How far in advance did you...

Hey ladies,

How far in advance did you book your vendors? I am getting married in April 2012 and would like to start booking my dj, photog, etc to get 2010 prices. However, my future mother in law is telling me not to because she says that the wedding is a long while away and companies could go out of business before then and screw us over. Any thoughts/opinions on this are greatly appreciated

Re: How far in advance did you...

I only started in August for my June 2011 wedding, but I'd say do it. I mean, if you book them now or December instead of February 2011, what is the difference?

They can still go out of business unless you book them that day!

Re: How far in advance did you...

I got engaged in April of 2009, and we started booking vendors in September of 2010. HTH!

Re: How far in advance did you...

I think if you book reputable vendors, especially ones that are endorsed on here, they're unlikely to go out of business. Always check them out on BBB as well, bc LIW girls aren't the only ones who plan weddings. Mine is May 2012 and I have no worries about booking anytime soon.

Re: How far in advance did you...

Congrats on your engagement!!!

Honestly, I think it depends on the vendor. I got engaged 10/16/09 and booked my reception hall and band about a month later. If it's a vendor that books fast and you know you absolutely must have...then go ahead and book. Video and photo and florist I booked around Feb. 2010. We definitely went to several places to get prices. We were able to compare and booked the vendors we were most happiest with.

Re: How far in advance did you...

Im getting married in May 2012 and i've booked my photographer and dj.

Re: How far in advance did you...

I am in the same boat as you except its my mom thats worried they will go out of business and she says waiting won't kill me. I really wanted to book my RH before the holidays but since my dad's business is seasonal and I'm not too picky about the date I decided I will hold off till spring (but it will kill me from now until the day I book)

Re: How far in advance did you...

I got engaged in Feb. of 09 and booked my reception hall in Nov. 09.

Re: How far in advance did you...

I would book now to lock in pricing...however...put your deposits on credit cards. This way, if something happens, the credit card will reimburse you and go after the merchant.

Re: How far in advance did you...

My wedding is May 2012 and we already booked our RH and booking photo sometime next week.

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I booked my vendors exactly a year out

Re: How far in advance did you...

Although I get what your mother in law is saying, I agree with the other poster that technically, a business could close down whether you book a year in advance or 6 months in advance. I dont think you have to necessarily follow a time line, but given that you have a nice amount of time of wedding planning (I was engaged for 2 years). just use the time wisely to research various vendors and meet with them. If you find someone that fits all your criteria, I would say go ahead and book with them, rather than wait because you never know if your day will be taken by someone else. Good luck!

Re: How far in advance did you...

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Posted by Cloudy327

Hey ladies,

How far in advance did you book your vendors? I am getting married in April 2012 and would like to start booking my dj, photog, etc to get 2010 prices. However, my future mother in law is telling me not to because she says that the wedding is a long while away and companies could go out of business before then and screw us over. Any thoughts/opinions on this are greatly appreciated

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i started booking vendors for my november 2011 wedding in february 2010. if you use reputable vendors, you don't have to worry about them going out of business. my mom said the same thing to me about limo companies but in the end we were deciding between two companies that have literally been around for decades.

if you're using people who are more freelance, then yes, i agree with your FMIL - proceed with caution with respect to whether or not you think they'll go out of business.

Re: How far in advance did you...

and just to add, most things you don't have to leave huge deposits on except for photography usually - i know some girls on here have left like $50 deposits with their florists and/or DJs!

.

Re: How far in advance did you...

RH: about a year and a half in advance
Photog/DJ: about a year in advance
Dress/Limo/Florist: just under a year

Re: How far in advance did you...

I booked most of my vendors 1.5-1 years in advance. No matter when you book them, they could go out of business.

Re: How far in advance did you...

We had some vendors WAAAY in advance.

Wedding Date January 17, 2010

We booked our hall in November 2007
Photographer February of 2008
DJ was booked February of 2009 I believe
Makeup May 2009
Hair September 2009
Uplighting October 2009
Florist May 2009 I want to say
Harpist for ceremony February 2009 (possibly 08, dont remember right now)

Re: How far in advance did you...

We booked our hall, church, DJ and photographer in Feb-March of 2009 and got married Sept. 2010.

Our florist was about 2 months later along with limos. The last vendor we booked was our uplighting.

Re: How far in advance did you...

My wedding is January 13, 2012 and I already have all of my vendors booked except for limos. I wanted to make sure that I got the 2010 prices and wanted to book them asap so that I didn't have to worry about it later. I think that you should book your vendors whenever you are ready to.