There’s much to do when planning a wedding, but for Breanna Sumner and Jason Creed of Mount Airy the major concern was finding a way to preserve that special occasion for posterity.

And due to attending an annual bridal fair Saturday in the downtown area, the couple can now say “problem solved.”

“We just booked our photos — our photographer — and that was a major thing for us,” Sumner explained while taking in the second-annual event based at 308 Bistro in the Old North State Winery building on North Main Street.

Vendors offering a wide array of wedding products and services manned displays in the restaurant for much of the day Saturday, while other participating businesses decorated their storefronts and otherwise got involved in the occasion. Salesmen at the F. Rees clothing store, for example, were wearing tuxedoes.

One of the purposes of the yearly bridal fair sponsored by the Downtown Business Association is to show couples how all their wedding needs can be met locally through a variety of firms the event showcases.

While Breanna Sumner, 21, and Jason Creed, 31, were seeking a photographer for their wedding scheduled in October, most anything else could be arranged as well.

This ranged from dresses and other clothing, cakes, floral designs, hairstyling, cosmetics and printing for invitations, to massages and accommodations for honeymoon getaways, among others. Organizers say the vendor list exceeded that of last year.

Business representatives reported steady traffic throughout the day, aided by the fact prizes were offered by participating businesses to brides registering for the event.

Sumner and Creed said they appreciated the fact that admission to the bridal fair was free and they were able to see what products and services were offered at a central location. “You don’t have to shop around,” Sumner said.

Weddings

Recession-Proof?

Though the nation continues to suffer from a sluggish economy, vendors at the bridal fair say weddings are something people still will splurge on to some degree.

In order to have the wedding they want, “I think people will cut from every other area,” said Dawn Wallace, assistant general manager of Hampton Inn in Mount Airy, and also a newlywed who tied the knot last fall.

Hampton Inn participated in the fair in order to market its accommodations to those attending weddings in Mount Airy.

“We’re talking about our wedding packages,” Wallace said, including blocks of rooms for relatives and others in bridal parties. “We have lots of out-of-town guests.”

Meanwhile, Alyson Gross, a representative of David’s Bridal in Winston-Salem, said she was quite impressed with the layout for the Mount Airy event her firm was taking part in for the first time. She appreciated the way the fair allowed her to interact directly with brides-to-be concerning their selection of the product David’s Bridal specializes in: the wedding dress.

Gross said the choice of a dress is one of the most important ones made during the marriage planning, if not the most. “That sets the theme for the entire wedding,” she explained. This includes the color scheme and style for others involved, such as the bridesmaids.

She agrees that even if money is tight, people will be a little looser with their cash than normal in order to have a memorable ceremony. “As opposed to spending money to go out to eat, they are going to spend more money on their wedding.”

Dresses offered by David’s Bridal range from $99, which reflects a reduced sale price, to $1,100. These items often become family heirlooms passed down from mother to daughter, so the dress selection is special, Gross agreed.

However, the desire for a nice wedding doesn’t keep modern couples from cutting corners where they can.

Sumner and Creed, for example, consider still photographs to be a key need for their wedding because of the tradition surrounding them. They want to make sure their pictures will be shot by a professional to preserve the memories of the occasion in an exemplary manner.

Yet they’re less concerned about another service popular at weddings today, a video production of the ceremony.

“We may get a family member to do videos,” Creed said of his and Sumner’s upcoming wedding, which they expect will be a small-to-medium affair with about 100 people.

“Other things we’re going to try to do ourselves — food and stuff like that,” Sumner said.

Overall, Saturday’s bridal fair was considered a success, according to both business participants and those planning weddings.

“Traffic’s been good,” said Dawn Lawson of Creative Designs Flowers and Gifts, another local store whose products occupied a table at the bridal fair.

It was climaxed by a fashion show, with that part of the event even showcasing fashions for dogs who might be involved in a wedding in some way.

And though most people might not realize it, Mount Airy Museum of Regional History is part of the area wedding industry. Nancy Davis of the museum, which also was represented at the bridal fair, said the museum rents out its courtyard, annex and other facilities for wedding-related activities.

Personnel at stores throughout the downtown area also said the bridal fair had generated extra business, including Tommy Barker of F. Rees, who has worked at that business for 40 years.

And if there was any talk of a recession, it seemingly became lost in the shuffle as brides, family members and friends excitedly made plans for one of the biggest milestones in a person’s life: getting married.

“It’s still a special day,” Lawson said.