AUSTRALIAN BRIDAL SERVICES BRIDAL AND HONEYMOON SHOWCASE – AUGUST 2018
Date & Weather – Saturday 18th August – 20 Degrees
Expo hours – 10am – 4pm
Location – Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton Gardens – Handicap Access, Portable air conditioning in some areas.
Parking – Next Door at the Museum Car Park, and the Melbourne Museum undercover $17 flat rate.
Public Transport – Yes – tram
Ticket Cost – $25 online, $35 at the door (rather expensive for a wedding expo)
Advertising – Saw the advertisements on Facebook
Prizes – Advertised online, over $85k in prizes
Giveaways – Not much in the way of actual giveaways, a bag with the directory, an entry form for prizes, a privilege card to get discounts with selected companies.
Expo Features List – Bridal fashion parade
Layout – Winding layout from the entry to the fashion parade and go back the way you came to get out. It’s difficult to change route once you’ve entered the winding layout.
Queue To Get In – No Queue
Quantity Of Exhibitors – 110.
| Bonbonniere | 1 |
| Bridal Accessories | 1 |
| Bridal Fashion | 16 |
| Cakes | 4 |
| Cars | 3 |
| Catering | 1 |
| Celebrants | 4 |
| Dance | 1 |
| Event Styling & Planning | 11 |
| Entertainment | 5 |
| Jewellery | 3 |
| Flowers | 4 |
| Health & Fitness | 1 |
| Hens/Bucks | 1 |
| Wedding & Honeymoon destinations | 7 |
| Intimate Apparel | 1 |
| Invitations & Stationery | 3 |
| Makeup and hair | 2 |
| Menswear | 6 |
| Mother of the bride | 1 |
| Photo booths | 3 |
| Photography | 11 |
| Venues | 16 |
| Shoes | 1 |
| Video | 4 |
Overall Star Rating – 2.5/5
Overall Impression –
Our reviewing party always has high hopes for this wedding expo, as in the past it has put on a good show. This event has great potential, with some of the best the bridal fashion Melbourne has to offer, but the ticketing price is a bit steep, especially if you are attending with more than one person.
The event didn’t have many attendees compared to previous shows, although the exhibitors were in good spirits and only too happy to chat. There was a good number of exhibitors in all wedding categories, although a lot less in comparison to previous shows.
On the positive side, the expo featured a large number of high-end bridal fashion suppliers. The fashion parade was also beautifully done, and showcased a range of stunning dresses. Maybe the frequency was a bit much – 3 parades in one day could have been reduced to 2.
We’re not a fan of the layout, the winding floor plan is a bit overbearing, and there are no exit points other than the front door, but at least there is no way of getting lost. Overall, the Bridal and Honeymoon Showcase offers great variety, and let’s hope the next show will have something new to feature.