We married off two daughters within the past 22 months.
Both weddings ran on time.
I am a stickler for detail and punctuality (Yekke on maternal side).
Time schedules for performance with monetary penalties were written into contacts for caterer, florist, photographer and band (yes, I’m an attorney and never accept a contract handed me by a supplier…it will be construed in their favor).
Typically a wedding gets behind schedule in the photography session. Mrs. CTL and I went over the shots to be taken with daughters, SILS and photographer. NO additional shots, setups, locations were permitted. Photographer could take all the candids he desired during the meal, dancing, etc. but not delay the affair.
My next door neighbor’s wife volunteered and was put in charge of making sure all those to be in a photo were in place at the proper time.
The mesader kiddushin reviewed the Ketubot the night before with the Chason and both fathers. No time was wasted at the tisch for this.
We were not at the mercy of the wedding hall for setup time and access as both weddings took place at the CTL compound. Only the first wedding was followed by a dinner affair that night in a Manhattan hotel. No delays for tisch, ceremony, etc. It was called for 7:30 cocktails and hors d’oeuvres and 8:15 sit down for formal dinner and dancing. 10:30 bentching, shevah berachot and speeches. Everyone out at 11:30.
It was the best man’s job to keep the chason on a timetable. No delays by friends with sthick were to be tolerated. The kallah’s eldest sister was charged to keep her on schedule.
We did not need/use a wedding planner..we’re good at this task. All vendors were set straight form the beginning that they ONLY took instructions from Mrs. CTL or myself. This avoids delays caused by meeting requests from guests or unauthorized relatives making changes.