Elegant Weddings is a new wedding photography and videography business started by a college student in Omaha, Nebraska. The business proposal outlines plans for pricing packages ranging from $800-$2,000, marketing primarily through social media and local outlets, and operating as a sole proprietor initially. Financial projections estimate the business will break even in March and become profitable by capturing one wedding per weekend, with potential to expand services and hire employees as the business grows.

1. Elegant Weddings
Molly Gardner
Omaha, Nebraska
402.217.3034
elegantweddings@gmail.com

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I. About Elegant Weddings
II. Products and Services
III. Marketing and Promotion
IV. Operationsand Human Resources
V. Financial Plan

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I. About Elegant Weddings
Executive Summary
Elegant Weddings was created by a college student, who desired to help people remember the
small events in their wedding through video and photography. This proposal contains a
summary of how the business is to be set up and run. It also includes media plans, costs,
location and other information pertinent to starting up a business. All calculations have been
based off of market information found online for the Omaha, Nebraska area. Thank you and we
look forward to working with you
Who We Are
At Elegant Weddings it is our mission to capture moments in our client’s weddings that they will
be able to look back on for years to come. We will produce quality video and pictures that will
satisfy our customers’ needs and wants. As a business we will act professional and conduct
ourselves in a matter reassuring to the client. We will provide our employees with brand new
equipment in order for them to do their job to the best of their ability.
Mission Statement
 To create lasting memories with passion and enthusiasm
 To provide the highest level of quality products and services, customer service and
security
 To please you in every way possible with our photography as well as our video, to
capture every emotion and detail to make your moments unforgettable
Vision Statement
To create uniquely personal, honest portraits of clients. Elegant Weddings will provide quality
photos and videos that our clients will cherish for a lifetime. It is their special day, and we will
make sure that our client remembers it as such. Making sure that we capture the moment and
create a permanent reminder of the important day. We will continuously educate ourselves in
photography, to ensure the best product possible.
Code of Ethics
For Employees
 Do not discriminate against the clientele
 Respect all guests at the wedding and respect all guests wishes

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 All employees should respect property. This includes trademarks, copyright and other
property
 Must show integrity and professionalismespecially when attending a wedding
 Be friendly and collaborative. Do not disrupt the wedding just for a picture
 Produce photographs or video of a quality equal or superior to the samples that are
displayed
 Have adequate backup equipment in the case of unforeseen equipment failure
 Do not undertake any paid work without a signed contract
For Clients
 Please do not have guests take pictures at your wedding. It distracts us from doing
our job, and we may not be able to get the picture.
 If you have already signed a contract and decide to go to a different photographer,
you will have to pay us in full if it is within 8 weeks of the wedding
 Do not sign another photographer at your wedding, unless you ask for two
photographers from us
Goals and Objectives
The goal of Elegant Weddings is to build strong relationships with clients through our
professionalism, dedication and high quality products. We are confident that Elegant Weddings
will be an integral and highly sought after company in the wedding photography industry.
CompetitionAnalysis
Freelance Wedding Photographers in Omaha, Nebraska area
Royce Studio - $2,450 for 9 consecutive hours
Lane Weddings- Ranging from $2,490-$4,990 for 6-9 hours
Competition Advantages
We build trust and work with our clients to deliver the best service possible. We always go the
extra mile for our clients and do our utmost to deliver the best service possible. We will have
meetings with you throughout the planning process to determine the style of pictures you

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would like. Once we finish the first meeting we will plan on doing engagement pictures. There
are multiple packages that you can choose from to make your wedding special. Unlike other
photographers, we want to get to know you, that way it doesn’t seem like a stranger is
attending your wedding.
Competition Disadvantages
Our competition disadvantage is our lack of experience compared to our competitors who have
spent years in the industry, meanwhile we are only college graduates. It will also take time for
us to build our network of clients and customers.
II. Products and Services
Pricing
First, we want to start with low introductory prices. If costs are likely to fall as more goods are
produced and sold, then a low price that attracts sales can help a business reach greater profits
more quickly. To start off, we will ask for half of the deposit during one of our first meetings, to
ensure that you are serious about our business, and that way we also have your special day
booked and nobody else can book that day from us. In the beginning we will be testing out
sales and changing prices, so they will be different from one another. We will consult with you
to find a price that is reasonable for what you want to spend for your wedding. Our policy is to
always make you comfortable with the price. So, the price is up to you! Of course, we will have
some guidelines, but overall we want you to be comfortable with what you are paying us.
We will have a base fee of $800 per wedding. We will ask for 50% during one of our meetings,
that way your date will be secured. You can add video to your wedding for an additional $500.
This will also include a video of your “I do’s”, and the entire preparation of the wedding. A
wedding book can be bought from us that will include your favorite 50 photos in an 8x5 print
for $100. An authentic photo booth can be rented from us for 2 hours for $200. It will be $75
per extra hour.
We also offer packages if these individual prices do not fit for you
Bronze Package- 8 hours of photography with rights to all prints, you will receive a flash drive of
the pictures $800
Silver Package – 8 hours of photography, 2 hours of photo booth, you will receive a flash drive
of the pictures, and five 8x10 prints $1,000

