Types of employers – Success

Resorts

One of the most fabulous jobs you can have in the wedding industry is working as a wedding coordinator at a luxury resort. A resort is any place that people visit for recreation or relaxation. One of the obvious benefits is of course that you get to live and work in a tropical paradise! And with the tremendous growth in the number of ‘destination weddings’ over the past few years, there is increased job security and more demand for wedding coordinators.

As a wedding coordinator your job will involve handling arrangements for couples that will be coming to the resort from wherever it is they live. In addition to the usual tasks involved in planning a wedding ceremony and reception, there may be a number of additional tasks such as picking the couple up at the airport, organising pick up and accommodation for their guests, and finding someone to perform the ceremony.

Depending on the facilities available at the resort, your job may also involve arranging recreational activities for the couple and their guests – from spa visits to snorkelling, to a candlelit dinner for the newlyweds.

One way to get hired as a wedding coordinator for a resort is to apply directly to the particular resort you want to work with.

Hotels

A hotel may be the site of many events – from banquets to business meetings. Therefore, many hotels do not hire someone with the specific title of wedding coordinator, because arranging weddings is only part of the job.

If you want to work with a hotel, the department that will give you an opportunity to work with couples planning a wedding reception is likely to be known as ‘events’, ‘sales and catering’ or ‘conference and banqueting’.

There are usually several levels of position with ‘coordinator’ being the entry level, then ‘representative’, ‘manager’ and finally ‘director’ – or some similar sort of title. At some larger hotels, there may be several people in each level of position.

Someone who is at the level of ‘sales manager’ or ‘sales and catering manager’ may specialise in weddings.

To find a job in the hotel industry, you can start by visiting the websites of hotel chains you are interested in working with. These sites list hotel locations on their websites and you can apply directly to the hotel/s you are interested in working with. You may also find a few job opportunities listed on the website.

Reception venues

Any place a couple might choose to host a wedding is a possible place to apply for a job. For example, you might find work in a function centre, convention centre, country club, golf club or yacht clubs. You might even find work on a boat that specialises in events and weddings.

Retailers

Retail offers many options for those who want to work in the wedding industry, and yet have the security of a steady paycheque. Most job openings are for junior positions, but this gives you the opportunity to learn about this area of the industry from the ground up.

The main focus of a retail job is selling the store’s merchandise by helping people choose products for the wedding. While most retail jobs involve working with the bride, you might also find a position that will allow you to assist others involved in the wedding such as the groom, mother of the bride, attendants and guests.

Among the retailers that hire salespeople to work with brides and grooms include bridal shops, formalwear stores, florists, jewellery stores, department stores, other stores with gift registries (see below).

You may be given the title of ‘bridal consultant’, and you will certainly learn a lot about the wedding industry in such a role in retail. You may choose to stay in such a role, or use it as a stepping stone to another career in the industry. For example, if you stay in retail you may move into a position such as a ‘buyer’ (someone who decides what merchandise the store will carry) or manager. Or you might use what you learn during your retail experience to help you start your own wedding planning business.

Stores with gift registries

You might find a job as a bridal consultant for a large department store that offers a bridal gift registry. This is a free service offered by many large retailers.

Couples can register a list of gifts they would like to receive, and then the guests invited to the wedding can refer to the list for assistance in choosing suitable wedding gifts. In some cases, gift-givers can even browse the items the couple has selected online. Not only is gift buying made easier for guests, registering makes it more likely the couple will receive gifts they really want and need.

Traditional gift registry items include china, crystal, linens and silver, but couples may register anything else they want – from coffee machines to art.

Your job would involve assisting couples in registering and selecting gift items, with the aim of increasing sales for the store. Stores offering gift registries include department stores, jewellery stores, home-wares stores and gift stores.

On this link you can find a list of 44 best wedding registry of sites and stores.

Wedding planning companies

An excellent way to gain experience as a wedding planner is to join a company that already does wedding planning. These people might refer to themselves as wedding planners, bridal consultants, wedding coordinators or wedding consultants.
While you may be able to find a company that is looking to hire a fulltime wedding planner, more likely you will find a job as an assistant to a wedding planner (if you see The Wedding Planner, you might remember that Jennifer Lopez’s character had an assistant).

As an assistant to a wedding planner, you may be involved in all aspects of a company’s work. You can learn a tremendous amount about the industry in a role such as this, which you may then be able to put to good use when you set up your own wedding planning business.

Churches

Some churches or chapels, particularly larger churches or those in tourist destinations, may hire someone to assist couples with preparing for the ceremony. This job does not involve helping with the reception, just the ceremony. The job title here is likely to be ‘wedding coordinator’, and the job itself involves coordinating bookings for the church facilities, liaising with the couple to plan their ceremony, explaining church policies and procedures, advising on all aspects of the ceremony, conducting the rehearsal and supervising on the day of the ceremony.

At some churches, wedding coordinating is done by a full time office administrator or administrative assistant, as part of their job.