lockdown has kept us all in our
SPRING 2021