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Gold Package- 9 hours of photography plus video during your wedding. You will receive a flash
drive of pictures along with the video of your wedding $1,400
Platinum Package – 9 hours of photography plus video during your wedding and interviews
with family members. 2 hours of photo booth, you will receive two flash drives. One with all of
the photographs and the second one with all the footage from the event along with interviews
with family members $2,000
Services
We will offer a variety of extra items other than video and photography, such as
 A photo booth
 Photo albums
 Custom flash drive
 Interviews with family and friends
 A full video of your love story
 Your own website filled with pictures from your special day
III. Marketing and Promotions
Niche
Elegant Weddings is dedicated to becoming one of the forerunners in wedding photography
business. We want to provide clients with professional photographs of the highest quality and
standards that captures every single moment of your wedding day. Our main competition will
be other freelance photographers, because each and every one of them offers something
different so it will be difficult to compare certain aspects. Elegant Weddings will focus on clients
in the Omaha, Nebraska area in the beginning, but as our clientele becomes more advanced we
will expand to surrounding areas. We want to keep Elegant Weddings small, so we will stay
local to Nebraska, and possible expand to the surrounding states.

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Promotion
Elegant Weddings will keep promotional costs low, relying mainly on word of mouth and social
media. We will contact bridal shops, floral shops, family, friends and former classmates. We will
also reach out to other photographers and videographers for leads and connections along with
networking.
Elegant Weddings will contact local media outlets around the Omaha area. WE will reach out to
the radio station 94.1 KQCH. KQCH plays Top 40 music and is likely to reach the audience that
we are targeting. We will also reach out to Channel 8 Eyewitness News in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Channel 8 News runs a segment every year on small local businesses. The goal is to have a story
run about our business and to get our name out to the consumers. This would give us free
publicity and help get our name out.
To help promote our brand, we will give away pens at events and any other opportunities with
potential customers and clients. The pen will be imprinted with Elegant Weddings logo. Every
time a person uses the pen, they will see our logo. We will order the Adhesive Cell Phone
Wallet that can be put on the back of smart phones to hold cards. The wallet will be imprinted
with our logo and will also include our favorite picture to promote our style. This way, if
someone puts it on their phone, everyone around them will see our logo. We will order the
Adhesive Cell Phone Wallet from 4Imprint.com in bulk for $.75 each. Our initial order will be
500 and will cost $375.
A bumper sticker will also be made for our employees to put it on their car if they would like to.
That way wherever they drive they will be promoting our business.
Advertising
The advertising budget for Elegant Weddings will be limited in the beginning of the business.
We will mostly focus our efforts into directing clients to our website and social media accounts.
Our advertising will revolve around drawing eyes towards our portfolio. Our portfolio is what
people base us off of, if our portfolio is impressive that is what draws in new clients.
Image
Our logo will be text based, when the option is given we will also include a photo under the text
(such as on our website and on the adhesive cell phone wallets). Our visual identity will flow
from our logo to our bumper stickers, website, business cards, letterhead, promotion materials
and social media.
IV. Operation and Human Resources
Expertise

