This is a sample wedding — Holly & Tom, four and a half months out.
Holly — the Bloom & Birch quote arrived overnight; £2,900 sits on the line for ninety covers, which is £450 over the regional median but bundles in two site visits. Two of the four contracts you've signed have hidden VAT; together they add £840 you weren't planning for. Tom is up on tasks this week; the venue walk-through is Friday — Sposa has prepared the question list.
A walled-garden country house in the South West, ninety covers, late-summer light. Sposa has the room.
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Bloom & Birch's quote arrived overnight.
£2,900 for ninety covers — £450 over the regional median, but two site visits are bundled in. A planner would push back on the delivery surcharge (£140) before signing.
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Two contracts have hidden VAT.
Together: £840 you weren't planning for. The marquee company quote is gross of VAT; the caterer's is net — and the caterer's service charge takes it to £1,008 if you sign as-is. Sposa flagged both on Tuesday.
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Tom's plate is full this week.
Three site-visit follow-ups, the speech outline, two RSVP chases. Sposa shifted the etiquette draft to joint, and moved Holly's dressmaker call to Saturday so it doesn't collide with the cake tasting.
Every figure above was lifted out of an email like this one — a caterer's quote, read the way Sposa reads all of them. Connect Gmail and Drive once; nothing else to do.
Lovely to meet you both! Delighted to quote for your 90 guests.
Our package comes to £6,400 including styling and service. We ask for a 50% deposit (£3,200) to hold the date, due 14 days after signing.
Please note the venue requires music off by 11pm, and the figures above are exclusive of VAT (a further £1,280).
We've pencilled you in for 18 September — just say the word to confirm!
Sposa caught
- Quote £6,400 package incl. styling & service
- Deposit £3,200 50%, due 14 days after signing
- VAT +£1,280 not in the headline figure
- Curfew 23:00 music off by 11pm
- Date held 18 Sep pencilled in — confirm to hold
- True total £7,680 £6,400 + VAT
Every figure links back to the line it came from.
Missing a vendor? Brief the Concierge once and it does the legwork — sources, reaches out, and brings back a shortlist. Here's what one search looks like.
You asked for
A wedding band — soul & funk, around £1,800, the Cotswolds, 8–10pm.
Your shortlist
- The Brass Necks £1,650 free on your date 8-piece, brass-led soul · demo on request
- Velvet Saturday £1,900 free on your date soul & funk 6-piece · own PA + lighting
- Northern Soul Co. £1,750 holding your date Motown-leaning 7-piece · DJ set between
You make the call. Sposa never books or signs for you.