We love Gen Z for oh so many reasons, but it when comes to wedding trends, we kind of hope everyone takes a page out of the Gen Z playbook! Keep reading for the seven Gen Z wedding trends we hope are here to stay!
1) Redefining Wedding Day Traditions
While you can thank millennials for the trend of Grandma flower girls, Gen Z took the idea of completely redefining wedding day traditions and ran with it. Wedding party roles went from flower girls to beer dudes. Two-piece gowns, jumpsuits, and color-pop dresses took the place of the traditional white wedding gown. And wedding registries have (mostly) been replaced with requests for honeymoon funds or donations to their favorite causes. We’ve got to hand it to Gen Z, they are the generation that figured out how to go after the things that mattered most when it comes to saying I do. And we love them for that!
2) Gen Z Loves a Wedding Theme
More prevalent than ever among Gen Z wedding trends are vibey themes. Adventure elopements, destination weddings to exotic costs of Europe, and wedding receptions themed after their favorite streaming series. Gen Z loves a fab theme when it comes to their best day ever! But it’s their approach to incorporating a theme that makes it a trend worth repeating. A Game of Thrones wedding theme is less about capes and crowns and more about rich crimson table linens & tall taper candles in timeless gold candle holders. It’s more of a vibe than a literal theme and we have to admit, it’s a moment!
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3) Sustainability
You won’t find plastic, foam, or any single-use products at a Gen Z wedding. In fact, many Gen Z couples planning a wedding will go out of their way to hire a florist who uses sustainable swaps in place of traditional floral foam. Or a florist who offers rental pieces that can be reused when it comes to constructing items like their wedding arbor or vessels for the floral arrangements at their reception.
Aside from florals is the surge in the number of “wedding rentals”. Gen Z loves finding a sustainable way to create a wedding that fits their personality and rentals are the way to make it happen. For example, seating can be rented to create break-out spaces at a wedding. Think of it as an intimate corner made for conversation that gives guests a break from the dance floor.
Remember that theme we mentioned? Everything from chairs to linens, and serveware can be rented in order to bring their vision to life. Reusable items reduce the overall carbon footprint of a wedding while still allowing room for creativity and a dream-like wedding day experience!
4) Experience
Weddings, at their core, will always be a celebration of love & commitment. But Gen Z couples wanted nothing to do with what we came to know as “cookie cutter” weddings. We’re sure you’ve probably been to one! They usually go a little something like this.. Ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception. There’ll be traditional parent dances, dinner service (plated or buffet), the couple cuts the cake, and then you’ll be on your way. After dropping a card in their gift box of course. Sound ultra boring? Because they were!
Nobody looked at wedding days through the same lens as Gen Z who refocused on the whole day (or weekend or week!) as a full-on experience, with every element of their wedding day being a touch point for them and their guests to be fully immersed in. It was no longer about a cocktail hour with wine, cheese, and crackers, it became a cocktail hour with signature crafted drinks and small bites served from food trucks. It’s less about hiring a DJ who will ask you which song to play for your first dance. But instead looking for a DJ who knows how to keep the crowd engaged and the dance floor energy high! Gen Z doesn’t just want a wedding. They want to enhance the experience of what their wedding day will be, for everyone in attendance!
Because Gen Z plans weddings with guest experience in mind, they also look at the overall picture of how everyone is connected. Gen Z loves a room full of people that already know each other and can skip right to celebrating! They want their wedding day to create long-lasting memories and keep the emphasis on having a good time. It’s not about arriving at a banquet hall in time to grab your escort card and sit down before the couple gets announced. It’s about stepping into a niched corner of the world for a night. One where everyone knows each other and isn’t afraid to keep the dance floor lit, all night long!
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5) Weekday Weddings
Micro weddings and courthouse weddings kind of had their moment back in the pre-pandemic days of yore. While they are still somewhat popular choices for a quick wedding, they don’t really belong to Gen Z. But, if it’s one thing that does belong to Gen Z, it’s a fab weekday wedding! It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when weekday weddings began to gain momentum, but, they are having their moment with Gen Z couples. Wondering why Gen Z loves a fab weekday wedding? Weddings usually take place on a Saturday and dates can book out anywhere from 1-2 years in advance. Leaving couples on a shorter timeline with less options for booking their wedding.
Speaking of wedding dates! Remember when “Twosday” was trending? 2/22/22, which fell on a Tuesday, was a popular wedding date for Gen Z couples who wanted an unforgettable wedding date. Aside from their ability to be scooped up easily or provide a fun wedding anniversary date, weekday weddings hold so much more power than meets the eye. Because Saturdays are highly sought-after wedding days, weekday weddings tend to be more cost-effective. Secondly, weekday weddings allow couples to host destination weddings or weddings with out-of-town guests and provide them with pre & post-wedding day events. Further pulling everyone into the experience of the wedding! Who doesn’t love a fun rehearsal dinner, afterparty, or morning after brunch? Because we are for sure down for all of the above!
6) Favors Are Out
Overall, Gen Z spends about 60% less on traditional wedding favors than their generational counterparts, and with good reason. Favors aren’t fun! Nobody wants to stuff a favor in their teeny tiny purse and carry it around all night. Can you think of the last time you couldn’t wait to grab a wedding favor on your way out the door? Because we can’t! Gen Z knows that their planning efforts and wedding budget are better spent on their guest’s experience versus rows of neatly lined wedding favors inscribed with their names and wedding date on them! We watched millennials grapple with what to do about wedding favors and they came up with the ever-so-popular wedding candy buffet. But Gen Z ditched them all together, and for that, we’d like to give them a standing ovation!
7) Intimate Guest Lists
Gen Z wedding guest lists don’t roll as deep as millennials or Gen X. Prior generations always felt pressured to invite distant relatives, plus ones, neighbors, and childhood friends. But that was usually because they had financial assistance in planning their wedding. Gen Z is going it alone in the wedding budget department and they are hyper-aware of who they wanted by their side on their wedding day. For them, it’s about being intentional with every wedding invite they send out. Gen Z likes everyone in attendance to know each other. When one of their guests does make the final cut, the couple already knows that they’ll be receiving an RSVP in the form of a resounding YES! But, if you’re looking for actual numbers in the guest count department, Gen Z typically keeps it around 50-100 guests!
