Hi all, just throwing my 2 cents in on the vendor fee issue or more specifically, what I think is really the “makeup artist†issue (I will explain below). I would not freak out too much, because ultimately they really should honor what’s written in your contract. If you’ve already booked and it’s not in your contract, a simple email to the Chicago office or even Kerry should do the trick. The same thing happened a while back when they started adding the fee for a tent in inclement weather - certain people had it in their contract and some did not; it depended on if you booked after the policy change. I booked with Rashel for both makeup and hair for me, my bridal party and 2 moms a year in advance of my Feb. 2013 wedding. I didn’t really start the planning with Kerry until September/October 2012, but when we started, she asked me for the list of vendors that I had booked. Back towards the end of December, when the planning correspondence between Kerry and I increased, she sent me a really good overview of everything that had been discussed to date. In that email is when I got the: “We no longer allow offsite makeup artist on site, since you have already booked her we will allow her onsite to do your make up service. However there will be a 15% vendor fee on her overall service.†I sent her firm - but respectful (don’t want to shoot the messenger) - email back stating that this policy was nowhere in any of the communication previous received from MDC and to try to implement it in the eleventh hour was both unreasonable and bad business. After she spoke to “higher authority,†the fee was waived and the issue was resolved. In that same email I also asked if it was going to also be an issue that I booked with another vendor for linens, napkins and chairs. The answer was no problem, which leads me to speculate what the real issue is. Having been to MDC, I don’t think it’s a "general" vendor issue which is why the same does not apply for a photographer, DJ, etc. I think the real issue is they specifically don’t want an “outside†makeup artist or hair stylist on site when their spa already offers those services. If you read the wording in the emails received, it only refers to an “offsite stylist/makeup artist†specifically, not all vendors. A few days before our wedding, I went to the spa for a pedicure and was asked by a few different people if I had booked my beauty appointments yet for the day of the wedding. When I replied that I had someone coming in to do my hair and makeup, I could see the disappointment in their eyes even though I was greeted with a smile. Hiring someone from the outside takes money out of their pockets. Plus, I’m sure it’s that feeling of someone coming into your own house and saying I can do this better than you. I get what MDC is trying to do – there are a lot of resorts that have fees for all outside vendors - it just needs to be in their contract from the beginning when you book. Sorry for the long post. …............PS: I’m still working on both my review and planning thread and promise to post soon! Since we got back to the states, the “real world†kicked back in quickly and I have not had the time.
