Getting married in the time of coronavirus calls for persistence, perseverance and resolve.
At a time when the $60 billion wedding industry in the United States is reeling from the effects of canceled and postponed weddings, and barely an hour before Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an unprecedented statewide stay-at-home order, San Diego residents Rashaun Phillip Sourles and Katira Shores drove 2½ hours Thursday afternoon to an Alhambra notary public office in full wedding gear.
“We snagged their last wedding license,” Sourles said. “Had we waited even for a day, we probably wouldn’t be married, and wouldn’t be able to get married for a while.”
Their wedding was set for April 11 at the Peppermill Resort Hotel in Reno. They had it all planned — a buffet dinner, 55 guests and a layer cake topped with a Muhammad Ali figurine because they met at the museum dedicated to the champion boxer at Louisville, Kentucky.
Until the resort shut down this week, canceling all events, including the Sourles-Shores wedding.
As it turned out, their big day was meant to happen in a little office next to an Asian market. In the back of the office was a small wedding chapel where Sourles and Shores exchanged vows and were pronounced husband and wife.
It may have seemed minimalist to an observer. But, to this couple, it’s a riveting tale they’re going to tell for a long time.
“No one else can tell this wedding story,” Sourles said. “Our story is ingrained with a moment in history. It’s not the day we chose. But we did it. We got married at a time when we can’t even buy toilet paper.”
Wedding industry struggling
Weddings don’t happen in a vacuum. It takes an army of professionals — from venues, planners, caterers, deejays and photographers to florists, bakers, even businesses that supply special requests such as elephants and street vendors.
The last week or so has been “brutal” for the entire industry, said Hetal Gandhi, owner of Anaheim-based Kumba Events, which primarily plans Indian weddings. He’s already had 11 weddings postponed or canceled, including a $400,000 grand affair at the Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point.
“They’d planned nine events for one wedding through us and everything is canceled,” he said. “The brides are so upset, they don’t even want to talk about it. It’s the uncertainty that’s the worst thing because we don’t know how all this is going to play out. It’s the most frustrating thing to plan.”
Gandhi, who has been in business since 2005, said this is worse than the 2009 Great Recession because of the lingering uncertainty and the inability to even plan smaller events.
“My vendors don’t know which way to go,” he said. “This is a labor-intensive market. Everything has come to a screeching halt.”
It’s a tough situation as well for wedding photographers, who tend to become closely involved with couples in the planning process, said Alyssa Armstrong, a Los Angeles-based photographer. She’s had to deal with two postponed weddings and three undecided, including some who are thinking about eloping now and having a celebration later.
“I’m very, very concerned not just about the financial impact of all this, but how so many of my clients are heartbroken,” she said. “As a photographer, you work with these couples for several months and get excited with them for what lies ahead. I see some people are guilty about feeling upset. I think it’s okay to be sad and upset because this is unfair and unfortunate.”
Adapting and reinventing
Jessica Weigel of Garden Grove broke down as she talked about her wedding planned for March 28 in Anaheim. Her house is still covered in “wedding stuff,” she said.
“We got a full refund from the venue,” Weigel said. “We have to find a new place and start over. This feels devastating right now. But, I guess everything happens for a reason. Hopefully, 20 years from now, we’ll have a funny story to tell everyone.”
Chris Staggs, who was all set to deejay Weigel’s wedding, said he is now hunting for a job that keeps him in the business.
“Right now, it’s tough,” said Staggs of Corona. “I don’t have a brick-and-mortar building. I work out of my home. There’s a hiring freeze in most places. We’ll have a few months of a pretty rough patch. This is life-changing.”
Some other businesses that depend on weddings to stay afloat are now trying to reinvent themselves. Nataly Stein, who owns the Los Alamitos-based Great Dane Baking Co., plans to convert her stores into a meat and produce market. She also plans to bake fresh bread. So far, she’s donated nearly 50 cakes from canceled weddings and birthday and anniversary parties to local hospitals and youth shelters.
“Yes, we’re a specialty cake store,” she said. “But we’re in a time when people are freaked out about necessities. I have full kitchens and the ability to source meat and produce. I’m trying to adapt so I can keep people working and positive. At the same time, I want to help the community and show them how crucial small businesses are.”
If Stein’s business shuts down, 40 people will lose their jobs, she said. She is also going to do video tutorials each Friday on how to decorate cookies, cupcakes and cakes. Those interested can order decorating kits online, pick them up at the store and follow her tutorials online, she said.
Rolling with the punches
The coronavirus pandemic also has prompted some couples to downsize their weddings. Lindsey Fleming of Corona del Mar, was supposed to marry her fiance, Aaron Aguirre, at the Green Gables Wedding Estate in San Marcos on Sunday, March 22. Now they’ll get married in his parents’ backyard.
Fleming said they made the decision because they just want to be married and not go through another year of planning. They’ll do Facebook Live so family members and friends can watch online.
“This is like our Plan C,” she said, laughing. “But we’re excited. We’re having a triple-layer cake. I’m still wearing my wedding dress. We’ve always wanted our wedding to be about our community and our family. When the plans came crashing down, I was just grateful for the people who continue to love and support us.”
For couples like Sourles and Shores, a wedding day “is as special as you can make it.” After getting married at the strip mall in Alhambra, the couple said they drove back to San Diego and even managed to buy a wedding cake from Whole Foods, and pick up some kabobs from a nearby restaurant.
After they got home, they poured champagne into engraved flutes sent by a cousin from Georgia, and raised their glasses — watched only by Elaine the cat.
