Valley vendors are seeing weddings that were once put on hold due to the pandemic now making a comeback as COVID-19 cases drop.
Terry Sangster works as a wedding planner and helps provide packages for couples, and says she's seeing a lot more business these days. Sangster says during the pandemic, people were having to push back dates two or three times. With venues starting to open up, couples are starting to book.
“The brides who hadn’t started planning and all who were waiting to see what happened are now booking," Sangster said. "So, it’s kind of a bonkers here this year for 2022 for vendors and were happy to have that problem.”
Sangster says she’s more than 70 percent booked for all of 2022, and has already started getting bookings for 2023 and 2024.
Professional photographer Freddy Rodriguez says he's worked over a thousand weddings since he’s been in the business. He says 2020 was a struggle, but for 2022, he’s starting to see it come back.
“Now it’s getting busier, they're getting comfortable,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez says while he saw more business in 2021, the gatherings were small. Now, he’s noticing that number increase with up to 150 to 300-people weddings.
Prices have also had to go up.
“At the same time, we still need to take into consideration, prices are increasing, as well," Rodriguez said. "So, how can we find a balance to where it still works for vendors, but also with customers' budget?”
Rodriguez says while it’s been challenging to find a budget that works for everyone, he still wants to make sure his clients leave happy.
