Wedding Industry/How to plan a wedding.

Most of us do not put a lot of thought into planning a wedding prior to getting engaged. However, since I work at a small business bridal store, I'm exposed to the wedding crowd on a daily basis. You could say after a year and a half of working in this environment that I am a wedding expert. Being the multi-billion dollar industry that many businesses thrive on, let me tell you a little bit about the wedding industry and how to get started planning a wedding.

• Set a budget that you're comfortable with.
•  You and your significant other need to set a date. Timing is everything when it comes to planning a wedding. I recommend between 8 months-1 year. Anything less or more can get to be quite stressful. 
• Next you need to book and pick a venue and catering for the ceremony and reception. Most venues in fargo book out over one year in advance. Yes, I said one year. If you want the venue of your dreams book it ASAP. When it comes to picking a company to cater you will sometimes have the option to go with a caterer within your venue or outside of your venue. 
• Now, my favorite part, find THE dress. This is the part where I get to help out the most in. For some brides finding the dress is as easy as pie. For others, It takes a quite a few appointments before they "have the moment". Finding the dress may seem like a very minor step in the wedding process, but in reality it plays a huge part in planning the rest of the wedding. Most brides plan the rest of the wedding party attire based around their dress. In addition, most bridal gowns take between 4-6 months to order in.
• Next you need to decide what the bridesmaids and groomsmen are going to wear. To many people's surprise, this step can be quite difficult. Color, style, and ordering can take quite some time as well. Bridesmaids dresses and suits can take around 4-6 months to order in as well.
• By now, you're probably about 6 months away from the wedding date. Now that you've found the dress and attire for the rest of your wedding party, you can start looking at decorations and flowers. Florists will be able to assist you in the process of finding flowers. As far as the decorations go, there are many budget friendly options found on Pinterest and other websites similar.
• Send out the invites.
• Say "I do"!    

Works Cited:

Weddingphotographymagazine.com. Wedding Flowers and Rings. 2013. Www.weddingphotographymagazine.com. Web. 12 Sept. 2015.