A local wedding planner and major events co-ordinator believes, with the proper marketing and support from the business community, that the Town of Osoyoos can become the “destination wedding capital of Canada.”
Alicia Kaffka is the owner of Paraiso Events Inc., a wedding and event planning and supply company based out of Osoyoos since 2009.
During a presentation to Town of Osoyoos council on Monday, Kaffka said this town has the business infrastructure necessary to become the premier destination wedding capital in this country.
Osoyoos not only has the beautiful scenery and beautiful weather that appeals to many couples looking for a perfect wedding, but there are also quality hotels, world-class chefs, wedding supply companies, photographers, florists and other small businesses needed to provide all the services needed to host weddings, said Kaffka.
“Last year there were approximately 300 weddings held here,” said Kaffka during her presentation to town council. “Stats Canada has statistics that show the average wedding costs roughly $27,000 … that means over $8 million was generated for the town and that’s with the major venues holding only one wedding per weekend.
“That’s a lot of money for the Town of Osoyoos and I think it would be a very smart move for the town to get behind this.”
Since moving to Osoyoos back in 2009 and helping organize dozens of weddings, Kaffka said she has spent a lot of her free time doing research about the potential of branding this town as the destination wedding capital of Canada.
She has also started up her own website at www.destinationweddingcapital.com
The website lists a few of the current venues that host large weddings, including Watermark Beach Resort, Walnut Beach Resort and Spirit Ridge Vineyard Spa and Resort, a photo gallery showing off how beautiful Osoyoos is in the summer time, a list of local vendors, local attractions, local spas and wedding supply companies.
The website is a work in progress and she hopes to add any small business that offers wedding services.
“It’s not a complete list by any means … there is a lot more I’m going to add,” she said.
The word “destination’ is relevant as roughly 85 per cent of all weddings in Osoyoos are booked by couples who don’t live here and most of their guests are also travelling here from across B.C. and other provinces, said Kaffka.
While many residents of British Columbia know how beautiful Osoyoos is and its reputation as a wedding destination, that isn’t the case outside of the province, she said.
“Not a lot of people outside of Edmonton or Calgary know what a wonderful place this is to hold a wedding,” she said. “I want to market this town across Canada.”
Kaffka has contacted a trademark lawyer and talked to trademark experts within the provincial government and discovered there is no other community in Canada that is officially promoting itself as the destination wedding capital, she said.
The Town of Oliver has been very successful in promoting itself as the Wine Capital of Canada and community leaders have endorsed branding the town with that label and there’s no reason the same can’t be done by branding the trademark of Osoyoos as the destination wedding capital of Canada, said Kaffka.
Kaffka said she’s too busy to take on this venture by herself, but would like to see a local committee or board of directors established to assist her in trying to promote and brand Osoyoos as the premier destination wedding community in the country.
“I’m not sure if it requires a board of directors or it might be something that could be taken on by Destination Osoyoos, but I just wanted to get the ball rolling,’ she said.
Mayor Stu Wells applauded Kaffka for all her hard work and thinks she has come up with a terrific concept and idea that the local business community and council should support.
Coun. Mike Plante said his small business, Unveil Shuttles, was originally designed as a wine touring company, but in three shorts years almost half of his business is directly related to weddings.
“People are staying longer and not just attending weddings,” he said. “This is all very, very exciting and it’s the perfect time for this.”
Coun. C.J. Rhodes agreed saying the wedding industry is a huge economic driver in this community and Kaffka’s idea deserves support.
Council is expected to discuss Kaffka’s plans with Destination Osoyoos staff before any final decisions are made.
