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Wedding Expo 2013

missm810missm810 member
First Anniversary First Comment
in North Carolina-Outer Banks
Hi ladies! My Mom, sister and I are planning on heading down to the OBX in Jan. for the wedding expo. A couple questions:

For anyone who has been to the expo before, what kind of vendors are usually there? Is it pretty much any and all types? I wanted to go to the OBX esp. to try my caterer's food (High Cotton BBQ) and to try cakes. Are cake places usually at the expo and can you do tastings? Or would it be better for me to just set up private tastings for that weekend?

Also, still looking for a florist as well. Is there a good amount of florists at the expo as well?

Lastly, is there any particular area in the OBX that is considered most cenntral to stay in for the expo? Any hotel/inn recommendations for the Expo would be appreciated as well!

So excited for the Expo!
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Re: Wedding Expo 2013

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    littlemsmagic138littlemsmagic138 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    There are a TON of vendors. Pretty much anything you need, they'll be there. The florists are aplenty and bring all kinds of samples and pictures with them. Most of the cake and caterers are there, however, if you are looking for a full tasting, you're probably going to want to go some other time, you're probably not going to find anyone who can schedule a full tasting during that weekend. On Saturday they have "open houses' at a lot of the vendors so the caterers or bakers that are an open house stop may have more tasting options than at the actual expo on Sunday (not sure because we already had our caterer and cake figured out and spent the open house day focused on visiting salons and visiting our venue again).
    After going last year, I was extremely glad that we had done some planning before going to the expo. If I were trying to visit every type of vendor and starting the planning from the very beginning, I would have been incredibly overwhelmed. We were able to focus on 3-4 types of vendors (and enjoy some free food samples along the way!).
    We stayed at Hilton Garden Inn because it was off-season and we wanted to stay somewhere nice that we wouldn't ordinarily be able to stay. I don't see anything posted yet about a Saturday evening "gala" or whatever it is they called it last year. Last year David Tutera was there so it was a big to do, I wonder if it hasn't been announced yet or they just aren't doing it. If they do it, they might have shuttles to and from from a few different hotels to the event so if you're interested in something like that, you might want to wait a little longer to see if they announce something.
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    peaksarahpeaksarah member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    We attended the wedding expo last year. We had noting booked at the time and used this as a time to meet with all diferent kinds of vendors briefly. Then we went back to OBX a few months later and made appointments with all of the vendors we were considering booking so we could get to know them and thier company a little better. While the expo can be a little overwhelming, I am definately glad that we went. We were able to find every kind of vendor we needed and then some.
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    OBX2011OBX2011 member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    Saturday is a self guided tour at different venues and beach rentals all the way from Duck to S. Nags Head. When you check in, you will get a welcome packet with all of your info as well as a map of the self guided tour with various locations marked off, some may be actual venues, some are event homes and some may be at the vendors actual location. You can choose which ones you want to visit and which ones you don't. At each location, it will tell you which vendors will also be there. Kind of like an all in one type of thing. Saturday evening is the cocktail reception, which is usually held at Pirates Cove Marina, in their outdoor pavilion (it's tented and heated though), and this is a great time to sample the caterers and meet with other vendors. I would dress as comfortably as possible for both events since it's a long day and it's quite cold in January. David Tutera was a guest speaker this year, so tickets to the cocktail reception were pretty pricey and it was more extravagant, but I heard that he only stayed for like 30 mins and it wasn't worth the extra costs in the long run though.

    Sunday is the big expo which is held at Kitty Hawk elementary and middle schools. Basically any and all vendors will be there and yet another chance to do a meet & greet. At some point, there will be a fashion show and at the very end, will be the grand prize drawing. If you book your vendors on the spot, you typically get a discount that day. Some vendors extend the discount until mid-Feb b/c they understand that there are quit a lot of vendors to sort through and the bride needs some time to absorb everything from a whirlwind weekend. There will be stylists there, so if you are able to do a mini hair trial that day, I recommend it. Trial runs can get pricey and we all want to have a sneak peek at what we would look like on our wedding day, so this is a chance to get it done for free and walk around with pretty hair all day. Just a helpful tip ;)

