Unprofessional Or No?

Knottie1429114357 · May 2015

My venue wrote up a proposal and emailed it to me. I set up an appointment to come in and sign and pay in person. Before my appointment to sign the papers they gave that date to another bride. They then called me to cancel the appointment to say that they had given away that specific Saturday and that "good news…the next Saturday was still available"…good news my ass...

Am I wrong to expect some sort of courtesy call?

huskypuppy14 · May 2015

Knottie1429114357 said:
My venue wrote up a proposal and emailed it to me. I set up an appointment to come in and sign and pay in person. Before my appointment to sign the papers they gave that date to another bride. They then called me to cancel the appointment to say that they had given away that specific Saturday and that "good news…the next Saturday was still available"…good news my ass...
Am I wrong to expect some sort of courtesy call?

Did they say they were holding the date for you? My venue held the date for us for 1 week, while we discussed it with our VIPs. Once I said I wanted the date, they gave me like 10 days (I think) to pay the deposit.

If they said they were holding the date, and then gave it away, I'd find another venue. If this is how they act when you aren't even a client, what will they do when they already have your deposit.

Knottie1429114357 · May 2015

That's true. They did not explicitly say that they were holding the date…so maybe thats my fault for not asking…but I don't know…I'm just very miffed about the whole thing..

Knottie1429114357 · May 2015

My question is...If i scheduled an appointment to go and sign for the venue, wouldn't the other bride have had to as well…?

huskypuppy14 · May 2015

Knottie1429114357 said:
My question is...If i scheduled an appointment to go and sign for the venue, wouldn't the other bride have had to as well…?

Maybe she signed the day she looked at it?

When we visited our venue, the coordinator told us the dates they had open in the time frame we were looking for. We asked if they would hold our preferred date, she said yes.

I would think since you had an appointment to come in and sign, that they should have double checked with you. That's just poor customer service.

How long between when you looked at it, and your appointment?

Knottie1429114357 · May 2015

I mean, I received the proposal, told them I was gonna move some money around so that I would get the discount for paying in full upfront. I scheduled the appointment for 3 days from then..so I set my appointment for Monday. That was yesterday..they then called me today and said too bad..Like I understand that i didn't pay but damn.

Knottie1429114357 · May 2015

So, I had my tour on Wednesday, then called on Friday to schedule the appointment for Monday but today, Saturday, they called and said they let another bride book that date. Like I decided quickly, because this venue was perfect…now they just rubbed me the wrong way, ya know?

theartistformerlyknownas · May 2015

I've never heard of making an appointment to sign a paper and pay. We booked our venue the same day, but all other vendors we signed, faxed, and emailed the contracts back as soon as we decided to book them. Did they tell you that you needed an appointment?

huskypuppy14 · May 2015

We had an appointment to sign the contract for our venue. We also did the florist and photographer in person (though those two were done on the spot).

kaitlynmichelle · May 2015

That sucks. I would ask if they will guarantee they will hold the date this time if you still really want that venue. If they won't hold the date, I might look elsewhere so you don't have the same thing happen again.

I booked all my vendors from another city and didn't meet with anyone to sign, it was all over email and/or phone. So I cant say what the norm is.

CMGragain · May 2015

Money talks. The venue had a bride willing to sign and pay the deposit on the spot. You did not do that. If I were the manager, I would go for the sure thing - the people who had money in hand and were ready to commit.
I am sorry you were disappointed, but you should probably grab that next weekend date before it is gone, too. The venue DID give you a courtesy call - to tell you that someone else had booked the date you were interested in. They offered you an alternative.

jenajjthr · May 2015

With our venue once we said that we wanted to book with them and what date we wanted, they blocked that date for 2 weeks. We either got the deposit to them or we lost it. The other aspect was that if another couple came in and wanted the same date and had money in hand, like the OP, we would get the courtesy call and be given the first opportunity to get the money to them within 24 hours or again lose the date.

We were tentative about October 1st but didn't lock it in with our venue when we first looked. When we did finally decide that yes, that was the venue we wanted, the 1st was gone. It ended up working out good for us, but we didn't say yes we wanted it so they were under no obligation to call us when another couple wanted the same date.

This situation is completely different. OP had a scheduled appointment to come in and pay her deposit. To me that says she had secured that date. The venue shouldn't even had told the second bride the day was available, let alone book it. OP I would call them back, talk to the highest manager/owner you can, and tell them you will be taking your business elsewhere and why. That was extremely unprofessional.

huskypuppy14 · May 2015

jenajjthr said:
With our venue once we said that we wanted to book with them and what date we wanted, they blocked that date for 2 weeks. We either got the deposit to them or we lost it. The other aspect was that if another couple came in and wanted the same date and had money in hand, like the OP, we would get the courtesy call and be given the first opportunity to get the money to them within 24 hours or again lose the date.

We were tentative about October 1st but didn't lock it in with our venue when we first looked. When we did finally decide that yes, that was the venue we wanted, the 1st was gone. It ended up working out good for us, but we didn't say yes we wanted it so they were under no obligation to call us when another couple wanted the same date.

