Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Are you ready for the 2012 OBWA Expo?

Mark your calendars - the annual Outer Banks Wedding Association's Wedding Tour and Expo Weekend is January 7th & 8th - less than 3 weeks away! Are you planning to attend? This weekend allows Brides to meet with as many vendors as possible, and even get much of their wedding planning done in 2 days! On Saturday, ceremony and reception venues all along the beach will be holding open houses, featuring their location as well as other vendors. Then Sunday, 200+ OBX wedding vendors will all be in one place, allowing you to meet and interact with them all! This weekend can be overwhelming, but very beneficial! A few tips:

  • Come with a plan! Make a list of all of your must-see vendors and decide which day/time  and how you will accomplish that.
  • Plan your time wisely! The tour on Saturday is such a great tool, but it is impossible to hit every stop and still get genuine interaction at each. Look at your list of must-see vendors and compare it to the Tour Map - see which tour stops will feature the most of your must-see vendors and focus on those. Also, hone in on one or two geographic areas - checking out both Corolla and Hatteras locations is probably not the best use of time... Stick to Northern Beaches (Corolla, Duck, Kitty Hawk), Middle Beaches (Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head, Manteo), or Southern Beaches (Hatteras Island)
  • Know what you are looking for before walking through the First Flight Middle and High School doors! If you have already chosen a florist, don't waste your time looking at other florists. Keep your mission in mind and look for only those types of vendors.
  • Stay an extra day or two! Didn't get to see everything you wanted or meet with all of your must-see vendors? Set up appointments for the Monday after the Expo. Many vendors will still have everything set-up and would be more than happy to meet with you in a less hectic setting :) This is also a good thing to plan in advance - if there is one or two vendors that you are VERY interested in, go ahead and try to set up an appointment with them the Friday before or Monday after. That way you can guarantee you'll get to meet with them and you won't need to worry about squeezing them in on the crazy days, saving you time!

We'll be a tour stop on Saturday so make sure you swing by! Our veranda will be set-up and we'll have hors d'oeuvres and other goodies! I encourage tour appointments on the days around Expo weekend, so let me know if you'll be in town an extra day or two!

Happy Planning!
Ashley

For more information about the expo, check out http://www.outerbanksweddingassoc.org/expo-weekend-event.htm