Wedding vendors, couples worried as season dries up
Large gatherings prohibited for foreseeable future, putting most weddings in limbo
The wedding season is in limbo because of COVID-19, forcing couples to reschedule their nuptials and putting some vendors in precarious positions.
Isabella Nicolo and her fiancé Mike Dambra were supposed to get married next month with 400 guests, some coming from as far away as Italy.
"I'm super flustered, really stressed," said Nicolo. "But we're honestly trying to make the best of the situation. It's such a tough situation for everybody, so we're trying to remain positive."
They're rescheduling everything from their florist and DJ, to their church and reception venue, to the end of September, but they're already considering Plan C — postponing until 2021.
"We always imagined having our close relatives there with us to celebrate our big day. But due to the travel restrictions, we don't know if those are going to be lifted by September."
2020 is a write-off
Nicolo and Dambra are not the only ones worried about all the uncertainty. The longer gatherings are prohibited and shutdowns continue, some event businesses are worried they may not be able to stay afloat.
"It's scary," said Stacy Kenopic, a wedding photographer based in Renfrew, Ont. She was supposed to photograph 27 weddings this year.
"I'm anxious because I do want to get back to work. I love shooting weddings and I know the couples are just as anxious as well."
Being self-employed, she's only eligible for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). While the majority of weddings she's booked to photograph are in August and September and are in a wait-and-see phase, she's had some couples ask for their deposits back — something she cannot afford.
"I financially don't have the income right now coming in. The CERB only pays a limited amount of money that covers… my rent and my bills."
She's still left paying her business expenses including insurance and website costs, something she doesn't know how she'll pay for when CERB runs out after 16 weeks.
Steve Lachance has also seen most of his catering business dry up.
"It's the season where we're ramping up and usually by mid-May we have about 130 employees working for the company," he said.
Weddings make up 15 to 20 per cent of Bytown Catering's business, but he's seen that number drop to zero as couples call in to postpone or cancel their weddings.
He's paid back some deposits, he said.
"The way I look at it, 2020 is a write-off and you know, we're not going to recoup that."
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