Why don't vendors include prices

JCbride2015

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Fran1985 said:

I had to remind this caterer 4 times to send me a proposed menu because she wouldn't send me menu prices, only a proposed menu. I finally get it and its 25k for just food. Umm you could of saved us both a lot of time by giving me a range 6 weeks ago. 

AddieCake said:

$25k for food?!?!

HOLY SHIT. Twenty-five thousand dollars. Our meal estimates are coming in under $6k, with an extra $600 for 22 dozen cupcakes. How many guests are you having?

Errr... our catering estimate (still very TBD based on consumption bar) is $20k... but that's for 250 people. Not including the cake.

I'm doing the SpongeBob-hiding-in-a-pineapple thing too.  Our estimate is $22k for 150 people, but that includes all booze and the cake.  New Jersey/ New York are expensive, yo.

Our venue gave us prices immediately when we asked for them.  They were one of the only places to be so upfront with us, and it was a big plus.

One photographer I met at a bridal show told me their most basic package was $2k.  He asked if I needed both photo and video and I said no, just photo.  So we go in to meet with them, and the $2k package is for video only.  Photography alone starts at $3k.  Really, dude?  I felt it was dishonest and a big waste of our time.

larrygaga

ClimbingBrideNY said:

That green carpet sounds fugly. 

JCbride2015

larrygaga said:

ClimbingBrideNY said:

That green carpet sounds fugly. 

That's actually not as bad as I imagined.  When you said indoor-outdoor, I was picturing Astroturf.

theartistformerlyknownas

larrygaga said:

ClimbingBrideNY said:

That green carpet sounds fugly. 

HORK

larrygaga

lolo883 said:

larrygaga said:

ClimbingBrideNY said:

That green carpet sounds fugly. 

HORK

"Hello, are the photos of your ballroom on your website current?"

"Yes"

peace

chibiyui

I feel like I should clarify. I don't lie to customers, if you ask a question, I'll give you an accurate answer. I won't volunteer answers, especially if I don't know what you're looking for, and if you tell me a budget I will show you what you can get for that budget. And then I'll show you the step up if you're not satisfied with what's in your budget.

I also avoided vendors who weren't clear with their pricing or had no/bad websites. I understand why they didn't have prices available, and avoiding a vendor for those reasons is very valid.

But yeah. I still gotta eat.

theartistformerlyknownas

larrygaga said:

lolo883 said:

larrygaga said:

ClimbingBrideNY said:

That green carpet sounds fugly. 

HORK

"Hello, are the photos of your ballroom on your website current?"

"Yes"

peace

My venue had that narsty ass carpet. Like... tropical vines and shit. You're a golf course in Detroit; ain't no vines around here to pay homage to. I was willing to get over it because it means SO MUCH (read: EVERYTHING) to FI to get married there, but TOTALLY lucked out that they replaced it a few months ago with this fabulousness that actually goes with my colors. AND painted over the dark green walls with pale blues and beiges. (Unfortunately I don't get the chaivari chairs and linens.)

Fran1985

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Fran1985 said:

I had to remind this caterer 4 times to send me a proposed menu because she wouldn't send me menu prices, only a proposed menu. I finally get it and its 25k for just food. Umm you could of saved us both a lot of time by giving me a range 6 weeks ago. 

AddieCake said:

$25k for food?!?!

HOLY SHIT. Twenty-five thousand dollars. Our meal estimates are coming in under $6k, with an extra $600 for 22 dozen cupcakes. How many guests are you having?

Errr... our catering estimate (still very TBD based on consumption bar) is $20k... but that's for 250 people. Not including the cake.

Yeah this quote was for 150 people and DID NOT INCLUDE ALCOHOL. And they were like a no name place! they had a small write up in a local paper but they were like a 5 person shop. There is a few places that have the "name" and I know they run about a 150pp no booze. Because they told me so in the first email. This person made up this whole customized menu for me. It was silly.  

theartistformerlyknownas

Fran1985 said:

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Fran1985 said:

I had to remind this caterer 4 times to send me a proposed menu because she wouldn't send me menu prices, only a proposed menu. I finally get it and its 25k for just food. Umm you could of saved us both a lot of time by giving me a range 6 weeks ago. 

AddieCake said:

$25k for food?!?!

HOLY SHIT. Twenty-five thousand dollars. Our meal estimates are coming in under $6k, with an extra $600 for 22 dozen cupcakes. How many guests are you having?

Errr... our catering estimate (still very TBD based on consumption bar) is $20k... but that's for 250 people. Not including the cake.

Yeah this quote was for 150 people and DID NOT INCLUDE ALCOHOL. And they were like a no name place! they had a small write up in a local paper but they were like a 5 person shop. There is a few places that have the "name" and I know they run about a 150pp no booze. Because they told me so in the first email. This person made up this whole customized menu for me. It was silly.  

Yeahhhh that's ridiculous. You better be spoon-feeding and burping me like a baby for that much money.

larrygaga

lolo883 said:

larrygaga said:

lolo883 said:

larrygaga said:

ClimbingBrideNY said:

That green carpet sounds fugly. 

