Jennifer, a 48-year-old actress, and her fiance Paulo, 50, recently visited a wedding fair in Paris to plan their big day. They came across a startup offering an unusual service: an app that allows couples to sell tickets to their wedding to strangers, helping to offset the costs.
In return, ticket holders get to attend the celebration, enjoy the festivities, and mingle with other guests.
"At the time, I thought it would be fun to have unfamiliar guests at our wedding," Jennifer said. "We took a flyer home, thought about it, and decided, 'Why not?'"
Jennifer and Paulo met on a dating app during the Covid-19 pandemic and have an 18-month-old son. They are getting married at the end of August at a chateau outside Paris.
The wedding will include friends, family, 80 adults, 15 children, and five strangers who purchased tickets.
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A bride poses for a wedding photo in Paris, France, 8/2024. Photo: Guardian |
A bride poses for a wedding photo in Paris, France, 8/2024. Photo: Guardian
The five ticket holders will attend the afternoon ceremony, an outdoor cocktail reception with live music, followed by dinner in a spacious dining room, with a choice of fish or vegetarian options, and then dancing.
Guests are required to adhere to the dress code, specified on the invitations as "chic and elegant." Jennifer and Paulo vetted the ticket buyers' profiles beforehand.
"The ticket money is a drop in the bucket compared to the total wedding cost, although it helps with things like decorations and the wedding dress," Jennifer said. "But it's not just about the money; we thought it would be fun. We are outgoing people and happy to share."
The five ticket buyers include a couple and three single men. "We have more single female guests than single male guests, so we thought this would balance things out a bit," Jennifer explained.
Laurene, 29, a toymaker in Paris, and her husband are the couple who paid to attend. "I found the idea intriguing," she said. "My family isn't large, so I don't attend many weddings. It's nice to experience a wedding and different traditions, even with strangers."
They plan to dress up and bring a small gift. "We'd also love to be in the group photos, even though it might be a little awkward. We'll see how it goes. It's not something we can do often because the 'tickets' are quite expensive, but it's a great opportunity."
Duc Trung (Guardian)
