Bridal shows are one of the BEST ways to save money 💸 while wedding planning! Wedding vendors are all bringing out their best discounts and add ons to help themselves stand out from the crowd. Which means discounts for you! 🙌 Plus, bridal shows bring so many vendors together in one place, so you will save time ⏳ tracking down each aspect of your wedding.
If this is your first time attending a bridal show, these tips will make sure you are prepared to lock in amazing deals, stay organized and most importantly have the most fun ever! So here's to kicking wedding planning stress goodbye and planning your big day like a pro!! 👰👯♀️Scroll to the bottom, if you want details on which shows we will be at. We’re the ones with the blue veils!
1. Wedding Email
Create an email address 💻 that is easy to remember and reflective of your wedding day like: jackandjill2019@gmail.com or jackandjillwedding@gmail.com. You can use this address to give to wedding vendors, as an eco-friendly RSVP option, or to keep in touch with your wedding guests without having your personal email bombarded. There are so many free email options out there, but at Brilliant Bridal we choose to run everything on Gmail. It easily allows you to set up folders that you can use to organize your vendors.
2. Information Labels
One super easy thing you can do that will save you lots of time at bridal show is creating a contact information label. Many vendors will be offering giveaways and promos that will require your contact info and instead of writing this over and over again, a sheet or two of labels will save you from the dreaded writer's cramp! You can put as much or as little information on the label as you're comfortable with, but do make sure to include your full name, phone number, wedding date and your wedding email address at minimum.
3. Team Bride
A lot of brides-to-be like to bring a whole bride tribe to the bridal show to help make wedding planning decisions and to carry all the free goodies from vendors. Rather than inviting your entire bridal party, family and lifelong besties, consider selecting just a few key people to help you navigate the bridal show. Think fiancé, mom/MIL, MOH and sister/BFF. And if you have a hard time staying organized and on track, bring someone to keep you focused, or if you're more of a type A personality, bring a friend who will keep things light and stress free. 💁♀️
4. Calendar & Organizer
Bridal shows are an amazing opportunity to meet with a high quantity of wedding vendors in a short amount of time. So it's pretty likely that you'll meet a handful that you will want to remember to reach back out to. Before heading to the show, take a look at your calendar 🗓 to get a feel for which days or weeks you're available to schedule appointments. 📖 Many vendors (us included!) will offer a discount on their services, if you book and keep an appointment, so coming prepared to schedule appointments could end up saving you hundreds of dollars if not more!
5. Good Bag & Bad Bag
The bridal show will likely give you a bag at the start the show to keep all the fliers you’ll get. Bring a second bag, so you can make one bag your “good bag” 👍 for vendors you liked talking with and want to reach back out to. Then, you can use the other bag to create a “bad bag” 👎 to toss fliers you aren’t as interested in. This will help you keep your sanity when you’re back home after the show trying to remember which person you talked to worked where.
This is going to sound a lot like the advice you'd get from your mother the day before taking a big test, but don't tune us out, if you want to be on top of your game! (Not that you would ever tune your mom out. 😉) 1. Get some good sleep the night before. 2. Eat breakfast & drink plenty of water (plus bring snacks). 3. Wear comfortable shoes! It's amazing how being tired and hangry with sore feet affects your mood. 4. Arrive earlier than you think necessary, since parking can be time consuming.
Aside from that, plan to have the best day, meet some incredible wedding pros, taste all the samples and make a huge dent in your wedding planning checklist! We can’t wait to meet you!!
Find Us At These Shows
Colorado Brides | Rocky Mountain Bridal Show at the Colorado Convention Center in the Mile High Ballroom on Sunday, January 20th 11am - 4pm. Buy tickets here & visit us in booth TBD.
Dallas Brides | Bridal Shows Inc Bridal Show at the Dallas Market Hall on Saturday, January 26th & Sunday, January 27th 10am - 5pm. Buy tickets here & visit us in booth TBD.
Nevada Brides | Bridal Spectacular Bridal Show at the Rio Hotel in the Pavilion Ballroom on Saturday, January 26th 11am - 4pm & Saturday, January 27th 12pm - 4pm. Buy tickets here & visit us in booth 509.