HORK

"Hello, are the photos of your ballroom on your website current?"

"Yes"

peace

My venue had that narsty ass carpet. Like... tropical vines and shit. You're a golf course in Detroit; ain't no vines around here to pay homage to. I was willing to get over it because it means SO MUCH (read: EVERYTHING) to FI to get married there, but TOTALLY lucked out that they replaced it a few months ago with this fabulousness that actually goes with my colors. AND painted over the dark green walls with pale blues and beiges. (Unfortunately I don't get the chaivari chairs and linens.)

It looks a million times better

FiancB

Generally I agree with the website thing but I did find a really excellent and cheap seamstress by word of mouth and she operates only by email. But that's different from a venue or whatever. 

I am annoyed because I decided kind of last minute that I want pro makeup/hair. I couldn't find someone to come to us so I booked at the nearest salon. That went okay, but then I got a call back to clarify things and the lady was REALLY pushy and now I feel squicky. It was like this:

"are you doing updos?" 

"not really, everybody has short hair. Maybe pinned back because we're getting married outside"

"so don't you want updos for everyone so you don't have to worry about it?"

"um, no, not really"

"ok I'm putting you down for 5 updos. Also you need to get here at 8" (I'm getting married at 4:30)

"uhhh, okay, can you give me prices? I was told it's pretty reflective of what's online but I'd like to get a better idea"

"well it depends, there's a range (higher than what's listed online), we just can't give a direct quote because we have no idea what people's hair types are"

So now I'm really freaking worried that all of a sudden what I thought was going to be reasonable is going to magically cost an arm and a leg and a firstborn son, even though NOBODY'S HAIR IS EVEN LONG ENOUGH FOR A FANCY UPDO, and somehow they need 6 hours to do all this. I'm tempted to cancel but I put in a deposit, but I'm tempted to cancel anyway. 

So, worse than not listing prices: listing them but then jacking them way up. I had a similar issue with a vendor listed on the knot: they advertise hair/makeup as "starting at $75" but then when I asked for just basic services, somehow I was quoted at over $1300. Wut. 

I understand that hair/makeup is a craft, but really I can do a decent job myself for free. 

SeaCaptainOtter

We shopped around in our area and got really frustrated with this, as well. Especially when venues present one price on the website, to get you in the door. Once they have you it turns out there are all these other costs.  We would waste hours taking a tour of a place that might be in our budget only to find out, oh yeah, we have all these additional fees and you have to get an ABC licence for the day, blah blah blah and etc. So, it turns out the venue it $5,000 over your budget... ok that was a waste of time.

We decided to get married on the military base FI is assigned to because everything was so much more up front - cost, expectations, contracts, and packages are all standard. 

Here's the thing: I might fall in love with the idea of a vineyard wedding, but I still need to pay my rent, and my car, and for food. Tricking me by saying the price is going to be one thing and then it turns out to be another is only going to seal the deal that I am NOT getting married at that venue.

theartistformerlyknownas

I was looking for prices for you and found this instead.

http://www.eventective.com/583967/Sean-Connery-James-Bond-Celebrity-Impersonator.html

Also, have you looked into Apple Mountain? IDK whether that would be more of a hassle in the winter time, but I've been to events there that were really nice and it seems pretty all-inclusive so the price may be worth it once everything is all bundled in. Reviews say the coordinator there is really responsive. It has $$ on Yelp but IDK what that means. Basically I'm not very much help but I am bored at work.

larrygaga

@lolo883 Thanks! I'll check it out. I have never heard of it.

beethery

Vendors that don't put prices out there are generally a NO from me. Also if the vendor is a self-employed person and they have spelling errors on their site, I side-eye. You built your own site, link all over the place to it, and get tons of traffic, BUT YOU COULDN'T SPELLCHECK OR HAVE SOMEONE PROOF-READ? Girl.

If their product is amazing and the price is right, I'll still use them, but you better believe I'll be double-checking everything. Especially the numbers.

theartistformerlyknownas

beethery said:

Vendors that don't put prices out there are generally a NO from me. Also if the vendor is a self-employed person and they have spelling errors on their site, I side-eye. You built your own site, link all over the place to it, and get tons of traffic, BUT YOU COULDN'T SPELLCHECK OR HAVE SOMEONE PROOF-READ? Girl.

If their product is amazing and the price is right, I'll still use them, but you better believe I'll be double-checking everything. Especially the numbers.

I passed a flooring store the other day whose MAIN SIGNAGE/AWNING displayed that they sell "Carpet and Vynle Tile."

JCbride2015

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Vendors that don't put prices out there are generally a NO from me. Also if the vendor is a self-employed person and they have spelling errors on their site, I side-eye. You built your own site, link all over the place to it, and get tons of traffic, BUT YOU COULDN'T SPELLCHECK OR HAVE SOMEONE PROOF-READ? Girl.

If their product is amazing and the price is right, I'll still use them, but you better believe I'll be double-checking everything. Especially the numbers.

I passed a flooring store the other day whose MAIN SIGNAGE/AWNING displayed that they sell "Carpet and Vynle Tile."