    You will be exhausted by the end of it all and you will certainly be well fed too! It's a great time and I definitely recommend going if you can! I recommend staying at The Cameron House Inn which is the cutest B&B in Manteo :) Since it was mid-Jan., no one else was staying there so we had the whole house to ourselves, which was really nice. They have a big fireplace and sofas around it, so we basically took over the entire area with all of our wedding stuff and sorted through everything. If you don't stay there, I do recommend booking with a local hotel to support the local obx economy rather than a chain hotel....they are doing quite fine on their own ;) The Nags Head Inn & Shutters On The Banks are 2 very nice local hotels

     

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    CarolinaBride17CarolinaBride17
    First Comment

    My mother and I went to the Crystal Coast Bridal Salon last year for her wedding and now for my wedding, we are going the the OBX wedding show(: Very excited to go this year (:

    Daisypath Anniversary tickers
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    misande1misande1 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    I talked to my florist and the event will span two days or something like that...so basically there's more time to talk to the vendors since it's like a "sneak peak" She mentioned there's probably still the self guided tours and such. 

    As for where to stay, we are all over the place. I got the groupon for Oasis Suites for the Friday/Saturday night and on Sunday night we're going to stay at the Hilton since that's where our wedding is next year. 
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    karistizkaristiz member
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Comment
    i've spoken to a few vendors and out of five, only one will be at the expo. i'm kind of bummed as i was really looking forward to meeting the others.

    has anyone else encountered this? it seems as though the vendors that will not be at the show are well known and don't need the exposure that the show provides.
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    OBX2011OBX2011 member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina-outer-banks_wedding-expo-2013?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:598Discussion:a9202e0a-c03e-4cd9-b7f8-fb5a5e5e6187Post:5ec3cf05-30fa-4e88-b69f-12e3d48f2ad4">Re: Wedding Expo 2013</a>:
    [QUOTE]i've spoken to a few vendors and out of five, only one will be at the expo. i'm kind of bummed as i was really looking forward to meeting the others. has anyone else encountered this? it seems as though the vendors that will not be at the show are well known and don't need the exposure that the show provides.
    Posted by karistiz[/QUOTE]

    Most of the vendors throughout the OBX participate in some way with the expo b/c it's their biggest chance to shine.  However though, the fees to be in it can be quite high and some smaller businesses, even well known ones, just may not be able to afford to go or have other reasons that they don't attend.  I wouldn't let it get you down though.  Have you asked them if they are willing to meet you at a local coffe house or something just to go over everything?  I am sure they would be willing too. 

    Which vendors are you considering?  Maybe we can be of some help :)

     

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    briisperbeckbriisperbeck member
    First Comment
    If you are in need of a photographer please check out my page Specially if you are getting married on the beach I will give you a great deal!

    www.briicherriphoto.wix.com/weddings

    Hope to hear from you!
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    OBX2011OBX2011 member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited January 2013
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina-outer-banks_wedding-expo-2013?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:598Discussion:a9202e0a-c03e-4cd9-b7f8-fb5a5e5e6187Post:2a3430d4-1ff7-4a52-be0b-70ba9f437f64">Re: Wedding Expo 2013</a>:
    [QUOTE]If you are in need of a photographer please check out my page Specially if you are getting married on the beach I will give you a great deal! <a href="http://www.briicherriphoto.wix.com/weddings" rel="nofollow">www.briicherriphoto.wix.com/weddings</a> Hope to hear from you!
    Posted by briisperbeck[/QUOTE]



    Briis--you have been banned! Vendors are NOT allowed to spam the boards. Period.

     

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    crjwilsoncrjwilson member
    Combo Breaker First Anniversary First Comment
    I am very excited to be attending the Expo this weekend with my future husband.  Yes, I know it will be an overwhelming experience, but we are up for the challenge.  We've looked over all of the vendors that are listed and have a good idea of the direction we want to go, but overall, we just want to see what is being offered.  Then we'll go home to make decisions and come back to meet with selected vendors. 

    Super excited to see all of the beaming brides in OBX on Sunday!

    Christina :)
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