Red, Yellow and Green – A Message From Our Team

Red, Yellow, and Green – A Message From Our Team, Followed by FAQs

Dear Community:

This is a follow up to our letter 2 weeks ago in regard to the impact on our industry, and our events, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Just yesterday, the governor unveiled his color-coded 3 phase plan for the re-opening of our state. It’s similar to a traffic light: red for stop, yellow for caution, and green for go.

What Does This Mean For Events? 

We are currently in the “red” meaning no events at all. Although we are able to provide delivery.

Now that the governor extended the stay at home order until May 8, we suspect the we will not hit the “yellow”, allowing events of 25 or less, until that date or shortly after. Yellow allows for events of 25 and under, and deliveries.

When will we hit green? NBC10 reported, “Wolf’s reopening plan said a region or county will need to average fewer than 50 new positive cases of the virus per 100,000 residents for 14 days in order to begin moving out from under his statewide lockdown.” Fourteen days from May 8 lands us on May 22.

Once we get the green light, our state will reopen and pandemic restrictions will be lifted, aside from federal or state health guidelines in place.

As we navigate this situation together, we know questions about how this will impact your special day will arise. We want to provide you with as much information as possible. Please read our FAQs below as to how we are currently handling events through June and beyond.

We’ll get through this! We are in this together.

Melissa McDevitt and Laura Kidwell, Managing Partners

“Love Will Be Unphased” – Timothy Chi, CEO, The Knot Worldwide

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 

What if my wedding date is during the Red or Yellow Phase?

Because of Governor Wolf’s current event restrictions, we are trying to help our clients by finding solutions for their events. As a special consideration to this unforeseen circumstance, if your event is happening during the red or yellow phase, we are allowing those clients to use 100% of their deposits toward postponing to another date in the year.

Several of our sales managers are working remotely and have successfully rebooked almost all of these events already!
Currently we have extended this rebooking/postponing opportunity to events through June 30. Even though June is not currently part of the event ban, we would prefer to err on the conservative side and help our clients now rather than scrambling later.

Should I reschedule my Summer wedding?

According to an article published by The Knot, if your wedding is in July or August – here are recommendations:

July if your wedding is in July we would address the date in mid-May. We would ascertain what phase we are in,  and if we are not in green phase, make a decision to postpone by the end of May

August if your wedding is in August we would address the date in mid-June. We would ascertain what phase we are in,  and if we are not in green phase, make a decision to postpone by the end of June.

Will my Fall/Winter wedding happen? 

According to Esther Lee from The Knot – Proceed and Monitor.

“The most vigilant couples are now concerned about weddings past September. There is no need to panic at this time as planners are shifting spring weddings into this time frame. If you’ve secured a weekend fall date, then know that you’re in a good place,” she said.

What if I want to move my wedding to 2021?
At this time, most venues we have spoken to are pushing Friday, Sunday and even Thursday weddings in 2020, and not moving into 2021 so that the revenue for 2020 is not displaced.

Depending on your venue, often times prices increase year over year, so if your venue allows you to move to the next year, there may be an increase in price.

Should I cancel or postpone my event?

In an interview with FOX NEWS last week, industry expert Jeffra Trumpower, senior director at Wedding Wire, urged couples to postpone and not cancel.

“Instead of canceling, we recommend that couples work with their vendors to find a common date in the future, and postpone if possible,” he said.

Couples will likely lose out on their non-refundable deposits if they cancel. Deposits are in place because the company/person you have hired has done a lot of work to secure the date and details of your event. If you postpone, you could ask that the balance is due on a revised date once the event is rescheduled.

Postpone! Postpone! Postpone! Work with your vendors to find another date in 2020. It is likely that Saturdays may not be available because they are already booked, or they are a ‘peak’ date that will be booked.

We agree! If your venue is being kind enough to transfer your deposit to a new date, consider off-peak dates. Sundays, and Thursdays are the new Fridays… and we are happy to follow suit and cater your event on that date as your caterer. In terms of venue space, Seedling and Sage Catering is fortunate to have more than 20 venues where we cater events. Currently we have a lot of options still for 2020.

If we change the overall theme of our reception because we chose to get married on our special day, will you still accommodate us?
Yes! We can select a date together and then use your deposits on hand toward any type of event this year with similar financial value.

My wedding date is special for us. What could we do?

We have heard so many fun ideas. From rushing to the courthouse, to intimate backyard ceremonies, some have decided to wed now and have the reception later. We recently saw a segment on a couple who eloped and streamed the ceremony through Zoom!

Research from this article comes from the experience of our team and then various news sources including: The Knot, Wedding Wire, FOX News, Vogue, Harpars Bazaar and Brides.com