Framing for the 'Just-Married' market: the sound of wedding bells can bring a new crop of young buyers and a bevy of mementos down the aisles of frame shops

Art Business News, June, 2003 by Tricia Bisoux

Try Something New

Choosing a good product mix that pleases wedding customers takes some trial and error. As a result, framers may want to take a "walk down the aisle" in their shops to examine their current inventory and think about what kind of product mixes might be a hit in the wedding market. Then, they can test market a variety of different products and services among customers.

Sometimes offering just a few affordable items can offer young newlyweds a great entry point into custom framing. For example, Meade of Art-en-Ciel has found that adding albums to her inventory has been a great success. As the spring wedding season begins in April, she moves her photo album display to a prominent place at the front of the store.

"Over the years, I have experimented with adding retail merchandise to my store. I've found that such merchandise brings more people into the store and makes it far more interesting and attractive to buyers," said Meade. "In the process of refining my product mix to suit demand, I've discovered a niche for high-end photo frames and albums."

There generally are three categories of customers who regularly purchase albums, explained Meade: Brides and grooms, new parents and travelers. Meade finds that the first two categories are her primary customers. After working with the wedding market for several years, Meade has found that the wedding album market itself is also generally divided into two segments: The all-out extravaganza weddings served primarily by high-end photographers and smaller, less formal weddings that call for the more affordable, handmade product that Meade offers in her store.

In addition to albums, promoting wedding-themed framing products keeps your services on customers' minds as their big day approaches. For example, Carolyn Canon of MCR Framing in DeKalb, Ill., has found that offering "signature mats" to brides for their receptions has been a popular option.

"We have done a number of 'autograph mats.' For example, we'll cut a standard size mat with a very wide border, such as a 16- by 20-inch mat for a 5- by 7-inch photo," she said. "The couple takes the mat to display with a photo at their reception for the guests to sign and then brings it back to us with a photo for us to frame. We've run radio ads for this service."

To offer yet another entry point to custom framing, framers might consider adding a line of ready-made shadow boxes to their inventory. A new line of ready-mades is newly available from GraphiStudio, a company with U.S. offices in Minneapolis. Available in two sizes, 10 by 12 and 14 by 19 inches, they are the perfect option for newlyweds whose budgets can't accommodate a custom design, said company representative Maureen Neises.

"Customers can utilize these shadow boxes for their big events," said Neises. "They're affordable yet very elegant and ornate and are available in four different styles of moulding."

For brides with grander budgets, framer-photographers may also want to look into the "Wedding Book," a commercially published, art-quality, four-color coffee-table-style book, also available through GraphiStudio. Through the photographer, newlyweds can choose among several layouts and then send in photos to the company that chronicle their engagement and wedding. The book is then professionally designed, printed and bound with a picture cover or in embossed Italian leather. It can be printed in full size as well as in a number of smaller sizes for gifts for parents and members of the bridal party.