Right I’m going to make a sweeping statement. I believe most wedding vendors in Aotearoa New Zealand are good people, but many forget to publicly state that they are LGBT+ friendly.
Of course there are exceptions. There are those beautiful humans who are wonderful at pointing out their inclusivity policies… and there are those who for whatever reason are decidedly unfriendly. However I truly believe the ‘unfriendlies’ are few and far between.
But in this market, how do you, a gay couple looking to celebrate your relationship with marriage, a wedding, know who to contact and who to stay away from?
Start with the vendors who are open about being gay friendly. I realise this is probably a personal bias, but celebrants are usually a great place to start. We are the closest you get to the ceremony action, if we are actively inclusive, we are likely to at least quietly mention our inclusivity on our website or socials. Yes all independent celebrants are legally obliged to marry couples regardless of their sexuality, ethnicity etc, but let’s not set ‘legally obliged’ as the bar, we can do much much better than that!
And from there, ask for recommendations, which photographers do they recommend? Which venues, which cake makers, which caterers?
We know that being gay is only part of who you are as people, so our recommendations will be because these vendors are LGBT friendly AND there’s lots of green space at the venue, or it’s by the beach, or the caterers are vegetarian friendly or whatever is important to you.
Or opt for a stress free all inclusive elopement or intimate wedding package. With options around Central Otago and Maniototo, as well as the option to go bespoke, you can trust every one of the vendors involved is as happy to work with LGBT+ couples as I am. Because I asked the questions, so you don’t have to. . Every one of the vendors involved wants to do what I want to do - create a stress free wedding experience for any couple to whom getting married in our beautiful part of the country appeals.
Why have I made my LGBT friendliness clear? Because I never ever want to get asked again ‘is it okay that we’re gay?’ It feels really bad to know somebody was worried about contacting me because of who they are. I want to know that the only trepidation a gay couple has when approaching me is the same as a straight couple. What if Hannah and her style aren’t a good fit for our plans? And incidentally it’s okay if I’m not the right celebrant for you, I aim to be authentically me, by definition that means I can’t be everything to everybody.
I’d love to chat and talk through what would make your wedding great for you. If you don’t know exactly what that looks like yourselves yet, or where to start, let’s talk, there are so many amazing vendors and hidden gem locations in our region I’d love to introduce you to.
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