Planning Priorities: 4 Main Needs for Your Wedding Reception

Planning a wedding reception requires some forethought. Key members of the bride’s party as well as the groom’s men will be expected to take care of some important responsibilities. The list can get long, and some tasks can be easily forgotten, unless they’re planned for ahead of time.

If you’re planning your wedding, here are four of the main responsibilities you need to take care of at your wedding reception.

Cake Table Items

The cake ceremony plays such a huge role in the wedding reception, it rightfully deserves the first spot on this list. You’ll want to have a couple of items on this table. Aside from the cake, you’ll need to arrange for the cake topper, the cake stand, and the serving set. You’ll also want to discuss who will serve the cake after it is cut.

This discussion can happen with the caterer, but it can also be one that the bride and groom discuss with the bridesmaids or the groom’s men. Very often, the responsibility for seeing this get done falls on the Maid of Honor or the bride’s mother, but not always. Whoever does take on this duty should know ahead of time.

The Little Things

Who’ll run the photo booth? Parking? The bar? The gift table? People must attend to all of these duties during the reception. The bride and groom, however, shouldn’t be the ones taking care of these responsibilities.

Aside from knowing who will take care of these duties once the time comes, the bride and groom should also discuss when they are expected to pay these professionals and if they are also expected to tip.

Payment can either be worked out ahead of time or the bride and groom can give the responsibility to someone they trust. This is especially important if someone other than the bride or groom is going to be handling payment.

Tables and Chair Rental

Unless you’re planning on having a small get-together in your backyard and asking people to bring lawn chairs, you’re going to need to look into renting tables and chairs for your reception. If you’re not sure what style you’d like or if you think you need more than one style—think tables and chairs for the reception AND separate ones for the rehearsal dinner—you might want to look at Party People Rentals & Sales or a similar company in your area.

Companies like these not only have traditional seating, but they also have more lounge-style/bench-style seating and tables as well. Aside from all of this, many rental companies will even help you set up and tear down the tables and chairs.

Linens and Things

Speaking of rentals, don’t forget that you’ll need supplies for your tables and chairs once you get them. Couples will need both table linens as well as napkins and other table dressings for their reception. If you go with a rental company for this, be sure to ask who takes care of set-up as well as laundry/housekeeping once the reception is over.

Wedding planning takes a long while and a great deal of strategic thinking to pull off a great ceremony and reception. More “romantic” duties like hiring the musicians or the photographer usually get a lot of thought from the get-go.

However, no one will care about who’s taking the pictures or which band played at the reception if the guests don’t have a place to sit nor food to eat. A satisfying wedding reception is one that includes all the details great and small. This checklist is meant to ensure that some of the most important duties don’t get lost in the shuffle.