Coronavirus Concerns Wedding Industry
2020-03-22
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1Concerns about the growing number of coronavirus illnesses in the United States and elsewhere has greatly affected the wedding industry.
2People who are about to be married are facing difficult choices: do they postpone, cancel or go ahead with their wedding plans?
3"So much extra stress," said 26-year-old Hayley Pass.
4She and her fiancé had 155 confirmed guests for their March 22 wedding in Cedar Grove, New Jersey.
5Pass added, "After all this planning it's like, really, we're going to postpone?
6We just really want it to happen but it seems like the worst is yet to come."
7The couple will only cancel the wedding if their location cancels on them or if their closest loved ones decide not to attend.
8Other couples have also decided to keep their wedding dates for now, with the busiest wedding months ahead.
9Postponing or canceling a wedding raises many questions.
10Will businesses and sellers all be available on the same new date and time?
11Will couples lose money that they already paid?
12Usual wedding insurance does not cover concern over a spreading virus.
13That concern has caused many governments to place restrictions on travel and large gatherings in places around the world.
14Some insurance companies are answering questions over how policies work in such an unusual situation.
15For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough.
16For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. Most people recover.
17People in the wedding industry are feeling the effects of widespread concern over the virus.
18Abby Murray is a travel agent in Charlotte, North Carolina.
19She specializes in planning honeymoons - trips many couples take after a wedding.
20At this time of year, she would usually have 20 customers.
21She now has two.
22Murray said, "People are scared to book their honeymoons right now. People don't even want to explore it.
23They're going to move forward with their weddings but take their honeymoons at a later date."
24Virus containment measures across China have caused factories there to slow their production of goods - including wedding dresses.
25The Green Bride shop in Littleton, Colorado, usually receives up to 60 wedding dresses shipped from China each month from February to May.
26But this February, it received only four.
27Holly Marsh is one of the store owners.
28She said, "If the wedding is in June, and the dress is supposed to be here in February and it's not going to get here until May, what do you tell them?"
29David Gaffke owns the store Complete Bridal in East Dundee, Illinois.
30He depends greatly on China for manufacturing the dresses he sells.
31"It's frustrating when it comes to having to tell a bride that we're not able to fulfill your needs," he said.
32"This is the most important dress they're going to wear."
33Photographer Michael Busada in Washington, D.C. depends on weddings for about half of his business.
34He has 36 weddings under contract this year, including one that recently canceled after the bride was possibly exposed to the coronavirus.
35Another wedding went from a large location with 150 guests to a home ceremony with 20.
36Busada offered the couple that was forced to cancel a credit or postponement, without penalty.
37"Everybody's struggling. It doesn't do me any good to be the bad guy," he said.
38I'm Jonathan Evans.
1Concerns about the growing number of coronavirus illnesses in the United States and elsewhere has greatly affected the wedding industry. 2People who are about to be married are facing difficult choices: do they postpone, cancel or go ahead with their wedding plans? 3"So much extra stress," said 26-year-old Hayley Pass. She and her fiancé had 155 confirmed guests for their March 22 wedding in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. 4Pass added, "After all this planning it's like, really, we're going to postpone? We just really want it to happen but it seems like the worst is yet to come." 5The couple will only cancel the wedding if their location cancels on them or if their closest loved ones decide not to attend. 6Other couples have also decided to keep their wedding dates for now, with the busiest wedding months ahead. 7Postponing or canceling a wedding raises many questions. Will businesses and sellers all be available on the same new date and time? Will couples lose money that they already paid? 8Usual wedding insurance does not cover concern over a spreading virus. That concern has caused many governments to place restrictions on travel and large gatherings in places around the world. 9Some insurance companies are answering questions over how policies work in such an unusual situation. 10For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. Most people recover. 11People in the wedding industry are feeling the effects of widespread concern over the virus. 12Abby Murray is a travel agent in Charlotte, North Carolina. She specializes in planning honeymoons - trips many couples take after a wedding. At this time of year, she would usually have 20 customers. She now has two. 13Murray said, "People are scared to book their honeymoons right now. People don't even want to explore it. They're going to move forward with their weddings but take their honeymoons at a later date." 14Virus containment measures across China have caused factories there to slow their production of goods - including wedding dresses. 15The Green Bride shop in Littleton, Colorado, usually receives up to 60 wedding dresses shipped from China each month from February to May. But this February, it received only four. 16Holly Marsh is one of the store owners. She said, "If the wedding is in June, and the dress is supposed to be here in February and it's not going to get here until May, what do you tell them?" 17David Gaffke owns the store Complete Bridal in East Dundee, Illinois. He depends greatly on China for manufacturing the dresses he sells. 18"It's frustrating when it comes to having to tell a bride that we're not able to fulfill your needs," he said. "This is the most important dress they're going to wear." 19Photographer Michael Busada in Washington, D.C. depends on weddings for about half of his business. He has 36 weddings under contract this year, including one that recently canceled after the bride was possibly exposed to the coronavirus. Another wedding went from a large location with 150 guests to a home ceremony with 20. 20Busada offered the couple that was forced to cancel a credit or postponement, without penalty. "Everybody's struggling. It doesn't do me any good to be the bad guy," he said. 21I'm Jonathan Evans. 22Leanne Italie reported on this story for the Associated Press. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 23_____________________________________________________________ 24Words in This Story 25exposed - adj. open to view 26location - n. a place or position 27symptoms - n. changes in the body or mind that indicate a disease is present