All is Fair in Love and Wedding Fairs...

Now the season of wedding fairs is upon us it can be quite hard to know where to start - do you go to a small local event held in a medium sized hotel or do you travel to one of our major cities to attend one of the huge stadium sized masterpieces? And what should you take with you? Are you going to have to pay up front on the day for items and services that catch your eye? Will they let you bring your own tasty treats to keep you going throughout? What about a camera? For the uninitiated, wedding fairs can at best be seen as a labyrinth of possibilities and at worst a terrifying cavalcade of smiling marketeers trying to unscrupulously foist their goods upon you.

I've been fortunate to have attended a number of different fairs and there is one thing that is always the same; the people exhibiting are there to make your big day fantastic. But it can be quite daunting (just ask Little Mr Luxe!) so I've put together my top tips for not only surviving the wedding fair season, but also for getting the most out of it:

1) Do your research. If it's a big fair then there should be a dedicated website listing all the suppliers - if its smaller then the venue should be able to give you an idea of who will be there. It's definitely worth asking questions, looking through any supporting literature and checking against your mood boards or scrapbook to see if any of your favourites are going to be in attendance. If they produce items that you love then the likelihood is they will have even more items that you reeeeealy love at the show so its definitely a good idea to know who to look out for. Especially as exhibitors may be offering one-off discounts too. It also means you won't be (too) distracted when you see them and find yourself coo-ing over their wares whilst you ignore the stand you were already at!

2) Don't go to a fair with a 'blank page' - have some thoughts or ideas in place first. By that I don't mean that you can't go unless you've set a date, but make sure you have at least some idea as to what you might be looking for - it doesn't have to be set in stone! Maybe take it as an opportunity to research prices and styles of bridesmaids dresses or as a chance to get a collection of quotes from cake suppliers. If you go in with a completely 'blank page' you might realise afterwards that there were questions you could have asked. It's worth having a think before you go - at the end of the day a wedding fair is like a very select real-time Yellow Pages, suppliers are there to help so utilise them when you are with them face to face.

3) Even so, go with an open mind. This might seem to contradict point two but this is more aimed at presentation - don't necessarily judge a book by its cover. I've looked at some stands and been really put off by them (aka judging a book by its cover!) but then got chatting to the stall-holder and found out that they had exactly what I was looking for at the back. Some stalls will be crowded by lots of people (usually the cake and accessory ones!) and you can often pass them by if you aren't prepared to wait. Don't! Either give yourself time to pop back or wait until people have moved on. You might miss something amazing.

4) Give yourself enough time! Both on the day and when you get home later. That doesn't mean get there the minute it opens, but do ensure you're not rushed! Make no plans for the evening as that's the best time to sit down and plough through the leaflets, ideally over a take away and a bottle of wine! It's a good idea to have four piles; 'yes', 'no', 'maybe' and 'things we would love if we budget well'. That way you can immediately get rid of your 'no' pile and then prioritise the others one by one. On the day you may need to pass certain stalls and then come back to them later (see point three above!) so make sure you don't forget to do this. There's also nothing worse than feeling rushed so you can't get to see everything.

5) Wear comfortable clothes and shoes I can't stress this enough. You will be walking a lot and also probably standing still quite a bit when talking to stall-holders and looking at products. It might also be really cold outside but quite warm indoors so layer up to keep you cosy outside but cooler inside! You will definitely get enough bags to be able to store your clothes in!

6) Don't commit to anything on the day. Any reasonable supplier will not expect you to make a binding commitment on the day itself. Of course enter competitions, sign up to their mailing list, leave your details for the forums, but don't automatically agree on a deal and hand over a cheque. You need time to take it all in and also do your research. If you are really keen to ensure you get a good deal then make sure you take their email address and send a message the next day reminding them of who you are (they will be speaking to hundreds of people!), which then gives you time to look at competitors and assess whether their deal was a good one or if you can find a better one; using that as ammunition to get a discount!

7) Be prepared to spend a fair bit on food/drink. If you are making a day of it then you are probably going to be sucked in by the champagne stands and the fancy food bars (well, I was!). But it doesn't have to be this way, there are lots of food stands scattered around so don't just go to the first one you see. Also check your goodie bag as these are usually stocked up with drink and snack bars to keep you going.

8) Don't be afraid to haggle! Maybe it's that British reserve or our stiff upper lip but people seem scared of asking for a discount. Often exhibitors will have a special deal or be prepared to discuss discounts with you. It might seem a bit embarrassing but there's no harm in trying your luck and being a bit cheeky - you've got nothing to lose! Also don't be afraid to ask if you can take a photo or have a sample. Yes, the chances are the answer will be no, but again, there's nothing really to lose and most exhibitors are reasonable people who are probably in the business because when they got married there wasn't a service that they needed or wanted so they set theirs up, just like Mr and Mrs R did with Le Trousseau!

9) Keep the party going... Ask if people are on Facebook or Twitter and make sure you join or follow them. It helps to build a great relationship with them and you get to learn a bit more about how they work and their style. Also some suppliers will offer discounts to their fans or followers and have competitions online so its a great way to build that rapport and become part of an online wedding community - maybe the next step is a Twedding Fair?

10) Remember it's your day! Don't get swayed by anyone telling you what you want. It's your day and you must always remember that. If your parents or parents-in-law-to-be are coming with you then of course you should take their opinions on board but you need to do things your way. If it's just you and your beloved going then make sure you are both involved 50:50 in the decisions, it can be really disheartening for your thoughts and ideas to be dismissed. More and more fairs recognise that men do play quite a big part in these events! Most importantly if a stall-holder starts telling you what you want, then walk away. People in the wedding industry are so involved in their area of expertise that sometimes, they can be so immersed in their work that they don't listen to what you want and how they can help you achieve that, and instead will start telling you what they can do and what they think you want. I've discovered this myself and we've had to walk away from suppliers because of it which at the time felt really hard. But what we've learned through this is that we've now got our own little 'Team W' comprised of people who have amazing ideas and products and who want to work with us to create our perfect day. It's an amazing feeling to have this group around us being part of our day, and when the time comes I can't wait to tell you about them all!

Happy shopping!

Love, as always

LML xxx

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