Las Vegas wedding industry bouncing back

The “Wedding Capital of the World” bounced back last year, recording one of its best years after a rough 2020, according to the Las Vegas Wedding Chamber of Commerce.

The chamber gave its annual State of the Wedding Industry presentation on Thursday to share trends, the industry’s economic impact and new initiatives during the 2021 fiscal year.

“It has been a part of our DNA since the founding of our county,” said County Clerk Lynn Marie Goya, referring to weddings. “It’s what people think of when they think of Las Vegas.”

The Marriage License Bureau issued more than 77,000 marriage licenses last year, compared with 56,331 in 2020. Goya said 2021 was “one of the best years we’ve had in a while.”

Las Vegas’ massive wedding industry accounts for a large percentage of the national market — accounting for $2.6 billion out of the $60 billion national market in 2021. Locally, the industry accounted for 4 percent of tourism and generated $88 million in tax revenue for 2021.

February, dubbed Wedding Month, was the busiest for the bureau, and also the best its seen in 20 years. It was the same month the bureau issued its 5 millionth marriage license. The special date Feb. 22, 2022, also garnered attention from engaged couples, hosting about 2,300 weddings that day. The bureau said it issued 7,605 marriage licenses in February.

During the month, the bureau also launched “Five Million Love Stories,” which gave couples a chance to win a special package that included an airline voucher, 25 years of vow renewals at the Chapel of the Flowers, a two-night stay at a Las Vegas hotel and meal voucher.

Multiple digital initiatives were launched in 2021, most importantly, its new website weddings.vegas. Since its launch, it has won two awards — a Gold Addy at the 2021 AAF Reno ADDY Awards and a Crown Communities Award at the 2021 American City and County Awards — and is a finalist at the AMA Reno ACE Awards, taking place this month.

Paul Ryu, co-founder and managing partner at JMP Force, has been managing the bureau’s social media accounts and gave stats from the past 60 days. He said it has received over 1 million video views on their TikTok, @vegasweddingcapital, and TikTok and Instagram have been important tools in the past year to draw more tourists and increase wedding sales.

Aimee Stephens, director of brand awareness at PR Plus, also announced that the bureau will bring back “Las Vegas Marries the Military” on Nov. 10 and asked local business to participate by offering services including hair, makeup, photography, venues, food and all things wedding related.

Review-Journal business intern Emerson Drewes can be reached at edrewes@reviewjournal.com or via Twitter @EmersonDrewes.