When planning a wedding, the first thing I always suggest is to pick your venue and dress, select the rest of your vendors and then work on the fun details! So once you have your dream venue, what next?
Many venues will have vendors you are required to use, and if so, great! If not, ask them about who they’ve worked with – a vendor that already knows the space could be a huge advantage!
As I plan, I’ve found myself in a different situation: my venue isn’t a typical wedding venue. This is good because I’m looking forward to designing and planning something really unique, but I also have very little to reference (i.e. preferred vendors, layouts, how weddings flow there). Plus, I decided to bring most of my vendors up from Phoenix to Flagstaff. While there are many good choices in Flagstaff, I had to go with my favorites from the valley!
The most important thing when selecting vendors is to make sure you have a good team and you get along with them. Remember, some of these people are going to be with you all day long! If you don’t think you could be best friends with your florist, or cake designer though, that’s okay! They will be dropping off and leaving for the most part on wedding day. However, your photographer, DJ, and videographer should be people you enjoy spending time with and whose personalities match yours and the feel of your wedding.
When you hire a vendor, you aren’t just hiring a DJ, photographer, videographer, caterer, etc. You are putting together a team – so think smart and go plan your dream team!