Wedding vendors face 50% demand drop during peak season — sector representative

AMMAN — Despite peak season, wedding vendors were confronted with a 50 per cent decline in demand for venues and halls, according to Ma’mun Al Manaseer, head of the Wedding Venues and Planning Businesses Association.

“At the start of September, occupancy rate has so far been at 10-15 per cent, which is the equivalent of organising four to five parties per month,” Manaseer told The Jordan Times on Thursday.

Local wedding businesses are struggling, due to the lack of financial liquidity being experienced by most Jordanians, he said. In addition, young people are more reluctant to get married and are instead delaying the whole idea due to financial insecurity, he added.

“The overall situation is not good. Sector operators have been expecting one thing, and what they got is totally different,” he noted. Manaseer also said that operational costs are high, and a significant number of wedding vendors are in debt. Despite offering between 30-40 per cent discounts, wedding bookings did not increase, he added.

The trend of “farm weddings” is increasing in popularity and adversely affecting wedding vendors’ businesses, according to Manaseer, who added that most farm owners lack experience in wedding planning and are new to the industry.

Speaking with The Jordan Times, Othman Nadim, an employee at a wedding venue located in Zarqa, said that “until now, we have had around two parties — not necessarily weddings — per week.” However, there are only two wedding reservations for September, he added.