Transcript
Hi Joke, welcome in our virtual studio.
Happy to be here.
We'll be talking about the wedding trends for 2021. And you shared with our editorial team four interesting trends you see in your own business.
And maybe, let's just start with the first one.
The first one you shared was: you see a lot more outdoor weddings coming our way.
Yes, I think in my business the demand for outdoor wedding concepts is definitely growing.
Of course, we need to be realistic and also realize that with an outdoor wedding, there's a lot more work coming into place. Logistically: more work. But also, you need some basic event knowledge to be able to pull it off. So, that might be why people who want an outdoor wedding are also more inclined to contact a professional.
But nevertheless, yes of course, outdoor weddings, even in rainy Belgium, are a hit. People want to get married outdoors, because, let's be honest, most of the times, even in Belgium, it's good weather. And it's great to be able to do a wedding ceremony outside.
Of course, I already mentioned it twice: Belgium might be rainy. So, of course, we always have like a plan B.
Is that then renting a venue nearby? Or just a tent?
No, we just go for the tent. Because in Belgium, we have like great possibilities for renting tents. We have very pretty tents. Also concerning heating, the level of quality is from...
Yes, we can almost create the same level of comfort in a tent than we can in like a brick venue.
Okay, because we have heating, cooling and all facilities we would have in a normal building.
Yes, the tent builders of these days, they really can create wonders.
You also mentioned, before we started shooting, that you also organize events abroad.
In typically warm countries, do you always provide a plan B for rain?
Yes, we do. Because even in Southern Italy, even in Southern France, it can rain also. It's not because we live in Belgium here that there's no chance for rain in France or Italy.
So, yes. We always have a plan B.
The second trend you shared with us is that weddings are getting more and more personal.
Yes, again, this might be that I notice this, because people who come to me really have, like, a vision of how it should be. And most of the time they want it personal. But I think we can consider it to be a general trend. That people want their wedding to be theirs and not just a wedding. Not just the same wedding at the same venue, like the week before.
When people come to me, they never say: oh, we went to this great wedding and we want just the same. No, people say: we want our wedding to be ours.
And how does that reflect in the actual wedding or wedding party?
When it comes to concrete examples...
For example: when one of the...
When the bride or the groom experienced loss in their near environment, we always try to incorporate some symbolic things about this loss into the wedding ceremony. Into the decoration. Into the general program of the day. Because these kinds of important things in people's lives, should have...
They should have the possibility to include it in such an important day.
Of course, other things are possible too. We, for example, had a couple who were really into the comic scene. DC Comics and Marvel and stuff like that. And every guest was inclined to come as a certain DC Comics or Marvel character.
That sounds like a lot of fun.
Yes, it was great. Just being there made you happy. Because you saw all these people, dressed up to the night. Yes, it was awesome. It was awesome.
And does every guest come to the wedding dressed up? Or did you have to give some attributes to some people?
No, there were like, I think, 150 people. And, of course, there were some levels in the dressing up. But, for like all of them it was clearly, instantly, which character they were. Okay, I have to be honest. I had to look them up. From time to time. Because, I'm not really into that scene, so much. But, as soon as I looked it up, I was like: oh, of course you are.
And you and the staff also dressed up? During that night?
Yes, I went as...
Now I forgot the name. It was a Marvel character. Who I look like, apparently, naturally. So, it was an easy one.
The next ones are classic protocols for weddings. You see them disappear.
Yes, I think this one is not really a new trend. It goes on, already, for some time. But, we're throwing out more and more of them.
For example: when we welcome the people. In the past, with the classic protocols, the couple was used to standing in front of the line, together with their parents, to say hi to every guest that passed. So, the couple was there for half an hour. Maybe even forty-five minutes to an hour. Just saying hi to people. Whereas, what I suggest if they don't want to do that: we can just let everyone enter and we are there to welcome the people. And we say: the couple will come to you in time. So, we do a super long reception, cocktail, two hours, for example. And then the couple has the time to go say hi to everyone. But then in their face and not just shaking hands, one after another.
And maybe that's a bit linked. In the past, everyone went to church for their wedding. And there was a ceremony over there.
What I do see, a lot of times, is that when I go to a wedding there is, kind of, an own-built ceremony.
Yes, the personal ceremonies are really a big hit. I think 70 to 80% of the weddings I do are with a personal ceremony and not with a religious ceremony. So, I'm talking about the Christian faith but also others.
So, people really tend to prefer the personal ceremony, because then there is more time to really include the personal stuff. I mean: you only have the attention span of people for, like, one hour to one hour and a half. And if you have to include the religious part then you lose forty-five minutes, just with the religious part. And the time for the personal stuff gets limited. So, that's why I'm a big fan of the personal ceremonies, yes.
Okay, the last one you did send in, and I assume it's not only Covid-19-linked, is that people are organizing in smaller parties. Not a wedding for three, four, five hundred people. But rather going smaller.
Yes and this goes for every trend that I mentioned. I think it's all apart from Covid-19. And the smaller weddings, like 30-40 people, it's something...
I think we did it for the first time in 2018 and then it was really new to me. I was like: oh and don't you want more people? No, we just want it with those forty people. Because we want everyone to be included. To be fully included. And if you do a wedding with one hundred and fifty to three hundred people, of course it's really hard to include everyone.
Yes, even say hi to everyone takes all night then.
But if you organize a wedding for, let's say, thirty people. Can that become a real party like we know it? Because, I can imagine, being on the dance floor with thirty people is something different than with one hundred and fifty.
Yes, of course, most of the time, the people who prefer a smaller party are not people who have the dancing party high on their priority list.
I think because you say: okay, parties as we know it, means you like to be on the dance floor.
Well, it depends, but...
For a lot of people it really doesn't matter.
You can party in different ways. You can party through a really personal, emotional and funny wedding ceremony. You can party through a five star diner with accompanying wines. And some other people, of course, they like to party through a massive dance party where everyone goes wild.
But it really depends on the people who are in front of you. What kind of concept we propose for them.
Okay, thank you very much, Joke, for sharing these trends with us.
We'll put a link to your eventplanner business profile below the video, so people who are looking for a wedding planner and think: Joke might be the one, can find you.
And thank you very much for your time.
Thanks for having me.
And you at home, thank you for watching our show. I hope to see you next week.
