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Frustration over response time

brazeneyebrazeneye member
First Comment
in Hawaii
I have emailed approximately 5 caterers and an event stylist, and none of them have gotten back to me.  It's been a week and a half.  One caterer got back to me a couple weeks after I originally emailed her, but it's been over a month and she hasn't gotten back to me yet.

Has anyone else had troubles get responses back, or is this normal? 
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Re: Frustration over response time

  • fabutanfabutan member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Yes, I definitely sympathize with you!  In general, I find Hawaii vendors to have slower response times than vendors on the mainland.  I also found Maui vendors to be even slower than Oahu ones (in general).  Something knotties have referred to affectionately as "island time".  ;-)  

    Right now, especially...it's the busy wedding season.  I think almost every wedding vendor is crazy busy right now.  Sometimes it helps to phone, rather than e-mail...vendors are generally more helpful when you talk to them.  Other than that, I'm not sure what else you can do.  I've definitely had my share of frustration in this department!  Hang in there, persistence is key!  :)

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  • bellathebridebellathebride
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    YES!!!!!!!! You are not the only one. I suggest calling. They seem to be better at phone calls than actual e-mails.

    I also hear hiring a coordinator helps with the frustration and the vendors since they take care of all of the hagglin with them.
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  • brazeneyebrazeneye member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Thank god it's not just me. I actually emailed d'lish catering to do my food/styling and coordination, but they have yet to get back to me. How long should I wait to call and when is busy season over?
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  • destiny1108destiny1108 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    edited December 2011
    we got frustrated when we first started planning too, so we ended up hiring a WC fora full service package.  She was able to get all the answers we needed in a few days.     We learned that many vendors are small business owners which mean they are doing everything on their own so if they have events they aren't at the computer.
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  • kaeshakaesha
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Phone calls always produce faster response times than emails, IMHO. However, I gave up working with two vendors because I couldn't handle their response times. After that, I was really clear in my expectations with other vendors (especially that I had no qualms about dropping people) and that made a HUGE difference. In the end, I'm so glad I ended up working with the people I did because I knew they could step up to the plate. 

    Looking back on the inquiry stage, I remember how shocked I was by the number of vendors who didn't respond to either emails or phone calls (especially florists - I had a lot of bad luck with them). I get that many are small business owners and maxed out, but maybe that's a sign that they should expand their businesses a little, you know?  
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  • sparklegirl84sparklegirl84
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    ugh that was one of the worst parts of my planning in the beginning. I really hate making phone calls but had to make a few. I 'm not sure if you're an oahu bride but my bio has good vendors that did communicate well. I had to give up on a catering company i really wanted because I just couldn't handle their laid back style.
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  • brazeneyebrazeneye member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Hi Sparkle, not sure how to read your bio!
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  • Tanq&TonicTanq&Tonic
    Combo Breaker First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Click on the link that says "planning bio updated 5.22.11" at the very bottom of her signature at the bottom of the post.
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  • suwannee79suwannee79
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    If you don't have a coordinator I'd go ahead and get one - I didn't have to deal with a single vendor as my planner did everything and I had no stress - I'd say it's worth the cost to have someone do all the legwork/busywork for you!
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  • brazeneyebrazeneye member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    I asked my fiancee about getting a planner, but he said he'd like to see me get pusher before we get one.  He doesn't want to pay $3000+ just to lock in a caterer, when our food for 30 people is going to cost that.. (most of the planners I've spoken to charge 20% on each contract they negotiate for you), so at the moment, no planner, I just have to kick some ass. 
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  • motoLynmotoLyn member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    There are some planners that charge a flat rate instead of a percentage of what the vendor costs you.  Sometimes having a WC is great because they can keep trying to contact your vendors and save you the time and effort of chasing down potential vendors. 

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