There are a lot of moving parts when it comes to planning a wedding and many decisions to make to ensure the most perfect day. However, nothing is as stressful as day-of mishaps with your vendors. Selecting the right Chattanooga wedding vendors can be a daunting task, but making sure that you have a qualified team of professionals can help make the day as seamless as possible from beginning to end.
Luckily, as a warm, welcoming, and inclusive space to celebrate life’s most special moments, we’ve been able to vet some of the top Chattanooga wedding vendors, like floral designers, caterers, DJs and more. When working with The Valley Venues, we’re committed to ensuring you have an unforgettable day. As such, here are recommendations from our very own co-founder and Certified Wedding Planner, Kobi Cummings, on how to find the top vendors in the area.
Florals Bring the Venue to Life
One of the most expected things to see at any wedding is flowers. They set the tone, convey the color scheme and add to the theming and style of the wedding. Outside of the beauty they bring, they are a deep-rooted tradition in a wedding, symbolizing blossoming love and new beginnings.
Florals adorn almost every aspect of the wedding, from decorating the ceremony, reception, bridal bouquets and groomsmen boutonniere. If anything were to go wrong, such as damaged or wilted blooms, wrong colors or out-of-season selections, it can transform spaces and remove personalized touches from an event that should specifically represent you as a couple.
Kobi’s Tip: Find a vendor that can work within your vision and budget! Flowers can get expensive quickly so consider alternative options like using a faux florist! The quality of faux florals has come a long way. It is a fantastic way to save exponentially on your wedding for big-piece items, which are mostly seen from a distance, like arbors or photo walls. Some venues, like The Valley Venues, even have faux florals in the decor libraries. The couples can use them so they can save even more. You can also opt for a mix of fake and real flowers. Using live flowers for those closer-up details, such as bouquets and centerpieces.
Culinary Excellence for Every Palate
Catering plays a critical role in guest satisfaction because everyone remembers the food for better or for worse. Serving high-quality dishes, having variety, including options for those with dietary restrictions, and creative presentation can elevate the guest experience.
For many weddings, food helps create rhythm or flow, moving guests from the ceremony to the cocktail hour and then to the reception. If any portion of the appetizers or dishes gets delayed, it can throw off the whole timeline of the wedding day. Also, having enough food is absolutely essential. Making sure your guests are well-fed is key to a successful wedding—a hungry guest isn’t a happy guest so your caterer should guide you on an appropriate amount based on the size without upcharging you.
Kobi’s Tip: Get creative with it! You don’t have to stick to a couple of meats and sides. Consider the specific vibe of the wedding and how you as a couple can customize the food. If your first date was at a pizza restaurant, bringing in a brick pizza oven would be a fun and unexpected catering option. Guests also love interacting with food trucks. Hire your favorite local taco truck as the late-night snack option for tired guests as they leave the venue. In any option, look for a caterer who can provide a polished, all-inclusive service. This might include handling plates, napkins, and table settings, which ensures everything aligns with your vision.
Capturing Every Precious Moment
Wedding photography and videography are tangible ways to document and capture authentic emotions and beautiful candid moments of your day. Ensuring you and your team are on the same page is important because they only have one shot (literally). If they show up at the wrong time or miss certain shots, this is one area where you can’t adjust or go back. It’s also important that you feel comfortable with the team(s) and that they are unobtrusive in capturing the day in a candid and natural way without getting in the way.
Kobi’s Tip: Before you book a photographer and videographer, ensure their work. Such as photo style and editing, aligns with your vision. Offer clear communication with them on what you want, preferences, special shots, and must-have moments. Make sure that they can deliver on those. It’s also important to build rapport with them. So you both feel comfortable collaborating on details, timing and any questions or concerns leading up to and during the day.
The most important tip is to take as much time as you need to make the best choice for the vendor that fits your vision. Make sure that they have the best intentions and that you aren’t just any other event that they’re doing that weekend but are dedicated to your day. After all your vendors are booked, make sure they are in touch and connected to your planner. On the day of the big event, the planner will be the one making sure all vendors are sticking to their timelines and that everything is organized. So it doesn’t put more stress on the venue or clients. Each aspect comes together to make this big day. You want to make sure that you have all these team players coming together and doing their part.
Chattanooga wedding vendor research is much like dating; finding the right match for you may take a little time. Aligning your wants and needs with what potential vendors offer can create a lot of back and forth. But it’s well worth the extra time to ensure that last-minute problems don’t arise. When booking with The Valley Venues, we offer wedding planning assistance and recommendations for trusted Chattanooga wedding vendors. Learn more and book a tour with us today!
