Some wedding planning statistics
As mentioned above, since the arrival of wedding planning in France the tendency to prepare the wedding with the help of professionals has been increasing year after year. Agencies are so numerous that it is not easy to give the exact number of those active in France, taking into consideration large, medium and small companies, and freelance professionals. In this field we could easily find about 600 contacts on the French Yellow Pages. But after further investigation we realized that part of them are not real planners, but just restaurants, hotels and companies providing lights and entertainment for parties.
In reality, we counted about 100-200 companies. We could also find online directories where such companies can be looked up: around 1000 enterprises appear, of which very few figure on Pages Jaunes. (A)
Very interesting statistics are provided by the wedding planning agency "Mademoiselle Petille". On the wedding market since 2013, they made an investigation about their own business and shared the following:
From 2013 to 2016 the total number of couples who planned their wedding with the help of this agency was 52. According to the data, most couples start thinking about the wedding 1 to 1.5 years before the D-day. They contact the agency for the first time mostly on the internet, while looking for ideas, or being redirected by other agencies.
A very small fraction starts planning the wedding 1.5 years before or earlier.
The surprising fact is that there is usually little difference between urgent requests - up to 6 months before, and those turning up 6 to 12 months before the ceremony, except for ceremonies taking place in busy seasons. Such late requests might be very risky in the summer, when the overall number of weddings increases by a factor of 2 or 3 compared to the rest of the year (B).
The first contact with the agency is very important. In general it lasts 2 hours 15 minutes, so that a specialist can discuss in details the location of the wedding and consider all requests coming from the couple. Those who dream about a ceremony abroad should remember that it takes time to organize everything because of distance, time differences, possible language barriers and differences in traditions. It’s a great job for a specialized agency also in the case of couples living abroad, but who want to tie the knot in their motherland.
27% of the couples who contacted the agency did so by skype. Some of them were abroad, some lived in another city.
4% of the clients came to the office to discuss all the details, while 8% preferred to meet in a public area for the first time.
Most of our future clients invited the agent to their house, where it might be more convenient for some to discuss plans, ideas or even look at the pictures of married friends for inspiration. (B)
Having analysed the services required, most couples wanted their wedding to be ready from A to Z. About one third personalized their choice: some weddings were so unique that the agency could only render the requested services upon request.
The number of requested ceremonies at the church was just about the same as that for secular marriages.
A very small number of couples with a restricted budget wanted just some help for the ceremony at the church. Another case is that of future spouses who come to our agency only a few months in advance and want to have their wedding in a busy season, when some services cannot be provided. The agency's priorities are always quality and the happy smiles on clients’ faces. (B)
The statistics for 2016 show us that in France the average cost for a wedding was 18,000$, not including the honeymoon. In Italy it was even more: 25.000$. (C)
In Italy the situation is following. According to the JFC consultancy firm, the turnover of the whole wedding business in Italy is estimated at 315 million euros per year. This figure includes celebrities who come to Italy for a wedding, like director Sofia Coppola or rapper Kanye West. The Bel Paese is popular not only among stars, but among a lot of ordinary people as well (especially English, Russians and Americans).
Wedding planner Cristina Ditta claims that all this attention from foreign couples is due to the beauty of the country, its spectacular and romantic scenery, excellent cuisine and old traditions of hospitality. Sometimes Italians do not pay attention to this, but foreigners recognize it and appreciate it.
For a foreign couple an average budget amounts to 50,000 euros, including everything from floral decorations to the journey, the banquet and the honeymoon.
In fact, spouses often like the country so much that they decide to extend their stay there for their honeymoon. The number of guests depends on national traditions and varies from 20-30 in case of Americans or Australians up to of 60-80 if the spouses are Europeans. Usually celebrations take place over 2 or even 3 days on a weekend, since a general rehearsal the day before the wedding is commonplace and some also schedule a brunch the day after the wedding.
The whole organization begins 3-12 months before and is mostly managed via email and skype. In general clients visit Italy once before the wedding. On the whole it is also a good business for accommodation facilities. About 30 % of couples choose attractive hotels, then come villas, castles, farmhouses and historic buildings.
What are the most popular locations? The classic ones. Tuscany stands out (selected by 43.5%), then comes the Amalfi Coast, Umbria and Veneto (above all Venice and Verona). However, foreigners can be attracted by less famous but equally fascinating destinations, such as Sardinia.
This is confirmed by Giuseppe Fasolino, mayor of Golfo Aranci (Sardinia) who signed an agreement with the City Hall of Drobak in Norway so that Norwegian couples from Dobrak can come to Italy for their wedding. As of today, more than 30 couples from Dobrak and surroundings have celebrated their marriage in Sardinia. This can also be useful to promote places that are not so well established in the international tourism circuit and and maybe even to plan the flow of tourists during the year. (D)
sources:
A) http://formationweddingplanner.net/combien-wedding-planner-en-france/
B) http://www.melle-petille.com/chiffres-wedding-planner-infographie/ (also images)
C) http://www.harlequinband.ie/average-worldwide-wedding-budgets-statistics-2016/
D) http://nuvola.corriere.it/2014/07/19/tutto-il-business-del-wedding-planning/?refresh_ce-cp