Why Won't You Email Me Back?

My recent experience dealing with venue coordinators has led me to one conclusion: they’ve taken a page from Adele, and communicate using flip phones only. That has to be the reason for the delayed email responses, right? No immediate access to email?

“Professional Larkey” responds to emails within minutes, unless I’m away from my phone or desk. If that’s the case, it may take a few hours. But! Rest assured, dear colleagues, I will respond to your query as soon as I have a secure Internet connection.

 I’d say my email response time is pretty typical of a media person, but,  I’ve never worked in another industry, so I don’t really know if waiting three to five days for a response is normal. Is it? 

In the coordinating world it certainly is! I’ve started to get use to waiting days (if not a week) for a response. This is from multiple venues, by the way. 

 I get it, they might be busy dealing with other clients but, I have questions that need answers! I wanted to know if mine was a universal experience, so I reached out to a few friends who are either hitched, or have friends getting hitched, to hear about their experience.

*Names have been removed to protect the brides & bridesmaids

 ROYAL CANADIAN YACHT CLUB

Overall I think they might have got back to me within a day or two, based on the time stamps in my sent emails. But, I did have to follow up on the final bill at the end of July (I got married in June). They didn't send me the final bill until early August.  

ROSEWATER SUPPER CLUB

The rosewater was really good with getting back to us. I think it was the next day. Anytime we emailed them about questions/concerns, we got pretty quick responses compared to other places we contacted. I would totally recommend them, the wedding coordinator there was really helpful.
 

PALAIS ROYALE

I have had such a positive experience with my wedding coordinator at Palais Royale. The longest I think she has taken to get back to me is probably 3 days and she apologized profusely for the delay. 

THE FIFTH SOCIAL CLUB

My friend is getting married in June and wanted to do it at the Fifth, was all ready to book and give a deposit but no one got back to her even after she followed up a couple of times. It’s so shitty because that was the venue they wanted, but it was too stressful to rely on people who don’t get back to you when you’re spending that much money!

Meeting Really Nice Strangers (Otherwise known as Wedding Venue Coordinators)

Wedding venue coordinators are really nice.  I mean, really, really, really nice. I don’t know what I was expecting when I started reaching out to set up viewing appointments. I guess, indifference on their part?

Naive, I know.

Coordinating your wedding is easy for them. I mean, sure, it’s your big day, but these people deal with “big days” all year round. They’re professionals. Your “big day” is just another day of work for them, which leads me to my next point. They want your business, and will work hard to get it. Making a sale, ya know?  

Peter and I made appointments to see the Enoch Turner Schoolhouse and Airship37. We chose them because:

-       The price was right

-       Both allow for onsite ceremonies

-       You can bring in your own booze

-        You can DJ yourself (as long as you pay the $70 SOCAN fee)

First stop? Enoch Turner Schoolhouse. The venue has a cutesy schoolhouse/old church basement vibe that we loved. The washrooms are very clean (important!) and the building is accessible.

My photographer/fiance took this picture. It doesn't do the decor justice. I guess this is why Google Image Search exists. Also, my parents are in the picture. They came along for the ride. Also, I'm carrying a sweet Pizza Underground tote that I subsequently lost that day on the TTC.  

The coordinator let us spend as much time as we needed in the venue, and had a massive book featuring pictures from previous weddings at the Schoolhouse. If you’re a venue coordinator and reading this, I suggest you start your own venue booklet. It was great to see the different ways the room could be dressed up.

The one downside? Lighting. My cousin who is a photographer warned us about this. Once we were in the venue I definitely knew what she meant. It wasn't the greatest. But, Peter and I weren’t about to let a little tungsten get in our way. We left armed with their preferred caterers list so we could price out a dinner.

After a quick lunch of grilled avocado/brie sandwiches (great wedding venue hunting sustenance) we made our way to Airship37.

The venue is located at the back of an industrial building. It took us a couple of tries to figure that out.

Airship37 has a very modern look. In fact, someone who enjoys wearing peasant skirts and beaded necklaces from a local fair might describe it as “funky”.

Funky. 

The washrooms were clean, the building accessible, and the lighting fantastic. We were impressed. When I mentioned ipod DJing, the coordinator dropped a big bomb. That’s allowed, but there’s an $800 AV fee. Ouch. What's included in the fee? The use of their sound system, a person to set up the PA system etc. etc. I suddenly realized there might be a few more fees than we initially realized. The coordinator said she would put together a sample quote for us and send later that day. 

Peter and I went back home and fired off a few emails to caterers while waiting for the wedding coordinator to get back to us. 

Side note: Sorry this post is a few days late! I was in Minneapolis for my cousin's wedding! I had an amazing time and will tell you all about it in a few weeks!