The UK’s wedding industry is among one of the hardest hit, as the Coronavirus pandemic led to limitations on UK’s public gatherings and hosting of events. A study by London-based wedding planning app, Bridebook has found that coronavirus has impacted 64% of weddings in 2020, either by postponements or by cancellations, according to a report by the Evening Standard. With an additional 36% of all other wedding-related businesses being lost, the industry is set to suffer losses of up to £87.5bn in the UK, with around £3bn per annum, contributed by the Asian wedding industry alone. Cost of an average Asian wedding is between £30,000 to £50,000, with a guest-list running between 500-1000 people.
In India and many other countries in South Asia, weddings often have a short turnaround time (on average a 6 months gap between engagement and wedding), but in the UK, most Asian families take 12-18 months to plan for a wedding, especially if it’s a destination wedding.
Couples facing challenges
28 year old Rahul and Anjali (name changed on request) are no different. They planned for a £50,000 wedding, for 700 guests, across a week of events in and around London in summer 2021. But they now fear, there is no option other than postponement of their wedding, as many uncertainties loom large across the industry.
Speaking to Asian Voice, the emotional bride-to-be said, “We met while working at the same office years back, and fell in love. My boyfriend proposed to me in Paris, during a short pre-Christmas trip last year, and we decided to tie the knot in 2021.
“We have planned for several events, some traditional ones that our parents insist on having, and a joint bachelorette and Bollywood themed ‘mehendi’ night.
“I was meant to go to Delhi in India, for dress and jewellery shopping this autumn, and was planning to buy this beautiful bridal wear from a designer shop that I shortlisted during my previous visits. “We wanted a dream wedding and a honeymoon in possibly Mauritius, but now we are not sure where we stand. We don’t even know if things will normalise in the coming one year.
“With venues and organisers asking for part deposit, we are not sure we want to tie down ourselves to a date and place, as there is no guarantee we can have our dream wedding even in 2021 or get deposits back. Our international guests, that includes my grandparents from Canada, great aunts and uncles and their family from the US and India may not even be able to attend, if lockdown and restrictions continue. Moreover, there is also no scope of getting a wedding insurance now, hence we are contemplating to postpone the wedding to 2022. We may have to go back to the drawing board to plan everything from scratch, as no one knows if the world would be the same as before.”
Optometrist Shantelle Panchal from Coventry met her pharmacist fiancé Mitul Patel from Leicester, while studying at Aston University in Birmingham. The 25 year old bride-to-be, is still battling with Whittlebury Park Hotel in Northamptonshire, for a refund of the deposit for their wedding, that was meant to be on 25 April 2020. Shantelle received an email from the hotel around the end of March, telling them about the closure of the venue till 30 April 2020, due to coronavirus.
When Shantelle and family asked for a refund of her cancelled wedding, she was told she would receive credit towards a new date and guests would be given a voucher to be used by the end of year. But she was also told that they needed to pay the outstanding balance of around £6,000, on top of the £3,000 she had already deposited to postpone to a later date.
Speaking to Asian Voice, Shantelle said, “After being told by Whittlebury Park in March they are having to cancel our wedding due to venue closure, we were initially trying to re-arrange our wedding for May 2021. But the hotel said it has to be within April 2021, which was not possible for us due to our religious calendar. On top of that they asked us to pay over £6000 in order to postpone. After many difficult and awkward responses, the hotel agreed to have the wedding in May 2021. After a long ordeal and seeing how the hotel treats its valued guests in such unprecedented times, we just want our money back, and start afresh elsewhere. We do not wish to support a business that is trying to profit during Covid-19, when strict guidance from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has been given to issue refunds.
“Furthermore as per their contract with us, a cancellation due to ‘force majeure’ means they have to refund all the sums to the customer, however the hotel is still refusing to return our venue funds of £3000! An excuse of ‘non-refundable’ is not acceptable when no service has been provided to us or our guests. Now we have no response from the hotel, as they immorally hold on to our money & thousands of pounds from our guests who had booked hotel rooms for the wedding only, all to be refused a refund. We wish the hotel could do the right thing as many other hotel venues have refunded with no quibble. How can it be right to keep our money when it’s clear given the financial uncertainty we need the money, not a gift card! We haven’t faced this problem with any of our other suppliers.”
