Most of us dream of a unique and memorable wedding.  For those of us having cultural weddings, we want to have an event that represents our background/s. We may want to use a decorator from a cousin’s wedding in another city or we might want to hire a photographer or florist based solely on their fantastic instagram pictures.  Each of these requirements hinge upon finding a vendor that can match and bring to life the vision in our head.  While it might seem that you would have to scour the country to find the right person, you may be able to find the perfect person for your event right in your own backyard!  This can give you a number of different benefits, so let’s go through the reasons why we should look to the community around us first. 

• Reduce Environmental Impact. By hiring someone local, you avoid having someone (or a full crew) fly or drive a long distance for one event.   Local businesses also utilize other local businesses - requiring less transportation, less packaging, and less overall impact.

• Keep the Community Unique. The economic impact of COVID19 will put a lot of small businesses at risk that are an integral part of the character of each community.  Post-COVID life, we can each play a part in economic recovery for our communities.

• Get Better Service. Local businesses are more involved and engaged with members of their communities, take more time to know and understand their customers, and thus are able to provide a better service. Your friends and neighbors may have also utilized a local business, and can give them a good recommendation.

• Help Your Neighbor. You get to meet and know them; they get to meet and know you - and your support helps them and their businesses survive. When you buy local, your money stays local and gets spent at other local businesses.

• Make Your Life Easier. It is always easier to coordinate when using local vendors. You can easily check to see if a color will match, or have vendors meet eachother to go over details. Especially with COVID and the resulting cancellations, rescheduling, travel restrictions - it may be harder for vendors to be able to travel to meet your needs.

• Save Money. If you aren’t paying additional fees for travel, travel time, accommodations - your overall is going to be less. 

Many cultural vendors are slow to put information online, may not be active on social media, and it may be harder to find information about them unless you are connected within your community. However, this does not mean they won’t do a fantastic job for you. Be sure to check references and ask for a portfolio of their work. A planner that is familiar with and has connections to cultural communities as well as the overall wedding community, will also be able to help you find the right vendors for your event.