Coronavirus outbreak forcing couples to postpone, cancel weddings

Wedding plans fall victim to coronavirus pandemic

Many Americans are badly affected by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, including those who are about to tie the knot. FOX 10's Bailey Miller reports.

PHOENIX - The ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, along with recommendations by various officials to avoid large crowds, is putting wedding plans on hold for many couples.

Nick Dilello, the Producer of the Phoenix Bridal Show, has seen a number of brides scrambling to figure out what comes next for them.

"We did a poll just recently, a couple days ago, on cancellation or postponement. It’s at 45% to cancel or postpone." said Dilello. "It is not necessarily because of the bride wanting to postpone. It’s because of logistics that go into planning a wedding from the guest side, and venue not being able to host more than 50 people."

Dilello expects those numbers to go up as the days go on. According to Dilello, brides and grooms plan their wedding nine to 11 months in advance. During this time, the venue, planner and vendors are booked. The challenge in postponing is to get those vendors available on the same day again.

To avoid this problem, Dilello says he is seeing some brides opt for a very small gathering.

"The things I’m seeing is some people looking to stream their weddings. Videographers in the Valley are able to provide livestreaming for the guests unable to attend," said Dilello. "We are in unknown territory right now. If you are getting engaged now, setting a date may not be a good idea."