How to negotiate and deal with suppliers
Photography: Harry Michael
Here at La Lista we believe in supporting couples to have the best wedding they possibly can with the budget they have.
Getting value for your spend is super important and we get that. It’s equally important to us that suppliers are paid fairly for their knowledge, expertise and service or products. So how do you strike the right balance here?
There’s some seriously out of date beliefs out there that wedding suppliers over charge. We’ve all heard the line that once you mention ‘wedding’, the price doubles. In some cases that may well be true but there are legitimate reasons for that. Let’s explore this further…
If you pop to a restaurant for a 3 course meal, it could cost 50+ euro. When you hire a caterer, you’re hiring a team, that works for 7+ hours, their travel, their equipment hire, the fresh produce, the incredible chef dedicated to you and much, much more. So if that costs 100 euro+, it really is justified.
A great piece of advice I was once given was to ask for these details. If you don’t understand why something costs more than you think it should, ask why. Once you understand, it’s definitely more stomachable! Suppliers will always be happy and proud to share how their business works and why things cost what they do.
Another myth to bust! Suppliers aren’t expecting to negotiate with you on every single booking they make. Yes there can be room for negotiation if approached the right way (more on that below) but it’s certainly not the norm.
If you do decide to try and negotiate, we’d suggest that obviously coming from a place of huge respect for that supplier, their years of training, knowledge and experience is the best place to start. If you really want to work with someone but just can’t afford it, try offering the best price you can give and some suppliers will make that work if they’ve connected with you and you share the same vision for your wedding.
Another way to approach negotiation is to get more value from your spend. So instead of cutting costs, see if there are additional things that can be added to whatever it is you’re buying. With catering, that could be some more wine at dinner, or inclusion of a wedding cake. This technically saves you money as these would be extra costs.
Catering: Giovannini Enterprises
If you’re unsure about what you’ve being quoted the best thing to do is to get comparative quotes. So that’s getting like for like services quoted by different companies and seeing if and why costs are different. Different companies will charge different amounts for reasons beyond profit. They may have more experience, or a more refined product, use different equipment or materials which come at different costs. Of course sometimes it can just come down to profit and by comparing quotes, you'll be able to see this clearly.
Finally, let’s be sensitive to what suppliers have been through the last 18 months. Yes, there has been a wedding season in Italy this year and suppliers have been busier than normal, but that certainly doesn’t mean they’ve caught up financially. After over a year of losses, they may just be back in a normal position if they’re lucky but most will likely be behind where they were and exhausted from the summer. Patience and kindness goes a long way at the moment!
Wedding suppliers hugely respect you and your wedding. If we all understand what’s involved in their job a little, their pricing and more, they’re a lot more likely to be in a position to come towards you.
Another great way to sense-check quotes and get fab supplier recommendations is to join our private Facebook group where you will find hundreds of other like-minded couples also planning their wedding in Italy.
We (the La Lista team) are also on hand to answer your questions and offer advice. See you over there!
Written by Lucy White, Founder of La Lista & Wiskow & White, with over 5 years and 150 weddings worth of experience.
