According to the Federal Statistical Office, exactly 357,785 marriages were concluded in Germany in 2021. It is therefore important to think in good time when and where to celebrate so as not to find yourself in front of fully booked locations or being brushed off by caterers. The planning can be overwhelming for some people who want to get married. How much time should be planned? What budget is necessary? What should you take into account? To find answers to all the questions that prospective brides and grooms ask themselves, Stern spoke to TV wedding planner Froonck – who doesn’t like reading his real name in the press.
Froonck became known in 2005 through the reality show “Sarah
Froonck, planning weddings is your specialty. You have gained a lot of experience throughout your career. What particularly challenged you? I’ve had a few challenges (laughs). For example, the wedding of Sarah Conner and Marc Terenzi back then. The order came at super short notice. We had three months to prepare everything. The conditions stretched all of my capacity: my first celebrity wedding, my first wedding abroad, and my first televised wedding. The filming was then added. I constantly traveled between Berlin, Wildeshausen and Barcelona. I couldn’t have taken more pressure, I don’t think!
So three months of planning time is clearly not enough. Not for us as professionals for weddings without TV, but for the bride and groom themselves, the laypeople are definitely in this area! A preparation period of one year would be ideal. However, this also depends on the season. If you want to get married in the high season from May to September, you should take care of locations and caterers early on because the great ones can be fully booked very quickly. If you want to go to a region other than your place of residence or abroad, it is sometimes even advisable to plan a year and a half in advance.
What is the minimum cost of a wedding? The most important parameter is the number of people. The biggest cost at a wedding is catering costs. And they are calculated per person. The prices are then between 80 euros and 300 euros per person – depending on what food and drinks you want to offer. Then there are the other basics: the minimum is the location, decorations such as flowers, DJ, photographers, styling. Not to forget the outfits, i.e. wedding dress, suit and rings. Of course, the costs also depend on the duration of the event or the scope and quality level of the provider. Then there are things that are ‘nice to have’: videographer, photo booth, sweet table, classic car, party favors
When should invitation cards be sent? At least six months in advance. Because the guests have to be able to plan early enough and, for example, request a vacation, especially during the holiday season. You should also make sure that there are no events happening at the time, such as a football championship or another major event. For dates that are in high demand, I recommend sending out save-the-date cards as soon as the date for the wedding is set or the location is fixed. Then the guests can save the date. And at a later date, around three months before the date, you can then send out the invitation cards with further information.
When should the wedding dress be bought? This is an issue that the bride should address very early on. The “off-the-rack” dresses, i.e. not individually made-to-measure dresses, require up to nine months of production time, but at least six months because they come from abroad. If you go to a store and find a model, the dress then has to be produced for the bride and possibly adjusted afterwards. Order and production times are six to eight months. Many people get married in the summer, so providers have a lot to do at the beginning of the year. This should be taken into account.
Registry office vs. church or free wedding: What should you consider? At the registry office, the large, white wedding dress is a no-go. Personally, it is always important to me that everything is harmonious and perfectly coordinated – the visual aesthetics. If you go to a historic town hall, for example, you can get a little excited. But in office-like rooms, which are rather cool and simple, you should hold back. The dress must match the atmosphere and the style of the location.
What can help with planning? There are lots of advice books. I also wrote a book myself where I share learnings from stories I have experienced. I also give countless tips in my series “4 Weddings and a Dream Trip”. Instructions in books are good, especially for the couples who are amateurs. And I recommend talking to friends who have already gotten married and who you can trust. At the beginning, every couple should sit down together and define the key points of their wedding, i.e. compare their wishes, ideas and expectations. And the couple should make it clear right at the start of planning whether they want help from family and friends or whether they want to distance themselves from them. The question you should ask yourself is: Are we doing this as a couple or is this a family affair? Many people see this differently. In addition, all costs should be calculated initially.
Has something ever gone really wrong at one of your planned weddings? Luckily no one has said no yet (laughs). But of course there were exciting backstage stories where something didn’t work out as planned. Once a band arrived without a suitcase, so we had to organize clothing at short notice. Then a bride’s dress tore just before entering the church. I then held it together with needles. Our emergency kit is always with us. It also happened that the food for the service providers was so bad that we spontaneously organized pizza. The general rule is: always remain flexible and always have a plan B.
Source: Federal Statistical Office
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