I skipped a dress shop that had all the designers I was interested in, purely because the ENTIRE WEBSITE WAS IN COMIC SANS.

beethery

lolo883 said:

I passed a flooring store the other day whose MAIN SIGNAGE/AWNING displayed that they sell "Carpet and Vynle Tile."

JCbride2015 said:

I skipped a dress shop that had all the designers I was interested in, purely because the ENTIRE WEBSITE WAS IN COMIC SANS.

Vynle. Vynle. Vy nle. NO.

Also, comic sans indicates dubious taste. If you are ok with comic sans, I don't trust you to not be a weirdo with ~ZANY~ opinions on shit.

KatieinBkln

JCbride2015 said:

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Vendors that don't put prices out there are generally a NO from me. Also if the vendor is a self-employed person and they have spelling errors on their site, I side-eye. You built your own site, link all over the place to it, and get tons of traffic, BUT YOU COULDN'T SPELLCHECK OR HAVE SOMEONE PROOF-READ? Girl.

If their product is amazing and the price is right, I'll still use them, but you better believe I'll be double-checking everything. Especially the numbers.

I passed a flooring store the other day whose MAIN SIGNAGE/AWNING displayed that they sell "Carpet and Vynle Tile."

I skipped a dress shop that had all the designers I was interested in, purely because the ENTIRE WEBSITE WAS IN COMIC SANS.

Nooooo! Comic Sans is the devil's font.

lkristenj

I loved Comic Sans... when I was 10.

VulgarGirl

larrygaga said:

I also pass up vendors who don't have a website or email. The website because it's just silly not to have one in this day in age. How can I trust you to be modern and a good business if you don't even have your chit online? The email because it's literally 4 seconds and free to get one, and I want everything in writing.

It really puts me off when businesses aren't online. I can't wrap my head around how they do business anymore.It makes me think that they aren't willing to change and grow.

We have a website. I hired the person who built it (because between the three of us we can build a super fun myspace page, but that's about it), and it's fantastic. I get "Why do you have a website? You're a tattoo shop!", oh because it's 2014, that's why. I hate when businesses won't get on line. The internet is not going away, embrace technologoy already!

VulgarGirl

JCbride2015 said:

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Vendors that don't put prices out there are generally a NO from me. Also if the vendor is a self-employed person and they have spelling errors on their site, I side-eye. You built your own site, link all over the place to it, and get tons of traffic, BUT YOU COULDN'T SPELLCHECK OR HAVE SOMEONE PROOF-READ? Girl.

If their product is amazing and the price is right, I'll still use them, but you better believe I'll be double-checking everything. Especially the numbers.

I passed a flooring store the other day whose MAIN SIGNAGE/AWNING displayed that they sell "Carpet and Vynle Tile."

I skipped a dress shop that had all the designers I was interested in, purely because the ENTIRE WEBSITE WAS IN COMIC SANS.

You did the right thing.

wandajune6

A lot of vendors near me posted prices. We booked our venue in February but I'm still getting follow-up now. We booked our photographer and DJ in March and I'm still getting follow-up now. Not cool.

There were a few vendors that looked interesting but gave me vague responses. There was one in particular that I loved but I couldn't pin her down. Finally, I just told her my budget and asked if they could do anything in my range. That worked.

huskypuppy14

lolo883 said:

Fran1985 said:

lolo883 said:

beethery said:

Fran1985 said:

I had to remind this caterer 4 times to send me a proposed menu because she wouldn't send me menu prices, only a proposed menu. I finally get it and its 25k for just food. Umm you could of saved us both a lot of time by giving me a range 6 weeks ago. 

AddieCake said:

$25k for food?!?!

HOLY SHIT. Twenty-five thousand dollars. Our meal estimates are coming in under $6k, with an extra $600 for 22 dozen cupcakes. How many guests are you having?

Errr... our catering estimate (still very TBD based on consumption bar) is $20k... but that's for 250 people. Not including the cake.

Yeah this quote was for 150 people and DID NOT INCLUDE ALCOHOL. And they were like a no name place! they had a small write up in a local paper but they were like a 5 person shop. There is a few places that have the "name" and I know they run about a 150pp no booze. Because they told me so in the first email. This person made up this whole customized menu for me. It was silly.  

Yeahhhh that's ridiculous. You better be spoon-feeding and burping me like a baby for that much money.

I will say, my venue was expensive, but the bartender was making people whatever drink they wanted. (Who asks for a pina colada at a wedding?) They also did wine service with dinner, and took people's drink orders at the table. I think it was worth it. 

CMGragain

OK, I'm back.  Don't get me wrong.  I gave out plenty of information in those phone calls, but I got information in return.  Only once in my career did I actually sell the caller the house they called me about!  I usually got to know them, and found things that they liked better.
This works for wedding vendors, too.  You may not like the price of a full dinner set up, but take a look at other options.  This is how we found our brunch buffet for daughter's wedding.  It wasn't on the internet site.  It was perfect for us!  Daughter fell in love with their ballroom!  The place we thought we would like from their internet site treated us rudely, and had too many stairs, and really tacky looking chairs..