I visited the Charlotte Wedding Show today and I’m going to give you a brief scoop on what I’ve discovered, and what sparked my interest. The event organized by Charlotte Local took place at the gorgeous Fillmore with the admission of a general audience at noon.
Even though I’m not in the wedding business, I decided to show my support anyway—and check out this grand exhibition. I love visiting local attractions that celebrate entrepreneurship and decided to write a blog post about my experience.
Upon entering the Fillmore, I was immediately impressed. The beautifully decorated venue hosted variations of numerous local vendors who proudly exhibited their businesses. In addition, there was a “reception” style sitting area decorated with red and black bows where brides could take a break from walking around and exploring the various merchants.
To make the atmosphere feel like an actual wedding, a symphony band situated on top of the stage was playing elegant classical music. The band even played Pachelbel’s Canon, which had me briefly take a seat and listen to the tune while reminiscing about my own wedding. I chose Pachelbel’s Canon as our song for walking down the aisle.
But I didn’t sit for long as I was eager to explore the rest of the exciting stalls in the building. Hence, I wandered around and took snapshots as well as quick videos with my iPhone.
Whenever the opportunity to make a good photo presented itself, I took pictures of some of the vendors. There were enough businesses to create an abundance of choices for brides, but not too many where it might have felt like an ordinary expo.
Among some of the Charlotte Wedding vendors were wedding photographers, videographers, bakeries, wedding cake designers, florists, event planners, entertainers, caterers, customized gift creators, stationary producers, makeup artists, travel agents, and even one very cheerful wedding officiant adequately dressed in a suit. All of the vendors, of course, were local and were promoting their products.
One particular business that caught my attention was a cake design company called Sky’s The Limit Bridal Sweets. I paused my walk around the venue to take a better look at their breathtaking wedding creations.
Moreover, I chatted with the owner who like myself, was a New York City transplant. It turns out she is a former graphic designer who also worked as an art director at Revlon in Manhattan, where I once temped.
Also, this cheerful business lady worked as a designer for Condé Nast’s Bride’s Magazine. With such an impressive creative background and New York City solid work ethic, no wonder the cakes looked so amazing.
Summing up the event, all of the vendors at the Charlotte Wedding Show were excellent. I especially loved the intimate atmosphere of the entire show.
Also, everyone I talked to was very helpful and friendly. And the fact that brides received freebies and were able to taste the vendor’s food as well as get their make up done – made the event feel even more special.
Just like a wedding should be.
Upon making my way out of the building, I passed by the wedding officiant. The older man was sitting on a barstool, still as cheerful as an hour ago. I wondered what his secret was.
Without a doubt, it must have been the fact that he partakes in one of the happiest moments of people’s lives – wedding celebrations! Who knows, maybe someone even got married today. On a whim, like in Las Vegas.
Hey, why not? I mean, the venue was ready, and the matrimonial officiant seemed dressed for the occasion.
I took a last close glance at some of the stunning white and ivory bridal gowns and took a deep sigh. All of the gorgeous dresses, colorful flowers, and sparkling decorations made you either want to get married again or put on a wedding dress and take pictures.
I know the Charlotte Wedding Show had more festivities awaiting the future brides, but I, unfortunately, had to depart to make my way to another event. Rumor had it there was going to be a celebrity guest appearance.
I’m sure you can find out who the mystery person was by visiting Charlotte Local social profiles. Tag us on Instagram if you find out who it was.
In the end, I’m so glad I attended the Charlotte Wedding Show. And I even made some new friends. What can I say, I’m a people person. And because I like people, I firmly believe that by standing by our local vendors, we are sending a strong message to our community.
One – that we should support small businesses as they care about the welfare of our beautiful city and its future. And two – small companies improve the localized economy and are more accountable to our neighborhoods and their people. What could be better than that?
Thus, why not purchase products that were made here in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the local area. Instead of countries like, for example, faraway China. The truth is that the more we support our local businesses and small entrepreneurs, the more of them will be popping up in the future. And that my friend is a good thing!
Before I let you go, here are five useful ways that you can also support your local business:
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- Write a helpful review on Yelp, Google, or Facebook. If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t. Give them a chance to correct their mistakes. Or tell them how you feel in person.
- Tell your friends and family about the business.
- Follow and engage with the business on social media.
- Share your interactions with the business, such as tagging and posting photos on Instagram when you visit them in person.
- Send them a private message about what you like about the business; they will appreciate your feedback.
Questions or comments? Please write to us at hello@caramelchic.com or reply below.
For a complete list of vendors go to Charlotte Local Wedding Show website.
For more on the event check out our quick video.
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Photography: Caramel Chic LLC
Feature photo by Victoria Priessnitz
