How couples can manage 'sticker shock' as inflation drives up wedding costs

A photo of a bride and groom holding a bouquet. (Pexels/Trung Nguyen)

From dresses to decorations, to venues to menus, inflation has been driving many wedding costs up over the past few years.

While inflation in Canada slowed to 2.5 per cent in July, local industry experts expect the price tag for getting hitched will continue to rise next year.

So, with the winter proposal season approaching, here are a few expert tips on how to make the most of your matrimonial budget.

Wedding planner Sarah Valencia, owner of Our Jonrah Events, recommends setting aside around $40,000 for a 100-person wedding.

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That's around $10,000 more than in 2019, she said, with food costs alone having risen around 30 per cent.

"There's a bit of a price sticker shock for people whose friends planned weddings in the past," Valencia said. "Things are really changing so fast."

Valencia said the average reception spend per guest can reach between $100 and $200 easily with food, decorations and other rental requirements.

Her top tip to save? Keep things intimate.

"Having smaller weddings, that's kind of the norm now," Valencia said. "if you have less people, you can invest into the wedding you desire to have, but not pay as much."

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Valencia recommends couples sit down and decide what matters most to them. Then, they can find savings in places they feel less strongly about.

"Then you kind of can stay focused on what your goals are for the wedding," she said.

If you're flexible with your date, venues can offer discounts during the off-season. You can also save on location costs by opting for a hall over a hotel ballroom, or by only throwing a reception.

"A lot of people are having more intimate ceremonies," she said. "Exchanging vows … in a nice setting that's personal to them and then having the reception.

"So spending more on where they're hosting, and then perhaps taking away a venue necessary for a ceremony."

The cake

Gloria Bednarz, owner of The Art of Cake, said smaller is better when it comes to saving on wedding cake too.

"We probably do more two-tiers and three-tiers than we ever have," Bednarz said. "We do a lot of single tiers.

"People are foregoing the cake for absolutely everyone at the wedding."

Bednarz said a portion of wedding cake from her bakery currently starts at around $6 per person, with more intricate cakes costing up to $20 per portion.

 If you do want to go all-out with a full-sized wedding cake, opt for buttercream and fresh fruit or flowers, rather than fondant and chocolate decorations.

But, if you don't mind something less traditional, opting for individual cakes can help save.

"We're finding that people will order a smaller cake and then they'll just have cupcakes for the rest of the guests," she said. "It's a more cost effective option, and then there's no cake cutting charge."

An average cake for 100 people costs around $700, Bednarz said. That compares to around $300 for a six-inch cake for cutting plus 108 mini-cupcakes for guests.

"If you're gonna have minis, people can pick two different varieties," she said. "But you can't go with too many varieties, or some people will want to try every single variety."

Bednarz said some people may be tempted to turn to family, friends or home bakers for a cheaper wedding day dessert, but buyers beware.

"We always get so many panicked phone calls every year, where the aunt said that she'd make the cupcakes for the venue, and then the hotel says, 'Oh, it has to come from a certified bakery,'" Bednarz said.

The dress

According to Shelley Grue, a long-time manager of the Bridal Debut boutique, the price of a designer wedding dress has risen between 15 and 20 per cent in recent years.

"It's tough because brides' budgets have definitely not increased," Grue said. "If anything, they've decreased."

 In her experience, a wedding dress is still an expense many people are willing to splurge on, Grue said, but there are ways to save some money if you're a bride on a strict budget.

"What some girls will do," she said, "is buy a really simple dress and then spend the money on accessories. Because the one thing with a simple dress is you pay less in alterations."

Alterations can cost between $500 and $1,000, with more detailed dresses costing much more due to the nature of embroidery, beadwork and detailing.

"If you have a fully beaded dress that's going to cost you more money to buy the dress plus alter it," she said.

Sample sales are another way to save on a designer dress, Grue said, with previous seasons' gowns discounted between 30 and 70 per cent off. August and January are good times to seek sales, as new styles tend to come in summer and winter, she added.

Grue said more brides are also looking into second-hand dresses, which can be a wallet- and environmentally-friendly choice. But you should always check the dress is clean, in good shape and the right length.

"I strongly recommend going to a consignment shop instead of going to the (former) bride's house," Grue said. "(And) always check the length is long enough in shoes when buying second-hand."

"Lots of people don't think about that, and they buy a dress … and then it's way too short."

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Sites like Azazie and JJ's House offer wedding dresses as low as a few hundred dollars, but Grue advises against shopping online.

"Some girls do luck out and end up with a beautiful, good quality dress, but most of them don't," she said.

"You're out of money for this online dress, and then you have to go buy another dress … wedding dresses are the one thing that are worth it to buy in store."

Regardless of what you're planning to spend, Grue said it's important to plan ahead before you shop, including checking if your chosen boutiques carry dresses within your budget.

"The worst thing is to go into a bridal shop and everything's over budget," she said. "And then you end up falling in love with something."

"And I would book no more than three shops," she added. "Any more than three shops, you get totally overwhelmed."