"Don't Want to Use a Wedding Planner" The Trend of 'Non-Attendance Weddings'

Soaring Wedding Costs Lead to DIY Preparations
"It's Uncomfortable, but We Have to Save Even 1 Million Won"

"It's better to save on wedding expenses and buy at least one more home appliance for the newlywed home."

Park Ji-young (29), who is getting married this September, recently visited a dress store with her fianc? without a wedding planner. Park has yet to meet a planner in person. Their communication consists only of messages exchanged every two to three days. When Park conveys her preferences for the dress and wedding hall via messenger, the planner books the store and informs her of the details.

Unlike other brides-to-be, Park had to narrow down her choices from the dress material to the wedding hall reservation by herself. However, she said that the inconvenience was bearable since she was able to save about 1.5 million won on wedding expenses by opting for a non-accompanied wedding.

As wedding costs soar amid high inflation, so-called 'non-accompanied weddings' prepared through remote wedding planners are gaining popularity among engaged couples. Unlike traditional wedding planners, remote planners do not charge a commission, allowing couples to reduce their wedding expenses.

The popularity of non-accompanied weddings can also be seen in Google search trend statistics. According to Google search data compiled over the past year, non-accompanied weddings ranked second among related search terms for 'wedding preparation.' As of the 2nd, an online cafe operated by a wedding company that arranges non-accompanied planners has over 960,000 members. On the anonymous workplace community Blind, there are more than 400 posts with questions and reviews related to non-accompanied weddings.

Non-accompanied weddings refer to services where wedding companies match engaged couples with wedding planners online. Typically, planners coordinate the couple’s wedding preparation schedule and provide advice, acting as a kind of secretary. Remote planners assist with scheduling the wedding online without charging a commission.

Couples who chose non-accompanied weddings cited cost savings as the primary reason. Yoo (31), who is getting married this May, said, "These days, the meal price at wedding halls has risen, with prices ranging from 70,000 to 100,000 won per person. With a minimum guaranteed attendance of 250 people, the meal cost alone easily exceeds 10 million won. I'm trying to save even 1 million won by opting for a non-accompanied wedding."

In particular, the costs for 'studio, dress, and makeup,' considered essential preparations for weddings, can be saved by hundreds of thousands of won. In fact, the reservation costs for 'studio, dress, and makeup' at three major non-accompanied wedding providers range from 1.6 million to just over 2 million won. Conversely, accompanied wedding companies charge at least 3.5 million won, with some exceeding 7 million won, so using a remote planner can reduce wedding expenses by 1.5 million to up to 4 million won.

Lee (34), who had to use all her savings to pay the deposit for her newlywed home, also chose a non-accompanied wedding. She said, "The deposit for an older apartment in Seoul is almost 400 million won, so I had to use all my money and even take out a loan. Since buying home appliances costs well over 10 million won, I decided to cut down on wedding expenses instead."

Some engaged couples even create blogs for their weddings. This is to take advantage of some non-accompanied wedding companies that offer points to customers who post reviews about their services. Park posts one blog entry daily to earn these points.

She said, "I've seen people save as much as 3 million won on wedding costs by collecting points. Even saving 1 million won on the wedding can buy a robot vacuum cleaner," but added, "On the other hand, it makes me sigh to think that we have to save this much money just to get married."