18/03/2021
Wedding Planners are not expensive!
The other day someone told me what I charge for my full wedding planning service is extortionate
I chuckled to myself because I know planners who won't run a wedding under £100,000 (They charge 15% commission so earn £15k without add ons such as hire items)
I personally charge a starting fee of £3,500 for my full wedding planning service (no hire add ons) and typically attract clients with a £30-50k budget. (I also offer a VIP wedding concierge service, currently at £8,000, but that’s a post for another time)
Expense is subjective: one man's treasure is another man's junk, but let me give you an easy example into why a wedding planner can rightly charge what we do.
Many of us have seen that post - you know the one I mean, a picture of something beautiful and a picture of something similar but inadequate.
It says something like “client: can you do it cheaper?” and then the funny picture.
I’ve even shared a it myself.
And It’s true, but I want to go a step further in educating you in why I can charge what I do....
It's not just a case of “I have been to university and studied event management” for 3 years.
It’s not just the (well over) 10,000 hours required in order to be classed as a professional.
It's not even the 700 to 1000 weddings that I have personally run within hotels, and as a freelance planner...
But it IS:
All of the above, plus.....
Business running costs
and tax (Let’s say 25% for arguments sake)
So let's do the Maths on the £3500.
If I charge £3,500 for my full wedding planning service at an average of 150 hours to plan your wedding, this works out at £23.33 per hour*
Then deduct 25% for business costs, That’s £785 straight off.
So while £3,500 might seem like a chunk of money the reality is, my expertise is an investment worth paying for, because I can save you time, keep you within budget and plan your day to ensure you and your guest can turn up and relax on the special day you envisaged, rather than you trying to coordinate the various elements of the day (continued in the comments)