Fredericton Event Planner Adapts Her Wedding Business During The Pandemic
FREDERICTON – Stephanie Renée Ferguson was planning her wedding for two years when Covid-19 struck.
The special day that should have gathered 100 people in the picturesque town of St. Andrews, was now 20 guests socially distanced in the backyard of an Airbnb on Fredericton’s Waterloo Row.
“It was a very emotional time, mourning that loss of the dream day we had been planning for two years,” said Ferguson.
While the full-scale wedding in St. Andrews is set to go ahead this year, Ferguson and her husband still wanted to celebrate with a small ceremony.
“We didn’t want Covid-19 to take that away from us,” said Ferguson.
So Ferguson enlisted the help of Chantilly Lace Designs to help transform her wedding into a magical yet Covid-friendly celebration.
Chantilly Lace Designs owner Lacey Porter listened to every request and worked through every emotion to ensure the wedding was perfectly tailored to Ferguson.
“She was my brain on that day,” said Ferguson. “I could just live through this super exciting moment of finally getting married to my husband.”
Chantilly Lace Designs was founded in 2013 by Lacey Porter, who fell in love with event planning after arranging her own wedding earlier that year.
Porter and her 10 employees offer their expertise on vendors in the area and help clients navigate the wedding planning process. Porter said the goal is that each event is unique to the client.
“What we really pride ourselves on is that no two weddings or events will look the same, because we want it to be a complete depiction of you and your spouse,” said Porter.
When Covid-19 struck, Chantilly Lace was left scrambling to rearrange its wedding show, which was scheduled to take place only one week after the virus hit the province.
“The first thing that we had to do was 100 percent disaster management,” said Porter. “At this point in time, we didn’t really know how it was going to affect weddings this year.”
The team managed to create a virtual wedding show, including showcasing vendors and a webinar, after which the Chantilly Lace team felt confident in revisiting their clients’ wedding plans.
New restrictions meant a maximum capacity of 50 people, masks for all employees, and guests seated within their respective bubbles. Ferguson’s wedding celebration included a ceremony and cocktail hour, however no dance floor because of Covid-19.
Chantilly Lace adapted to the circumstances by staying in close contact with clients and adjusting to changes. Clients send Porter their inspiration pictures and ideas, which Porter and her team use to design their wedding.
Porter said Chantilly Lace Designs’ business model of tailoring each wedding to each client helped alleviate changes throughout Covid-19.
“I think that if we had these cookie-cutter plans, it would have been much more challenging to adapt,” said Porter.
Despite Chantilly Lace Designs’ adaptability, the company still suffered the effects of Covid-19.
The typical wedding season runs from May to October. Chantilly Lace Designs will typically work 60 weddings a year, but Covid-19 shrunk that number to 10.
“Our revenue was basically nonexistent this year,” said Porter.
But Chantilly Lace Designs also sells home decor, which has increased in popularity during the pandemic. By early November, they had already fulfilled more orders for wreaths than during the entire 2019 holiday season. In response to high demand, Chantilly Lace Designs introduced memberships and gift certificates for the holiday season.
“Within the membership, you get four wreaths anytime throughout the year … Then I can design something specifically for them,” said Porter.
Chantilly Lace Designs will offer seasonal home décor memberships and seasonal wreaths in the new year. The company also partnered with a couple of businesses for holiday decor while also working with small businesses to decorate their stores for the holiday season.
Porter is hopeful, as clients that postponed their weddings to next year are rΩemaining with Chantilly Lace Designs for their event. Porter expects revenue will be up in 2021.