Some 600,000 couples to spend big on weddings

ISTANBUL

Around 600,000 couples are expected to tie the knot this year in Türkiye, with a wedding ceremony costing at least 250,000 Turkish Liras.

Weddings are giving a boost to consumer goods and services. Couples are buying white goods, furniture and home appliances and paying large amounts for renting venues, hairdressers and other wedding-related services.

The size of the wedding industry is 200 billion liras, said Emek Kırbıyık, the CEO of dügün.com.

The cost of organizing a wedding ceremony increased more than inflation, according to Kırbıyık. “Inflation is running high and there are elections. But those factors do not appear to have an impact on the wedding sector. Couples are still planning weddings. We do not expect a decline in the number of weddings.”

Couples will spend at least 250,000 liras on the wedding ceremonies and buying household goods, Kırbıyık said. “I believe some 70 percent of the couples take out loans to meet those expenditures. We are talking about a 250-billion-lira industry.”

When there are uncertainties, the number of weddings does not decline, but fewer guests attend the ceremonies, Kırbıyık explained.

The government has announced a plan to provide loans up to 150,000 liras with 72 months maturity and two years grace period, which will give a boost to the industry, said Bendevi Palandöken, the head of the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen (TESK).

Palandöken predicts that 750,000 couples will marry this year, up from 500,000 in 2022.

Sales of home appliances have been on the rise as the wedding season started, according to Talha Özger from the Household and Kitchen Appliances Industrialists and Exporters Association (EVSİD).

The couples are mostly buying porcelain houseware, enamelware, coffee makers and air fryers, Özger said.