Chamber President, Brian Mills, and Forever & Company Owner, Mark Bentley, Discuss the Newest Bridal Show in Vegas
If you’ve spent any real time in the Las Vegas wedding industry, you already carry opinions about bridal shows.
I do too. I attended them when I was engaged. I exhibited in them starting in 2010. And now, as
President of the Vegas Wedding Chamber, I hear the same question repeatedly from vendors:
Are bridal shows still worth it?
That question has only gotten louder since the long-running gold standard of Vegas Bridal Shows,
the Bridal Spectacular, ended and another company with a presence in Oregon immediately failed and put a serious black eye on the "Vegas Bridal Show" image. Skepticism here is understandable.
Their crown jewel is the award-winning
Triangle Wedding Show, named after the Triangle Research area of
Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
"North Carolina? In the Wedding Capital of the World?", I thought. The entire State of North Carolina did approximately 65,000 Weddings in 2023, 10,000 less than Clark County that year. But as I looked further, I noticed 2 things:
But I was still skeptical. While I did enjoy meeting Mark and his team, I felt I couldn't say whether our Members should take a shot or not.
Their model is solid, rooted in data and history. Forever & Company's original owners did their first Bridal Show in 1995, a family-owned business that weathered the hard times of COVID, and then decided it was time to sell to Mark and his team so they could retire a few years ago. That should feel familiar to the Las Vegas Vendors. So there is a parallel history. Now I wanted to know more.
When I sat down for a phone conversation with Mark Bentley, owner of
Forever & Company, I didn’t want a pitch. I wanted to understand how someone from outside the Las Vegas wedding market thinks about stepping into it — especially after everything that’s happened here.
What follows is that conversation, so you can hear directly from Mark and decide for yourself.
The Conversation
Clearing the Air
Brian Mills:
Before we go anywhere else, I want to clear up any confusion. After Bridal Spectacular retired, another company tried to enter the Vegas market and some local vendors were burned. Just to be clear — Forever & Company had nothing to do with that, correct?
Mark Bentley:
Correct. We’re a completely different company and have no association with them at all.
On Taking Over Forever & Company
Brian Mills:
You’ve run a very successful bridal show in North Carolina for years. Can you talk about how Forever & Company started and how you ended up taking it over?
Mark Bentley:
Yeah. It’s honestly my honor to have taken over Forever & Company from the original founders. This is the 30th year of the show in Raleigh. The city has changed a lot over those decades, and the show consistently did very well.
COVID was hard on all of us, and wedding shows were no exception. The previous owners had been grinding for a very long time, especially through COVID, and they were exhausted. It felt like a natural moment for someone else to step in.
My background is marketing. I also run an event company. A wedding show is really both of those things combined, so it made sense. I took over in August of 2023, and a big part of my role has been rebuilding — keeping what worked for 25-plus years, but refreshing the branding, infrastructure, and systems for the next 25.
Why Las Vegas?
Brian Mills:
Vegas wasn’t originally on your radar. What made you take a serious look at this market?
Mark Bentley:
Honestly, Vegas wasn’t on our expansion list at first. But when we heard what had happened here — and when Bridal Spectacular ended — our hearts really went out to the community.
We see wedding shows as partnerships. It’s not just vendors paying us money. When a show is done well, vendors thrive, and when vendors thrive, the whole community benefits. That’s a really important tool in the wedding ecosystem.
So we started looking into the data. We wanted to make sure this wasn’t just a good-intentions move, but a smart one. Our hearts were there, but we needed to know the show could actually work here.
Learning From the Past
Brian Mills:
You also took time to meet with
Debra Hansen,
who ran Bridal Spectacular for decades. What did you take away from that conversation?
Mark Bentley:
We definitely wanted to talk with Debra as part of our due diligence. One thing that was immediately clear was that her heart was in the right place. She viewed the show as a value-add to the wedding community, which aligns very closely with how we see things.
What really stood out was how strong the existing Vegas wedding community already is. We don’t see ourselves as saviors. We see ourselves as partners. There was already something solid here — we’re not trying to build from scratch.
Familiar, But Intentionally Different
Size, Scale, and Metrics
Brian Mills:
This is also a one-day show instead of two. Can you talk about your numbers and goals?
Mark Bentley:
Our goal is about 100 vendors. We’re flexible, but that’s the sweet spot. For attendance, we’re aiming for roughly 2,500 tickets sold and about 1,000 to 1,250 couples actually walking through the doors.
