{"id":47535,"date":"2023-10-20T15:54:03","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:54:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/weddingbuzz-beginning-to-surf-the-bridal-wave-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T15:54:03","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:54:03","slug":"weddingbuzz-beginning-to-surf-the-bridal-wave-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/weddingbuzz-beginning-to-surf-the-bridal-wave-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"WeddingBuzz beginning to surf the bridal wave – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
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While planning his wedding, Phil Usher became increasingly frustrated at the archaic practices and lack of transparency in the industry.<\/p>\n

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The time-consuming and inefficient process involved Usher having to wait for call backs from multiple suppliers just to get a proper quote.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere are about 15 suppliers you have to coordinate and go through the same process for each,\u201d Usher says.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe frustration was crazy. Being Gen Y we buy everything online, from clothing to movie tickets, but when it came to planning a wedding we had to go direct and wait for people to ring back.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou almost need a qualification in event management just to plan it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Everything in one place<\/b><\/h2>\n

So now Usher and co-founder Chris Escott have created a startup trying to make this process more efficient and transparent.<\/p>\n

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WeddingBuzz aims to be a one-stop platform helping engaged couples to plan, book and pay for their weddings online.<\/p>\n

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Usher says he wants the platform to be like Expedia for weddings, a two-way platform connecting engaged couples with wedding services providers.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s more aligned with their consumer behaviour now,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

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\u201cEvery other industry you can go online and get an idea of what you\u2019re looking at, and that\u2019s what we\u2019ve done here.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A saturated market<\/b><\/h2>\n

The site launched in July last year, and has now attracted more than 100 paying businesses, and about 200 more non-paying ones.<\/p>\n

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More than $100,000 of sales have been made through the platform.<\/p>\n

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The wedding planning market is becoming increasingly saturated, with a host of startups aiming to disrupt the hugely profitable but still rather traditional industry.<\/p>\n

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Over 118,000 Australians get married every year and spend an average of $36,200, according to IBISWorld.<\/a> The Australian wedding industry has estimated revenue of $544 million.<\/p>\n

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Usher says the condition that all businesses must list their prices upfront sets his startup apart from its many competitors.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThat\u2019s different to all the other platforms out there, which just give a generic overview of what a business can do,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe\u2019re more product-focused.\u201d<\/p>\n

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This requirement has pushed some businesses away from the platform though.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere\u2019s this whole thing in the wedding industry of being excessively overpriced, and some suppliers just weren\u2019t into it,\u201d Usher says.<\/p>\n

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\u201cBut we got early adopters and it just grew from there.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Monetisation<\/b><\/h2>\n

While focusing annual subscriptions for the businesses at the moment, WeddingBuzz will also soon be launching one-off low cost listings where it will take a percentage as a commission.<\/p>\n

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The startup has been bootstrapped by its two co-founders, and Usher estimates they\u2019ve put a total of $20,000 into it so far.<\/p>\n

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With the right funding, Usher says they hope to facilitate $5 million in sales through the site within a year.<\/p>\n

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\u201cNow we\u2019ve identified the business model and found that it works we\u2019re looking for that seed capital.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Raising your<\/i> first round of capital<\/i><\/a>? Starting a<\/i> crowdfunding campaign<\/i><\/a>? Want to grow your business<\/i> with Instagram?<\/i><\/a> StartupSmart School can help.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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