Dear The Bridal Guru,
My best friend is an event coordinator. She said she would coordinate my wedding at half the price she normally does for others. She also said she would be the floral designer. My fiancé said that I need to get this in writing. He said I need to get a contract. Do I really need a contract if it’s a friend?
Contractually Concerned
Dear Contractually Concerned,
Your fiancé is correct. You do need to get everything in writing, friend or no friend. And you should have a contract from every vendor you use for your wedding, again friend or no friend. If your friend is a professional, she will understand and have a contract for you to sign. On the contract she will have all the services she promised you in writing. She will also have the agreed upon price. More than likely, she will ask for some sort of deposit, 30-50%.
The worse thing that can happen is she tells you a price and then says, “well it turned out to be more involved than I realized and now it’s really this other price.” Trust me, I have seen this happen. Have her write down everything this price includes including the floral design, flowers and material. Ask her what is not included in the price. Ask her what will the additional charges entail. Have a clear understanding of what you are getting from her and what you are not getting from her.
True Story: a bride was told by her friend that she would cater her wedding for 100 people and provide the groom’s cake for $250. That figure should have set off alarms. No way can you cater a wedding and provide a groom’s cake at a cost of $250 for 100 people. I guess you can if you only provide nuts and punch with the cake. The bride envisioned real food. After all, the wedding was at 6pm and people would be hungry afterwards. The day before the wedding, the caterer/friend or friend/caterer called the bride and told her she was sick and could not cater the wedding or provide a groom’s cake. The fact of the matter is the friend realized you couldn’t feed 100 people on $250 unless she provide Ritz crackers with cheese whiz. The bride was fit to be tied as was her mother and the groom’s mother. It was a busy wedding weekend. Luckily they found a caterer who agreed to drop off the food on plastic trays for way more than $250. They got a sheet cake from Sam’s Club to be the groom’s cake. Nevertheless, the couple is married and they have something they look back on today and laugh. They day it was not a laughing matter.
Don’t be a statistic. Get it writing. Get everything in writing even from friends.
The Bridal Guru
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