We have over 2,100 tickets reserved right now which is great! We are on track for 2,500-2,800+ tickets which typically gets us to our 1,000+ attendee target. There are still pre-sale tickets for $10 on the website,
the price at the door will be $20.
If it’s too big, it becomes overwhelming. You can only have so many meaningful conversations in four hours. We design the show around that reality. We also focus heavily on filtering the right couples before they walk in. That way vendors aren’t doing all the filtering on the show floor.
Are Bridal Shows Still Relevant?
Brian Mills:
With digital marketing, social media, and SEO, a lot of vendors ask whether bridal shows are still relevant at all.
Mark Bentley:
No matter how advanced technology gets, it will never replace face-to-face trust. Weddings are deeply personal. They’re often the most expensive thing a couple has paid for in their life up to that point.
You can have a great website and great social media, but that doesn’t replace meeting someone in person. And it goes both ways. A couple might look great on email, but when you meet them, you realize they’re not the right fit — and that matters too. Those in-person interactions are incredibly valuable for both sides.
Designing for Better Conversations
Brian Mills:
What do you do to help vendors actually connect, instead of just handing out cards?
Mark Bentley:
We focus on reducing stress — for vendors and couples. Load-in, load-out, communication, parking, check-in — all of it matters.
We also build a central lounge area right in the middle of the show. Seating, décor, usually a bar or drink options. Couples can sit down, relax, and reset.
When couples aren’t stressed or overwhelmed, conversations are better. Most bookings don’t happen at the show, but the show becomes a meaningful moment in their decision-making process.
Marketing the Right Couples
Brian Mills:
How are you actually marketing the show?
Mark Bentley:
Overwhelmingly digital — Google Ads, Meta ads, TikTok. What’s interesting is that about 70% of tickets are purchased by the bride herself. That surprised me early on, but the data is very consistent.
These are motivated couples. They’re actively planning, not just browsing.
Looking Ahead in Vegas
Brian Mills:
You’re clearly not planning this as a one-off. What does the future look like?
Mark Bentley:
If January is successful, we’d like to add an August show. If that goes well, eventually we could see quarterly shows. But we’ll make those decisions with the community.
Beyond shows, we care a lot about community — networking events, coffee meetups, social media spotlights. The show is one tool, not the whole toolbox.
Introductory Pricing
Brian Mills:
There’s also an introductory offer you are offering to Vegas Wedding Chamber Members for this first Las Vegas show. Also, if Vendors are waiting this first one out, but plan to participate in the next one, you are offering an incentive to start with this first show. Can you tell us more about that?
Mark Bentley:
The current price is $1,500 with a $250 discount ($1,250 total). We are
doubling the discount to $500 ($1000 total) for anyone who is a
member of the Vegas Wedding Chamber. To take advantage, Vendors can sign up on our
Vendor Intake Form and in the
"How did you hear about us?" field type
"Vegas Wedding Chamber Member"
As the new kids in town, we wanted to thank everyone for taking a risk in this first year with us by
giving this special grandfathered rate. We will announce the specifics of the future shows after the New Year, but if your members have interest in doing the shows later on, it will be
well worth their investment to jump in this first one.
Brian Mills:
Well, Mark, congratulations on your success, welcome to Las Vegas, thank you for the offer to our Members, and good luck with the show January 10th!
Mark Bentley:
Thank you so much.
Final Thoughts
I didn’t have this conversation to convince anyone to sign up.
I had it because Las Vegas needs honest discussions about what works, what doesn’t, and what comes next. You’ve now
heard directly from Mark Bentley about how he thinks about bridal shows, Vegas, and trust.
I will say I knew he wanted to offer a discount, but I was not expecting doubling the discount for our Members vs. discounts he offered other new vendors. Also, the fact that getting in the show now will lead to a lower price later than Vendors that wait until the next show deserves consideration. I would say that if I had to place a bet on the future of the show, The Las Vegas Wedding Show is not going to be a one-and-done. Mark definitely sees this as a long game, and he has a very successful number of shows and events in North Carolina that gives him the flexibility to continue or even increase his investment in our Las Vegas Wedding Industry.
Final Verdict - Do your research. Ask questions. Decide what aligns with your business.
Brian Mills
President
Vegas Wedding Chamber
Show Details & Next Steps
