Business View Magazine Jan-Feb 2019

13 SPENDING AND THE NUMBER OF WEDDING-RELATED EVENTS SOAR, ACCORDING TO BRIDES AMERICAN WEDDING STUDY 2018 T oday Brides, Condé Nast’s iconic wedding brand and the authority on all things bridal, re- leased findings from the 2018 American Wedding Study. The American Wedding Study is an annual survey of engaged and newlywed couples across the country, conducted by Brides, that reveals key insights into the latest wedding trends, behaviors, and spending habits for wed- dings in America. “In 2018, spending is way up across categories, proving that while couples are doing things their own way, they are still prioritizing celebrating their marriage,” said Lisa Gooder, Executive Director, Brides. “More than ever, couples are savoring the whole process, from engagement to honeymoon and beyond, by celebrating with more events, trips, and professional photos or videos to capture the moments.” The average cost of a wedding is $44,105, an all-time high, and couples invested in expanding the celebration more than ever. Also in 2018, 9 percent of couples took a wedding-moon (pre-wed- ding trip) together; 31 percent of couples had multiday-event wedding weekends (up from 20 per- cent in 2017); 39 percent of couples had a post-reception after-party (up from 20 percent in 2017); and 14 percent of brides wore a second look for their after-party (up from 7 percent in 2017). KEY COSTS • Average cost of a wedding: $44,105 • Average cost of reception: $9,764 • Catering: $12,242 • Rentals: $2,920 • Dress: $2,260 • Veil: $316 • Day-of-wedding beauty for bride and bridal party: $944 • Groom’s attire: $602 • Wedding planner fees: $2,481 • Cake: $547 • Flowers: $2,629 • Other decor $1,183 • Wedding day transportation: $1,275 • Reception music: $2,380 • Photography: $3,133