Weddings…involve people. Lots of people.
So many weddings are not happening right now. Some have been postponed…indefinitely. Others have been rescheduled for a Tuesday or Wednesday in the fall, the only dates available.
Some nuptials have gone ahead, with couples are saying “I do” into a Zoom lens. Sans gowns. Sans flowers. Sans families and friends. Last Saturday, friends of ours gathered around a computer to see their son and future daughter-in-law exchange vows virtually and somewhere else.
Love may be as perennial as grass, but what about the $60 billion wedding industry? Larger and established caterers, photographers and bridal stores will likely get through, but what about small biz bridal?
Meet Lynn Nelson, New York couture designer and owner of Bridal Silhouette. She specializes in the reconstruction of vintage wedding gowns, veils and headpieces. Brides bring her gowns their mothers or grandmothers once wore, and Lynn transforms them to fit — with fresh style and panache. Swoon.
One month ago, orders were humming, and her Arlington, Virginia workroom was festooned with silk, lace and tulle.
Now she’s making surgical face masks. The 360 happened when both the bridal work — and her part-time job organizing welcoming events at a church — suddenly dried up. To fill the time, she retooled her space and started making masks for church staff. Word got out about the quality and speed of her work, and orders poured in. Strangers started dropping off stashes of fabric, and now she makes masks all day long and is paid for her efforts.
As Lynn’s product line has broadened, so has her customer base. When a man buying face masks learned about her “core” business he commissioned her to transform his deceased mother’s dresses into remembrances for the wider family. This never would have happened in a wedding silo.
Until things turn around, and brides are confident their perfect day will really happen, Lynn remains flexible and hopeful. She has exchanged exquisite fabrics for cotton and interfacing, and pearl buttons and sequins for flat elastic. Work is work after all.
Even if your business has taken a whack during this crisis, it need not be fatal. Regroup, retool and say yes to opportunities to make a difference, however small. You never know where it will lead you.