Please suggest: vendor gratuites

[emeraldlover1]

I know that this has been discussed before and I''ve read these threads. My fiance and I are trying to figure out which vendors we should tip. Please make a suggestion based on the list below. All of them are businesses the person we hired owns, other than the band which manages themselves I guess.

- photographer and assistant (our final payment isn''t due until the proofs are given to us. If we do tip, what percentage would you suggest?)
- band (8 members + a dj)
- florist
- makeup (independent)
- hair (independent)
- transportation drivers

The venue tipping we have figured out. I just don''t know what to do about the others. Makeup and hair are $225 total for each person and these are independent professionals...I was planning to tip it just seems like a lot and I wanted to hear everyones suggestions.

 

[katamari]

I just don''t know, and I agree tipping is one of the hardest things to decide upon in these situations, particularly because you know wedding prices are inflated.

I think for the band, florist, and photographer, a 10-15% tip would be okay, if you decided to cash-tip. For the rest, I would go 20-25%. But, what I would probably do is tip hair, makeup, and transport in cash and then send thank you gifts (like very functionally useful giftcards--gas or grocery) to the photographer, band, and florist. Not sure this is "right" by any means, though.

 

[Kim N]

Because the people you hired all own their business, I''d tip only if they truly went above and beyond. I might do 10% for photographer, band, and florist, knowing that those costs are probably very high, and 20% for the makeup, hair, and drivers. But again, only if they go above and beyond.

 

[Clairitek]

Date: 3/1/2009 3:08:20 PM
Author: Kim N
Because the people you hired all own their business, I''d tip only if they truly went above and beyond. I might do 10% for photographer, band, and florist, knowing that those costs are probably very high, and 20% for the makeup, hair, and drivers. But again, only if they go above and beyond.

Ditto! Especially the part about how if they own their own business. Since they own their business its not like they are paying a cut of the fee to their employer. I think the same thing goes for the hair stylist and makeup people. If you had hired them from a salon to be sent out to do your hair it would be different.

I could be totally wrong and breaking all sorts of etiquette with my suggestions here though.

 

[brendaman]

I bought one of these books by a celebrity planner which provided some guidelines on tipping. It says that "some vendors do include gratuities in their bills, so you need to read the contracts carefully." When vendors own their own business, then a tip isn''t always appropriate, but it''s recommended to do a personal note and a gift (e.g. home-baked cookies). Of course, this celebrity planner does deal with people whose budgets are bigger than mine. It is stressed that tipping, in many cases, is optional. It is the "norm" to tip the vendors I''ve marked with "**" below.

- photographer and assistant (our final payment isn''t due until the proofs are given to us. If we do tip, what percentage would you suggest?) = including videographer, $100, if paying a flat fee w/no overtime
- band (8 members + a dj) = 15% for fee for ceremony musicians; $25 to $50 per musician for reception
- florist = none listed, but I''m sure it would depend on the service they provide you
- makeup (independent) = 15 to 20%
- hair (independent) = 15 to 20%
- transportation drivers = 15%**