Tapestry’s Vision for the Wedding Industry: The Vendor Community
Writing about our vision for the future of an industry is no small act. There are so many facets to consider, so many potential lives impacted, and so much already bound up in marriage and weddings. How to untangle all of that into a vision?
The only way I know how to write this blog is by rooting for the future that I wish already existed today. The ideas that follow are not revolutionary because they are new. They are not revolutionary because they do not already exist. Instead, they are revolutionary because they are not common practice.
What we envision at Tapestry, more than anything else, is an industry that shifts its center from binding traditions, aesthetic trends, and consumerism to an industry based in meaningful ritual, diversity and inclusion, and thoughtful investments in art and connection. So from that intention, here is our vision for the future of the vendors of the wedding industry.
ABOUT THE PROFESSIONAL VENDOR COMMUNITY
WE ENVISION A FUTURE WHERE OUR COMMUNITY OF WEDDING PROFESSIONALS IS…
Clear about who they serve, how they go about it, and what they charge for it.
Let’s be clear here: we aren’t asking for every wedding creative to standardize their practices and run their businesses according to the same model. One of the things we love the most about our industry is the sheer amount of creativity available at any given moment and the opportunity to work with a vastly different group of people every time. However, we do believe that it would benefit everyone–couples, vendors, and their families–if all wedding professionals were more direct about who their ideal client is, how they work with their couples, and what their products and services cost. As planners, we are passionate about and take so much pride in making stellar client-vendor matches. We love when we have information on both sides to make an enthusiastic match based on personality, values, and product or service fit. So consider this a vote on the side of creating more up-front information, transparency, and honesty. After all, clarity is kind to EVERYONE.
Open source with their knowledge, knowing that what sets them apart is their art.
If you’re a professional in the wedding community, chances are you have some sort of fact-finding or client consultation process. This is time that you give feely in order to understand if a couple is a good fit for your offering. And if you’ve been around for any amount of time, chances are that, from time-to-time, you may have been met with a couple who is clearly pumping you for information with little intention to hire you, or you may have been met with a couple who you really connect with only to be ghosted without explanation. Both of those scenarios sting in different ways and can cause us professionals to become jaded about our time and hoarding of our information and expertise. We get it. We feel it, too. But siloing your expertise at the start of a relationship does not help move the collective forward. We aren’t saying that you should give your entire body of work away for free. But we are saying that your knowledge, especially in the context of a free hour of your time, is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to your value and your art. We should treat our couples as kind and capable when it comes to educating them about our industry and our work. We would love to see a community that shares and educates each other more freely so that we can bring clients and other vendors along with us when decisions need to be made. Information is power and a rising tide lifts all boats.
Respectful and supportive, giving kind words and growth-oriented feedback together.
In the five years we have worked in the wedding industry, we have had two vendors and one set of clients offer us feedback. Coming from the fitness industry where you got feedback after every class you taught, this is a huge opportunity for us to grow as professionals. Certainly, as entrepreneurs many of us actively value our independence and creative freedom. However, there is a huge, untapped opportunity for us to learn from each other’s experiences and improve the experience of our clients if we begin to create a culture where we share honestly and respectfully with one another. Starting with our 2023 events, we are actively facilitating feedback from our clients and our vendor community during the planning process and after event execution. We know we can grow and become better while balancing feedback against our unique approach and offering. It’s time for us to walk the walk, and we invite you to do the same. Information is a tool and the more perspective we get on our impact, the better.
Images courtesy of Weiss Photo and Film.
Proactively pursuing inclusivity, which includes all colors, ethnicities, gender expressions, familial structures, body types, abilities, ages, and beliefs.
Sitting in the year 2022, the representation of diverse groups in our industry is improving as compared to when we began our journey in this industry in 2017. And yes, change takes time, in addition to big action. However, this shit ain’t moving fast enough for us over here at Tapestry. And yes, ironically, that’s coming from a group of predominantly white women. Most of the wedding content and imagery being pushed out by publications and promoted on social media platforms centers cis, white, Western, virginal, able-bodied couples. On the production and consumption side, we can all be doing better. We believe in doing our part by featuring diverse couple imagery in all of our marketing endeavors. If we can do it, the big publications can. And until we all start calling out the biases of those publications as a vendor community, we can expect this needle to continue moving at a glacial pace. Time to take big action, people, no matter the size of your business.
In full ownership of our power to transform the world through communication and teamwork.
The entrepreneurial space is full of lone wolves. We’re the people who don't fit or feel comfortable in an office or corporate environment. We needed to scratch the itch for freedom and creativity by going into business for ourselves.
But that lone wolf mentality can come at a rather large cost when it comes to building events in teams. An event is an organism that needs all its contributors working in concert with each other. If someone is disconnected from the collaboration and breaks off on their own, their actions can deeply impact the experience of the couple and the successful operation of the event at large. While each event has a different set of players inside of a different environment, we believe that we can all become better by operating as a team, making proactive efforts at collaboration, and adapting to unexpected challenges in a manner that upholds the values of the couple and the integrity of what we promise in our work. We can do this by being respectful of each other's time and resources, seeking opportunities to connect and communicate in support of each other’s creativity and performance. We can do this by keeping love and joy at the center of our work, while banding together to GET SHIT DONE when the day-to-day gets sticky and challenging. We can do this by being inquisitive and genuinely interested in what makes each other’s roles work and taking action that supports one another’s success. If a little bit of communication can produce joy in the work and the collaboration, why not make the effort? That level of TEAM is what makes for better events and a more beautiful community.