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As owner, I will be involved in every aspect of the business. As I get my business up and running
I will hire more people that I see necessary. I expect to log approximately 80 hours of work per
week the first year. I’ll handle the labor myself, including the photographing the event,
marketing, customer relations, and every other task.
Employees
Starting out, Elegant Weddings will be a small business and it may stay that way; however, if it
begins to grow then new employees can always be hired on within reason. Starting out it will
just be me. But, I will slowly add more photographers, an editor, and also a marketing assistant.
The photographer will be a contract employee. The shoots can cost up to $2,000 and the
photographer will receive a 20% cut. The amount of time at the wedding that the contract will
cover is a 9 hours maximum.
The photo editor would be a non-exempt employee. Being paid at a rate of $20 per hour. The
photo editor will be a part-time job. Seeing as we will only be needing them when we cannot
edit everything by ourselves.
As owner of the company I will be an exempt employee. As exempt employee, I will be paid
between $30,000 and $40,000 per year, depending on the company’s profits. As the company
profit margin increases, so can the owner’s pay; however, all changes in pay range must be
approved by the owner and be in the best, economic interest of the company.
Pay Scale
The pay for future employees will start out at a base minimum. But, will be increased when the
employee shows hard work and dedication. We understand the correlation between pay and
employee satisfaction. We know that satisfied employees will work harder and remain loyal.
We will always be willing to reward our employees financially for hard work.
Hierarchy
The organizational structure of Elegant Weddings will be open and flat as we grow in size and
hire more personnel. I will remain at the top of the hierarchy and there will be leaders in each
department. I will support self-generated projects and maintain an open door management
policy. I want my employees to be confident in their own abilities and creativity and I will
reward success.
V. Financial Plan
Expenses

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For the beginning of my business, I will operate in the apartment/house that I am currently at,
that way it will save on extra expenses. I will use my own vehicle at first to transport myself. I
will not ask for travel fees if the venue is within 45 miles of my apartment/house. I will offer the
first 45 miles free, but if it exceeds that I will ask for an additional $5 per mile travel fee.
Sales Projection
At the start of my business, I plan on only doing one wedding every weekend. I have figured
costs that a wedding will cost $800 each, if they want to add video to their wedding it will be an
additional $500, I can print their favorite pictures and put them in a wedding book for an
additional $100, if the couple would like a photo booth at their wedding it will be an additional
$200. The prices in this figure will account that only one wedding per month will include video,
prints and a photo booth. The following prices are fixed on the weekends based on 2018
calendar. Once the business starts getting up and running, we will do more weddings per
month. But, as it is only one person at the moment we will continue to only do one wedding per
week.
Equipment Amount Cost Monthly/Yearly Cost Insurance Total
Adobe Creative Cloud Membership for 1computer $59.99/month/computer $52.99/$599.88 None $599.88
EOS Canon T6i Body 1 $549.99 One Time Yes $618.98
Advanced 2Lens Kit 1 $849.99 One Time Yes $898.98
Canon Battery Pack 1 $54.83 One Time None $54.83
Canon EOS C100Body 1 $1,999 One Time Yes $2,087.99
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8Lens 1 $1,599 One Time Yes $3,764.98
Shotgun Microphone 1 $458 One Time None $458
Macbook Pro 13.3inch 1 $1,499 One Time Yes $1,768
Lowel Portrait three-light kit 1 $639 One Time None $639
Light Reflector Westcott 5-in-1 1 $39 One Time None $39
SanDisk 64GB Ultra Memory Card 1 $22.28 One Time None $22.28
Tripod- Light Duty 1 $169 One Time None $169
Final Cost
$11,120.92
Expense Report

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Month
Wedding
Pictures
Wedding
Video
Wedding
Book
Photo
Booth
Monthly
Total In Red
January $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 ($7,120.92)
February $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 ($3,120.92)
March $4,000 $500 $100 $200 $4,800 $1,679.08
April $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 $5,679.08
May $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 $9,679.08
June $4,000 $500 $100 $200 $4,800 $14,479.08
July $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 $18,479.08
August $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 $22,479.08
September $4,000 $500 $100 $200 $4,800 $27,279.08
October $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 $31,279.08
November $3,200 $500 $100 $200 $4,000 $35,279.08
December $4,000 $500 $100 $200 $4,800 $40,079.08
The monthly total can fluctuate depending on how many weddings are actually booked, along
with if the participants would like the extra items. Also, there may be months where there isn’t
a wedding every single week. But, this figure accounts that in the ideal year, there would be a
wedding every weekend.
Break Even Analysis
It will take until approximately mid-March to break even. The combined expenses, variable and
fixed is $11,120.92 as seen on the “Expense Report” chart. By mid-March we will turn a start
received a profit from our business.
However, this isn’t a precise measurement due to the month to month fluctuations in revenue
that we will face. For instance, spring through fall months will give us more business than
winter.

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Works Cited
Royce, C. Pricing. Retrieved from http://www.roycestudio.com/pricing/
Bergren, L. The Collections:. Retrieved from https://laneweddings.com/info/pricing/
Sillars, R. (2016, February 27). How Much Should Photographers Charge In 2016? Retrieved
from https://petapixel.com/2016/02/26/much-photographers-charge-2016/