A&E Promotions presents Northwest Bridal Showcase

  • By M.L. Dehm / For the Herald
  • Saturday, January 29, 2005 9:00pm

The event, which is organized by A&E Promotions, includes both local and national vendors.

Paulette Deckers, president of A&E Promotions, has been planning this particular show since last years event ended.

The Everett Events Center is great, Deckers said. Its really nice, and parking is pretty good. Were not going to be bringing in 10,000 people through the doors like a Seattle show, but the plus side of that is that the vendors and shoppers get more time with one other. There arent so many people that they cant take the time to stop and really talk to someone in person. It makes it easier to book at the show.

Bridal shows are relatively new inventions, coming into their own during the past 10 to 15 years. Previously, most shows were confined to big cities like Seattle, but recently there has been a move to put them closer to where the brides live and where the businesses actually operate.

A Snohomish County resident herself, Deckers is pleased to have booked her show at a premier location such as the Everett Events Center.

This years Bridal Showcase features more than 70 vendors and covers all aspects of wedding and honeymoon planning. There are florists, caterers, photographers, disc jockeys, and cruise and travel information. Gown sales are being sponsored by Brides Outlet.

But A&E Promotions also has some more unusual booths providing services a bride might not have considered. Sponsor RE/MAX Realty is offering information on first time home buying or help for the couple combining households and needing to sell a home fast.

The bridal market is a huge, really varied market, Deckers said. Some things here are most definitely just for the bride dresses and things like that. But outside of that are florists, photographers and specialty cake makers who also cover anniversaries, birthdays, baby showers and more. My vendors are there for one specific reason, but their information is also there for a larger market, too.

Probably the most popular part of the Bridal Showcase is the fashion show. This part of the event is sponsored by well known local modeling instructor Florence Ibea. The show begins each day at 1 p.m. and lasts approximately 45 minutes.

What I really like about Florence is that she does mannequins, which are models dressed up in wedding gowns. Theyre standing still, Deckers said. People can walk up to the gowns and inspect them in detail. Sound Light and Karaoke is providing the light and sound equipment for our fashion shows. Its a local business here in town thats very active in the community.

There are also live music acts at the event that are available to book for weddings. Brides can listen to a string quartet or a harpist and see if the artists skills should accompany her own special day.

Im also pleased to have Emerald Bay Catering of Bellingham at the show again this year and as a sponsor, Deckers said. They were just bought-out by a big company thats doing great things with them. They offer all sorts of catering services. I know they booked to do several weddings off of our show last year.

The Northwest Bridal Showcase is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $10 at the door, but there are discount coupons good for $2 off the ticket price, available at BonMacys Bridal Registry counters and the Brides Outlet in Everett. Discount coupons can also be printed from the A&E Promotions Web site, www.aandepromotions.com.

The bride-to-be can also use that coupon to register for multiple vendor giveaways, Decker said. Every vendor is giving away a minimum of $100 in goods and services.

Decker also has some advice for shopping brides.

An absolutely huge tip for gals coming to the show is to bring preprinted address labels, she said. Its even better if you can include your name, address, phone number, wedding date and email address. Its such a time saver! They can just give one of their address cards to the vendor theyre interested in and they dont have to waste their time at the show filling out forms.

For more information on the Northwest Bridal Showcase, call (425) 418-3307 or see www.aandepromotions.com.

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