Wedding Planning Industry Overview

Published: March 4, 2024
Last Updated: April 8, 2024
Table with floral arrangements, plates, and stemware.

Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

Key Takeaways 

COVID-19 event restrictions may have been temporary, but their impact continues to influence the wedding industry. Many couples chose to postpone or cancel their weddings in 2020 due to travel advisories or limits on venue capacity, resulting in 2020 marking the lowest annual number of marriages recorded since 1938 (Statistics Canada, 2022). This pause, however, has given way to a post-pandemic surge for the industry (CBC News, 2023).  

Full-service wedding planning may not fit in the budget. Wedding planners may want to revisit the prices of the packages they offer and consider offering services tailored to small-scale (or “micro”) weddings to entice couples with smaller budgets (“The rise of the microwedding,” 2022).

Wedding planners need to keep their marketing skills sharp. From search engine optimization to social media portfolios to paid advertisements, a report from IBISWorld suggests that “industry operators that have managed to stay afloat during the current five-year period have generally done so by investing a great deal of resources into marketing and technology” (Dalal, 2023). 

Industry Performance Snapshot 

The past few years have been turbulent for the industry, largely due to the lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Graph depicting fluctuation in the wedding planning industry
Source: Dalal, M. (2023). Revenue: Total value ($) and annual change from 2010 – 2028. [Graph]. IBISWorld. Retrieved from IBISWorld database.

Industry Outlook

Destination weddings may be on the rise. According to a forecast by Future Market Insights, the global destination wedding market is set to see a sharp rise in revenue over the next ten years.

Graph indicating the forecasted size of the destination wedding market
Source: Future Market Insights. (July 31, 2023). Size of the destination wedding market worldwide in 2022, with a forecast for 2023 and 2033 (in million U.S. dollars) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1333948/market-size-destination-wedding-worldwide/ 

 

The demand for wedding planners is closely related to couples’ disposable income. According to an American report from IBISWorld, the industry remains “on thin ice” due to its high volatility and low revenue growth (Dalal, 2023).

Inflation is forcing couples to re-evaluate their wedding wishes. With the cost of living rising in tandem with the costs for wedding-related expenses, many couples are scaling back on their ceremony and reception–and the costs associated with a wedding planner (Piché, 2023; Dalal, 2023; CNW Group, 2023).

Industry Trends and Challenges

Weddings are shrinking and taking longer to plan. Whether it’s the cost of the wedding or the size of the gathering (or both!), couples are turning to “microweddings” to protect their budgets. They’re also turning to DIY trends, like homemade decor, to keep costs down (CBC News, 2023).

To cut costs, some couples are turning their weddings into DIY celebrations. With search engines and dedicated wedding planning apps only a few clicks away, the DIY route is turning favour among couples with smaller budgets. Global industry market research firm IBISWorld reports that over the next five years they expect “that the Wedding Planners industry will continue to suffer from decreases in demand” (Dalal, 2023). 

A recent report from Intuit Quickbooks suggests that many couples want to leverage their wedding as an opportunity to support small businesses, which respondents felt would provide “better and more personalized” services. This may signal an area of opportunity for wedding planners (Pastore, 2022).

Social media marketing can be a powerful tool for wedding industry professionals. Sites like Pinterest (where couples can save wedding inspiration) can offer a low-barrier space for planners “to advertise their services and develop brand recognition” (Dalal, 2023). TikTok, too, is becoming an important space to connect with potential clients. As of June 2022, #WeddingTok had generated “more than 2.4 billion views on the platform and focuses on all things wedding, bridal and even guests” (Wheless, 2022). 

It’s a nice day for a… green wedding? As with many industries, thinking about the environmental impact of the wedding industry is gaining traction among wedding planners. “Eco-conscious wedding planning” encompasses a range of practices, from waste reduction to looking for “locally sourced, organic and eco-friendly materials for decor, invitations and catering” (Dalal, 2023). 

Sources

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