Earlier this year, my cousins Stan and Priya Veloutsos invited me to their home to ask me if I would consider christening their little girl, Eleni.
A very emphatic ‘yes’ escaped my mouth and I jumped straight into Nona mode, searching online for ceremony elements.
As I was perusing the internet, I found myself tutting away like my father, wondering how things got so expensive.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.4 percent from March 2024 alone. Over the past five years, the CPI has increased by approximately 11.5 percent, reflecting a noticeable climb in the cost of living, including everything from catering to candles.
The Veloutsos’, knowing I’m juggling a wedding and a house move, kindly offered to cover most of the christening costs. I thanked them but insisted on taking care of the key elements myself, promising to reach out if I hit any choppy financial waters.
For them, the heart of the day is bringing family together and honouring their Greek heritage.
“We decided to combine her christening with her first birthday, but the christening and having that church experience was most important to me,” Mr Veloutsos explained.
“For me it’s about getting everyone together to celebrate her, because I find nowadays, not many people get together that often like when I was growing up. It’s very scarce, and I think that’s a lot to do with maybe the financial side of it, or people’s time restraints,” Ms Veloutsos added.
Tightening the purse strings has had a knock on effect on the guest list. Underlying cultural pressure to invite distant relatives remains, but younger generations are pushing back.
“In keeping it so minimal, you can almost be seen as disrespectful, which is not my intention, but because of cost, we’ve had to make some strict decisions… That’s where the times have changed as well. Growing up everyone would be invited. But times are different now and people are more selective with the relationships that they have,” the couple concluded.
Their own venue hunting had them scratching their heads at how much hosting costs had risen since their own wedding a few years ago. Caught in a world of minimum spends and endless add-ons, the Veloutsos’ were trying to strike the right balance between quality and value
“Many places we shopped around for were at the $6,000 minimum spend mark. One particular venue had a lot of hidden costs. It was another $220 fee just to play our own music. If we wanted each guest to have rotating meals, that added another $6 per person. The same went for alternating desserts,” the couple said.
So what does it really take for a venue to play host to our milestone celebrations?
In Richmond, Greek restaurant Bahari has been host to many a party.
Restaurant co-owner Heleena Vakos has noticed a shift in how people celebrate.
“Many years ago we had a family business where we used to host Greek weddings of around 400 to 600 people on a weekly basis. There has been a massive shift where you don’t really see events of that scale any more,” she said.
“There’s definitely a trend towards smaller celebrations, like a christening for example where the parents invite the immediate family, go to the church and then come to us upstairs for a nice intimate lunch afterwards. That’s definitely something that has become more popular over the last few years.”
As much as venues like Bahari avoid passing the cost onto the clients, there are some unavoidable dollars and cents that have to be considered.
“You’ve got your opening costs; setting up the space and bringing in staff early to prepare everything agreed on with the client. Staffing costs have risen significantly over the past two years, especially for weekends when penalty rates come into play. Then you’ve got your business expenses like your electricity, insurance and rent,” Ms Vakos said.
It seems as though everyone, clients and venues alike, are walking the tightrope, trying to find their balance. Ms Vakos believes a catalyst for the uptick in cost is the pandemic. Despite coming out of COVID-19 lockdowns almost four years ago, its effects are still being sorely felt.
“Since COVID everything has gone up, including food costs. To be honest I don’t think it’s possible to pass on those costs because the price just wouldn’t work for customers, given the cost of living. It’s bad news because many hospitality venues are getting squeezed because they’re trying to please everyone,” Ms Vakos noted.
While wanting to still give their guests a wonderful experience, many people are really giving extra thought to their non-negotiables; namely the dining experience.
Elements like styling and decoration seem to be taking more of a backseat as people opt for venues with their own built in charm.
Kefi Events and Styling owner Helen Mesaritis still finds clients who are after help elevating their events, but she says budgets are “definitely being stretched end-to-end.”
“I’ve seen a huge increase in floral prices, especially if you’re wanting flowers that aren’t necessarily in season and for that we need to factor in extra time and import them from overseas,” Ms Mesaritis said.
“I’ve also seen a big increase in decor materials as well. Many materials come from overseas and if they’re custom designed there’s an added cost there. Manufacturing costs have definitely increased and so have the labour costs associated with producing that product.”
Managing expectations has become a whole new ballgame in the latest era of event planning. Pinterest boards and saved Instagram posts, whilst great for the mood board, may have slightly warped what people expect to receive with the budget they have.
Although Ms Mesaritis has repeat clients, she’s noticed their spending habits and more notably, what they hope to achieve within their budget has changed.
“Return clients that many years ago would spend X amount on something big and elaborate, now come to us and understand they can’t quite achieve what they could back then, but they trust that we can still create that wow factor with a more minimal look,” she said.
“It’s just about adjusting their expectations and educating them about the price increases.”
People are also redirecting their funds and letting go of some of the more traditional elements.
“Favours aren’t as common, they’re now seen as a waste, better spent elsewhere,” Ms Mesaritis added.
Everyone is feeling the pinch, but the parties undoubtedly will carry on. To be Greek is to glentisi and share these rare and special moments with those we love.
