When you accept an invitation to a wedding, you expect to have to pay for a gift, a new outfit, accommodation, travel and (naturally) a few tinnies to help get the party started on the journey there. You don't usually anticipate being asked for a fee upfront under a "business model" devised by the bride and groom.
But that's what happened to guests attending Ben Farina, 33, and Clare Moran's, 37, nuptials in June, who have been asked to contribute up to £150 each towards the event, BBC News reported.
The fee includes a three-night stay at the Derbyshire wedding venue, which has a pool and spa, and will go towards food and drink. Predictably, many have accused the couple of being "tight", saying that people who can't afford a wedding shouldn't get married at all.
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Like my mum always told me, if you can't afford it, you can't have it.
— Rose. (@Rakpenguin63) September 20, 2017
If you Can't afford it then you can't have it. We live in a crazy world
— Annie Bayliss (@anniebea56) September 20, 2017
The simple answer from their friends should be 'NO'. This couple are clearly living beyond their means.
— FoxtrotCop (@Foxtrot_Cop) September 20, 2017
Champagne lifestyle, Asti budget.
But Farina, who lives in Roetherham, said the unique idea had been a hit with their guests. All 60 adults and 20 child guests would be attending and had paid their deposits.
Indeed, £150 for a three-night stay in a hotel with a pool and spa is actually a pretty sweet deal and it removes a lot of organisational hassle from the guests themselves, as Vice pointed out. Sometimes you'd end up shelling out over £150 a train fare alone. Farina's idea is just a slightly different way of financially planning a wedding.
This groom is asking guests to help pay for his dream wedding https://t.co/RP9MsJSJ9N pic.twitter.com/vOapRlMyiS
— Yahoo Style UK (@YahooStyleUK) September 20, 2017
"People always pay a large amount of money to go to a wedding anyway, so why not have it paying towards the actual wedding rather than just to a business owner?" Farina told BBC News. "I sold it to them a bit like an all-inclusive holiday, so all the food and drinks will be incorporated in that cost."
Under the business plan, the total of the guests' fees (£10,000) will go towards the venue and the couple are spending £2,000 of their own money. Farina's mother is paying for the £750 hog roast on the day and various friends and family members will be providing hair and makeup, entertainment and food for free.
Farina had planned the business model before he even proposed, anticipating that Moran's reaction would be "we can't afford to get married". Considering that the average wedding in the UK now costs more than £27k, maybe it's about time we devised similar alternative ways of financing them?