New marriage patterns in the Arab world have not affected the costs of weddings. Despite the financial crisis, the Middle-Eastern wedding industry has become a multimillion dollar business with an annual 20% growth. A survey conducted at the 2008 Bride Show Dubai showed that 43% of the visitors intended to spend between $5,000 and $14,000on jewelry compared to $1,000 in the US, while 21% of couples will spend more than $25,000. Furthermore, the average cost of a full wedding package in the region is between $30,000 and $140,000 compared to an average of $20,000 in the US.
This year’s Bride Show Dubai confirmed that some brides in the region are still willing to splash out on their wedding day.
Orders were placed for Ahmed Al Reyaysa’s one million dirham wedding gown embroided with half a million Swarovski crystals and for bling H20, the Swarovski-encrusted bottled water for the ‘person who has everything.’
Not everyone was oblivious to economic hardship and wedding planners are particularly concerned by the prohibitive cost of weddings. For the first time, the Bride Show Dubai, featured a Budget Tracker who gave advice on how to keep costs down.
Traditional weddings in the Gulf countries consist of lavish ceremonies with an average of 500 to 800 guests. The trend is to invite as many relatives and friends as possible and to regale the guests with an abundance of luxurious food and superb entertainment including some of the Arab world’s best known singers and dazzling décor. In the current environment, couples affected by the crisis, especially those living in Dubai, are reducing the number of guests or settling for a simple cocktail reception rather than a seated dinner.
Arab marriages are surrounded by traditions which highlight the importance of a ceremony which bestows prestige and recognition, particularly on the bride. The region’s growing consumerism is affecting the cost of weddings that are becoming increasingly expensive. As a result, many young Arab men need to save in order to get married. They are part of a new generation that has no prospects of becoming better off economically than their parents.
Economic factors combined with growing wedding expenses are forcing couples to decrease their wedding budget by as much as 60% and according to some experts, 50% of weddings have been cancelled in the GCC cities. A growing number of couples are questioning the need for conspicuous excesses in the average wedding. Put off by rampant materialism, they are looking for a more ethical approach to their big day.
Over the last five years, there has been a growing interest in ‘green weddings’ especially in the West. The term ‘green wedding’ refers to weddings that are eco-friendly and eco-conscious, weddings that not only reduce the impact on the environment but also avoid unnecessary spending. Guests are asked to substitute charitable donations for traditional wedding gifts. Organizing an eco-friendly wedding includes sending invitations made from recycled paper, finding a hotel that recycles, hiring caterers who use local and organic produce and even decorating with potted plants that can be re-used.
The wedding industry in the West has reinvented itself with the ‘green wedding’ but this also reveals a new trend toward less consumerism and a more eco-conscious lifestyle. In the Gulf, the persistent high cost of marriages, combined with economic difficulties, have now become a matter of public concern. Marriage funds have been established in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. These funds are a way of helping many young men who, through lack of money, are forced to delay their marriages. The current economic situation might be forcing couples to reduce their budgets, but that should not be seen as a gradual erosion of marriage traditions in a region known for the legendary generosity of its inhabitants. A wedding is still seen very much as a happy occasion, and this joyful event should be shared by as many well-wishers as possible.
