Bride Barters for Her $80,000 Dream Day
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iStock/Thinkstock(FRESNO, Calif.) — From flower arrangements and multi-tiered cakes to the DJ, the food and of course the dress, it’s no secret that weddings can cost a fortune.
But newlyweds Jessica and Isaac Piche, of Fresno, California, found a way to outsmart the system.
“She is a great negotiator,” Isaac told ABC News.
“Yes, we bartered,” added a proud Jessica.
Rather than their “something blue,” this technique could be referred to as their “something bartered.”
The Piche’s own a video production company which makes web videos and commercials, so in order to save money they decided to barter, or trade services, with wedding vendors.
“A lot of our friends and family just laughed it off,” said Jessica.
But it was no laughing matter. Their beautiful, dream wedding, complete with a five-star plated meal, professional photography and a live band that, in total, would have cost them upwards of $80,000 cost them only $1,000.
And although “it took a long time to get all of the vendors on board,” Jessica explained, she wasn’t willing to budge on her extremely thrifty budget.
“Once we got some vendors on board, it really steam rolled from there,” she said.
In just six months they’d negotiated “bartered services” for their entire wedding, from the pre-ceremony facials and massages to all of the dresses and tuxedos for the bridal party. Even the doves were bartered for. The only thing the happy couple paid for was the venue.
“We did have to pay a $1,000 deposit for the venue, but that was it,” Jessica recalled. “It was a $10,000 value.”
In return for that $10,000 value, the Piche’s provided the resort with $10,000 worth of their web and video services.
And as for the budgeting bride’s wedding dress which was valued at $1,300, “We gave them an overall video for their website and we gave them a couple TV commercials,” she said.
They say it will take a full year to complete all of the trades for their $80,000 wedding, but it was worth every penny saved.
And no, at four months pregnant, it’s safe to say they’ll be bartering for the nursery of their dreams, as well.
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