Lifting of COVID-19 restrictions sparks wedding boom in B.C., with sudden rush on venues, services

Liz Locke is hoping the third time's a charm when it comes to her getting married.

She and her fiancé are planning their wedding for this July after two attempts over the course of the pandemic were foiled due to public health orders placing tight restrictions on gatherings.

"We have had three iterations of our wedding plans based on some changes and challenges with the pandemic," said Locke, who is looking forward to holding the wedding she's always wanted now most restrictions have been lifted.

"I am a screaming extrovert and the idea of a large gathering is really valuable and it's something that I want to share," she added.

But as face masks disappear and capacity limits lift, a sudden wedding rush has left Locke and her partner facing another challenge, with many in their position struggling to find available venues and hire the services required for their big day.  

The wedding industry was one of the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic, with restrictions on venue capacity and travel, as well as overall health concerns due to COVID-19, making planning any gathering difficult. 

The B.C. Wedding and Event Industry Association, formed in December 2021 to help the sector cope over the pandemic, said the revenue generated by weddings in the province — estimated at $1.2 billion every year — fell by as much as 90 per cent since March 2020.

But on Feb. 16 that all changed when indoor personal gatherings, indoor and outdoor organized gatherings and indoor seated events were able to return to full capacity.

The province's mask mandate has since been dropped and proof of vaccination will no longer be required to access businesses, events and services from April 8.

But it means Locke and others are now finding it difficult to find available venues, caterers, musicians and florists due to a surge in demand.

"Finding something that actually fits is a big challenge, because there are so many people looking to have a fun celebratory experience," said Locke. "Since March break it's been like, 'nope, nope, sorry we're full, I don't even know who to recommend you to.'"

'These last two years have been just boring'

Rajan Kainth, who operates the South Hall Event Centre in Vancouver, says he's experienced a big increase in phone calls in the past month.

"I'm finding that people are looking to do events within a month, within a couple of weeks, some within a week," he said.

"It's definitely put some pressure on us."

Demand has forced him to ramp up to host up to half a dozen events a day, and he's been taking bookings as far into the future as 2024.

"We're really excited," he said. "These last two years have been just boring."

Even though his facility can host events for up to 1,000 people, he said most people are keeping them relatively small at between 100 and 200.

Jason Harper with Cocktails and Canapes, an event and catering company in Vancouver, also said requests have been coming in fast and furious in recent weeks.

"We went from zero to 60," he said. "We went from not really being able to do anything to anybody being able to do anything they want."

As customers increase the number of guests at events like weddings, it's putting an acute demand on his staff, he said, adding that he's being selective in the contracts he's taking on so as to not overwork his employees.

"It'd be great to get out of debt in a heartbeat with the amount of business coming in, but then everyone is going to struggle and I'm going to lose people," he said.

Florist Genevieve Blondin, who is seeing an increase in demand for bouquets and floral arrangements for weddings at her business Garden Party Flowers, says she's just happy the industry is reverting back to what it was like in 2019.

"It means we'll be able to hire more people to come work for us. It also means more learning opportunities for some of the team," she said.

And despite the difficulties Locke is having in booking the last few details for her wedding, she says she's just grateful that her wedding is finally going to go ahead more or less as she envisioned it before the pandemic.

"That we'll actually be able to look out and see people's full faces, and after the wedding we'll be able to hug them and 'cheers' them in real life — that's going to be, I think, an incredible moment," she said.