The hotel, which on the website said to be closed now till 8 May 2020, as we went to press, in a statement told AV, "We have sadly been left with no choice but to temporarily close our venue due to government guidance. We sympathise deeply with couples who have weddings booked over the coming weeks and will continue to offer the highest level of professionalism during this unprecedented time.
"Whittlebury is endeavouring to avoid wedding couples needing to cancel their weddings. We have a dedicated team working tirelessly to ensure that weddings can be postponed to a mutually acceptable date at no additional cost to the couple.
"If a couple does not wish to postpone their wedding, and instead wishes to cancel, then our usual terms and conditions will prevail. When a wedding is cancelled, the booking fee and instalments are retained to cover the costs we have incurred in preparing for the event. If the balance of the contract has been paid, this will be refunded as this payment reflects the on the day costs.
"We always advise that our wedding couples take out the relevant insurance and our terms highlight this recommendation too, however in this case the Bride & Groom to-be chose not to.
"If a wedding guest has booked accommodation, we are offering to re-book them at no additional cost for any time within 12 months or the date of the wedding should it be beyond 12 months.
"The wedding industry is united in advising couples to postpone weddings, rather than cancel, not only to prevent personal financial loss and additional distress, but also to protect the suppliers and small businesses that make dream weddings possible.
"With an extremely limited team, as a result of furloughing 360 staff members, we are doing our utmost to attend to all guests’ bookings with care and professionalism. We are currently working with 18 couples to rearrange their dream day and have successfully rearranged 13 of these and awaiting confirmation from a further 4.
"We are not imposing any additional cost for a postponed wedding and are honouring our 2020 prices for them. We are delighted that this approach has resulted to date in the successful re-booking of all except one wedding from 2020 to 2021. These postponed weddings remain our top priority at this time."
Caterers and venues feel helpless
Caterers like Ragasaan, who are famous for their ‘value added’ services to their clients, once provided canapes for the Prime Minister’s Diwali party at 10 Downing Street. They also help clients find a suitable venue as a package for their events or weddings, but now they are facing many problems due to some inflexible and non-cooperative venue owners.
Ragasaan Director Arun Luthra told Asian Voice, “Wherever we have been able to move dates, we have transferred the cost. Not only do we provide catering services, we also contract locations or venues (as packages) for interested parties. At the moment every case is different. We have to see how venues are responding to each request. Some venues would like a second instalment to postpone the event to 2021, some are giving flexibility to carry forward and some are asking for clearance of all dues to postpone events to 2021.
“We are in between and for us to clarify, wherever there has been objections from clients, to have a dialogue back with the venue etc, has been a challenge, more as mostly there is no one at the venue to talk to, with staff furloughed. We are trying to keep both clients and venue owners happy, though our customers have been mostly very understanding, some of the venues have not been so cooperating. We need a bit more support from venues on giving us mutually convenient dates and flexibility in such unprecedented times.
“Anybody who is contracted with us for catering services alone, the deposit is very minimal. The clients are talking to the venues directly and then coming back to us with options, and we are trying to accommodate the majority.”
Atul Lakhani, Director of Sanjay Foods believes this government has let down the wedding, catering and events industry the most. Sanjay Foods is famous for designing and delivering spectacular weddings, while creating delicious gourmet food. Atul, who has already written to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, outlining what in particular the wedding, catering and events industry is going through, told Asian Voice, “Weddings, catering and events are part of the hospitality industry. In the definition of hospitality, the government has not included these. Therefore, there is zero support available to the people in our industry. While restaurants or takeaways may get a grant, support and business relief, our industry that has been the most affected, has been totally excluded. We were probably the first to close down, and will be the last to reopen. With this social distancing, you cannot have crowds. If you cannot have crowds, you cannot have events or weddings. On one hand Chancellor is pledging money to those affected in the industry, and yet he excludes such a significant part of the hospitality sector.”