This situation is completely different. OP had a scheduled appointment to come in and pay her deposit. To me that says she had secured that date. The venue shouldn't even had told the second bride the day was available, let alone book it. OP I would call them back, talk to the highest manager/owner you can, and tell them you will be taking your business elsewhere and why. That was extremely unprofessional.

This.

Jen4948 · May 2015

I agree. If you had an appointment to sign a contract for a specific date and time, then the venue should have treated that block of time as unavailable to anyone else. It was unprofessional of them to give it to anyone else whether or not they were ready to sign on the spot. Let the manager know that you won't be signing another contract with them and why. Also consider filing complaints against them with any appropriate local agencies and putting some reviews out that describe the situation to warn future potential space seekers that what happened to you could happen to them.

theartistformerlyknownas · May 2015

I agree they should have at least given you a courtesy call, and I would be leery of doing business with them. I just still think the appointment thing is sort of strange and I'd try to avoid that in the future - if you know you're going to book, email or fax the contract immediately, and be very very clear in stating your expectations of holding the date. Hopefully you've gotten all your money moved around now so you can move a little more quickly. GL!

emmaaa · May 2015

My venue was solely first come first serve. We had called and said, Hey, do you have Dec. 27, 2014 available?" They told us they did but there was a couple possibly coming to reserve it in the next few days. So my mom went to the venue the next morning when it opened to fill out paperwork and pay. Maybe this is how your venue works.

I would just figure out how your venue works these things and pay right when you decide on your date.

emmaaa · May 2015

My venue was solely first come first serve. We had called and said, Hey, do you have Dec. 27, 2014 available?" They told us they did but there was a couple possibly coming to reserve it in the next few days. So my mom went to the venue the next morning when it opened to fill out paperwork and pay. Maybe this is how your venue works.

I would just figure out how your venue works these things and pay right when you decide on your date.

julieanne912 · May 2015

Ours was first come first serve. I called to ask what dates they had available in the fall, and she had 3 Saturday dates left. I picked the one in September, and she told me she had 3 other couples "hovering" over that date. So I actually paid the deposit to hold it over the phone (FI hadn't even seen it yet) and we went out there the following weekend to actually sign the paperwork. If your venue is a popular place in a popular season, you can't dick around, have to be aggressive!

Jen4948 · May 2015

emmaaa said:
My venue was solely first come first serve. We had called and said, Hey, do you have Dec. 27, 2014 available?" They told us they did but there was a couple possibly coming to reserve it in the next few days. So my mom went to the venue the next morning when it opened to fill out paperwork and pay. Maybe this is how your venue works.

I would just figure out how your venue works these things and pay right when you decide on your date.

It seems that unlike your venue, the OP's venue didn't bother to tell the OP that they might not be available on her specified date if she didn't sign the contract and pay ASAP. They owed her that courtesy instead of making an appointment with her, giving that block to someone else, and then calling her to cancel the appointment.

KatieinBkln · May 2015

That sucks and is pretty shitty--but obviously they know they're a sought-after place and can afford to take whoever pays quickest. I would look at other venues because I don't like working with people who aren't clear about their policies (every vendor I have worked with told me straight away whether they'd hold a spot for a few days or of the spots could only be considered reserved upon paying the first deposit, etc).

Wherever you look next, be sure to ask! It's still disappointing, but lesson learned for the next one.

kmmssg · May 2015

If they scheduled an appointment for you to pay they should have given you the opportunity. With last DD's venue they also blocked it for a certain amount of time (a week on either side, I think) and gave us time to get there.

LabLove86 · May 2015

We made an appointment with our venue to sign and put down the deposit also.

We viewed it on a Saturday. Monday I called and told them that we would like to go with them, they gave me a few possible dates that were available within our preference . . . . I told them which date and room we would prefer and they were willing to hold it for 1 week for us. I had an appointment for that Friday to go and sign.

I would have been really pissed off if I had booked an appointment to sign and make a deposit and the date I was interested in was taken. However - I specifically asked if the date would be held and for how long.

I wouldn't say to avoid appointments in the future but I would be more cautious about questioning their policies and making sure a day/time is specifically held until deposit is made and contract is in hand.

lyndausvi · May 2015

Every venue has different policies on this. First come first serve is not unusual. Putting a temporary hold is not unusual either. Policies are something that are normally stated when looking at the venue. I would have expected a curtsey courtesy call also.

That said, they are in business. Without a contract and/or deposit you really don't have much of anything. Even with an appointment there is still a kind-of snooze you loose type thing.

Should you still use the venue? It's up to you. I do not think it would be a deal breaker for me, but everyone is different how they feel about this

ohannabelle · May 2015

I'm going to say unprofessional, because they didn't clearly communicate clearly.

Saying, yes, let's make an appointment for you to come in and pay indicates that you can comfortably do so, but what should have been said is:

Yes, let's make an appointment for you to come in and pay, but just be aware that the room is still considered available to rent until the payment is actually received. There's a realistic chance that someone else might rent the room before that date. You may want to make a deposit immediately to secure the date.

Unprofessional Or No?

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