BY: ALYSSA MAHADEO
The biggest step before ‘I do’, is the planning and organization dedicated to your big day. Your wedding is a very significant occasion in your life, and no matter how many weddings you’ve attended before, there are some things you just don’t find out about, until your own wedding day.
Back for its second year, Ambessa Weddings was pleased to announce the return of the African Caribbean Wedding Show on April 1st at the Daniels Spectrum in Downtown Toronto. In March of 2016, Ambessa Weddings hosted Canada’s first ever bridal event for the African community, in Toronto. This wedding show was a huge success and turned out 350 African Canadians from across the city. This year, Ambessa Weddings expanded their roster to include the Caribbean Canadian communities in Toronto.
Ambessa Weddings is an online wedding planning company dedicated to helping East African couples across North America plan their weddings. Featuring hundreds of vendors that cater to ethnic brides, the company website provides an online marketplace where couples can find inspiration, plan and purchase all their wedding needs. Ambessa Weddings strives to help as many couples as possible create weddings that celebrate their culture and personal style. The Ambessa Weddings community is made up of East African millennials living in North America who want to honor their heritage by having their wedding hold true to their ancestry and culture.
Bigger and better than ever, this year’s event brought the who’s, who of the African and Caribbean communities and married them together in a classy, and sophisticated event featuring vendors showcasing both traditional and modern wedding themes. Each vendor set up a lovely eye-catching display featuring bridal attire, hair and makeup services, floral arrangements, decor ideas, invitations and graphic designs, desert options, photo booths, photography, cinematography, wedding planning services, entertainment and most importantly travel options for couples to consider for their honeymoon getaways.
The crowd was kept entertained by African Canadian comedian Femi Lawson and his co-host Jam Gamble who charmed the crowd with their hilariously playful banter, quick wit, and impeccable style. The audience was treated to fashion shows featuring beautiful modern and traditional designs inspiring bridal gowns and suave tailored suits showcasing both stunning traditional prints as well as sleek, modern wedding gowns.
A special performance by Caribbean Spice and Everything Nice a troupe of Caribbean carnival dancers and models as well as Caribbean dance fitness instructors had the crowd on their feet with a mixture of African and Caribbean vibes provided by DJ Bianca Lee. Audience participation was off the charts with a dance competition, just like a real wedding party reception.
The African & Caribbean Wedding Show is the first ever bridal show in Canada to cater to African & Caribbean Canadians. As Toronto is home to the country’s largest community of African & Caribbean Canadians, it is essential that they have access to wedding vendors that will be able to meet their unique needs, and that these vendors have an opportunity to connect with this clientele.
With roughly 550,000 African & Caribbean Canadians in Ontario alone, the African and Caribbean Wedding Show brought in thousands looking to connect with wedding vendors that specialize in and understand their cultural traditions. As the country’s first wedding show to cater to the ethnic Canadian community, The African & Caribbean Wedding Show will help newly engaged couples so they can explore the variety of vendors from the African, Caribbean & Canadian community.
This year’s show drew out a crowd of 500+ African Canadians throughout the day. And guests walked away with bridal kits valued at $150 CDN, and sponsors included Leigh Events, Samantha Clarke Photography, Bella Naija Weddings, Fruitilicious Creations & Cakes, Castlefield Design, GTA Selfies, Je Vis Bridal, Mona Lisa Bridal Gallery, Ilieana George Couture Bridal Accessories, The Decor Girl, Sheer Elegance, Sedore Decor, Felicity Moments, Blissberry Photography, Cassandra Campbell Beauty, Jam Gamble, Designer Dance Floors, The Kscope, The Black Foodie, JouJou, Tessenie Mowatt, Nikki Clarke Show, Island Muse, BaZooka Collections, Carnival Spice, Marquee Letters Toronto, Beauty on the Run, Unforgivingly Pur, Mel Dubé Music, Bartendo, DNA Project, and KinkyCurlyYaki.
The 2017 show definitely captured the attention of the media and people in the community, by bringing this much-needed event to Toronto.
African Caribbean Wedding Show Organizer Laba Menghistab and founder of Ambessa Weddings said, “We’re here to celebrate African and Caribbean culture and weddings and food and family and business enterprises. This year we had a great crowd, people were super energized and it was really about bringing the community together.”
“Next year we want to get bigger and better, and reach more of the community.” Laba shares. “We’re already planning for the next show to be held in February 2018.”
Canada’s African and Caribbean Wedding Show is where true love meets tradition. To find out more visit http://www.africancaribbeanweddingshow.com/ If you are in the market for some of the best in the wedding planning business this is the place you need to be next year! They are sure to keep your big day stress free!