But Firdaus Nagree, Founder of Cavendish Banqueting, who hosts around 250 weddings a year, is using this opportunity to turn around his business, so that they can offer even better services to their clients, when the lockdown lifts. “We have taken case by case methodology, and understanding circumstances, we have refunded money to those who have cash flow issues themselves. Other people who hold on to the deal, we are working with them for a future event,” Firdaus told the newsweekly. The serial entrepreneur speaking about his new business model added, “We have furloughed people, but haven’t required to make anyone redundant. All our businesses have a very strong back office in India, who are now better trained and aware of the wedding scene in the UK. They have been working remotely, addressing queries, doing virtual consultations, speaking to customers who are still intending to book with us or need support services. This has been very successful, particularly for new bookings, especially for next year. We are also providing services that we are not going to earn any money on such as introducing photographers or videographers, talking about menus and table seatings with people who haven’t yet booked with us.
“We are supporting people, using this opportunity with no charge or expectation, and that has in turn helped us. We have had new bookings with smaller deposits. The team in India is now more confident, fine tuned to UK needs and it is an innovation that we will be able to use to our benefit, especially when the lockdown lifts.”
Cash flow problems for planners and organisers
Many suppliers and organisers who are relying on the income through deposits received so far for events that are now postponed, are struggling with cash flow, trying to make ends meet- however possible.
Meera Majithia, the Founder of Carriages Weddings and Events, is a successful Indian wedding planner in the UK, arranging around 10-12 weddings every year.
Speaking to Asian Voice, she said, “The industry has really been hit hard. But what amazes me is how all the suppliers are coming to work together. Most have moved dates without any extra charges. We are looking at a two years’ wedding now happening in one year- in 2021.”
While the weddings are being postponed, and many are demanding a 100% refund of their deposits, leading to conflicts between the suppliers and the host, Meera thinks that despite uncertainties, she has not yet met a nervous bride turning into a ‘bridezilla’.
“Most couples have been very level headed about their wedding being postponed and calm about their deposits,” added Meera. “But those who are not meant to marry in 2020, are now getting nervous about losing out their dates and preferred venues to the weddings postponed from 2020. So they are calling around to enquire. But the problem is, many organisers and suppliers have furloughed their staff, and sometimes there is only one manager trying to deal with both old and new enquiries, leading to delays.
“I always advise my clients to take wedding insurance, but once Covid was announced, new insurance policies were made unavailable. So much is not contracted as this Covid crisis is such an unprecedented thing. Suppliers are adding new terms and conditions to contracts and most going forward, will have a clause covering such crises.”
But what has been the greatest challenge for Meera in particular? She said, “For my business in particular, cashflow has been the greatest challenge this year. I had events booked for 2020, that now stand postponed. Usually I take 50% of the deposit during booking and take the rest later, closer to the date of the event- and that has been a big setback for me, like it has been for many other suppliers.”
Jaspreet Pandohar, Founder of Bombay Funkadelic, who organises on average 25-30 wedding parties per year said, “We do a lot of private parties, and that includes engagement, Mehendi, pre-wedding and wedding reception parties. We would normally have one or two events per month, and we supply anything from entertainment to decoration to food and drinks packages, finding venues etc. Due to the virus, many venues are now shut. Couples are having to postpone or cancel their plans, which is having a knock on effect on suppliers like myself. Lined up bookings are being cancelled. Some are asking me to hold on to the deposits, and am happy to complete the job I have invoiced them for, but the uncertainties are worrying.
“The Indian weddings here are booked way in advance. Those unsure of the event in the future, have requested for a refund, and it depends on what stage I have got into with the planning. If no work was started, I am happy to refund 100%. But if work has started, I keep a nominal fee and return part of the deposit. It is upto the terms and conditions on the contract. A month before the event, there is usually zero refund.
Talking about her problems with cash flow she added, “There is no income coming in at the moment. The cash flow each month is badly affected. I am currently living off my savings, till I could claim part of my income from the government under the self-employed scheme. But that is not open until June, and I have to wait for the government to let me know about my eligibility. My last event was on 5 March 2020 and since then I haven’t had any income!”
However, professional photographer Vineet Johri, of V Kumar photography, who covers at least 50 weddings a year, thinks that the government scheme for self-employed people like him is unhelpful, uncertain and too hard to apply. While his photographer’s insurance covers accidents and damages, it does not cover business loss. But Vineet is offering a full refund of deposits to those who booked with him. “I don’t want to hold on to anyone’s deposit. These are hard times. I am living on my savings, and my cash flow is badly affected, as expected. But if I don’t refund the money, the client would assume I am not refunding it. But if I do return the money, they will definitely come back to me with work, just because of the goodwill I have created. So I am giving 100% back.”
