Modern brides need something old, new, borrowed, and blue. But if they’re influencers, add a sponsor to the list, too.
Paid sponsored content is commonplace for anyone who scrolls through an influencer’s social media posts, where you might encounter anything from a lavish vacation to new products to try.
But a recent viral discussion on social media has users questioning if the practice has gone too far.
“Just saw someone posting their wedding on IG,” a user posted to X, alongside a screenshot of an Instagram quote from content creator Jaz Smith. “The 1st slide was them and the second slide was a photo of CAPITAL ONE CAFE.
“I can’t make this shit up. WHEW, is nothing sacred anymore. oh my god, send the asteroid,” the user added.
Some respondents quickly poked fun at the idea of a financial services giant like Capital One sponsoring a wedding.
“When I finally find the love of my life, i do not want the wedding to be sponsored by a bank,” one user replied to the post. “I want it to be sponsored by the military industrial complex . . . If you’re gonna do it, go all the way.”
Breaking the bank
While Smith’s wedding did have a work component to it—with the couple vlogging throughout the day and posting videos to TikTok—is was not actually sponsored by Capital One.
The confusion arose from Smith using photos from her wedding, which took place in May of last year, for a recent Capital One campaign, leading social media to connect the two.
Either way, Smith would not be the first and only creator to blend business with their personal lives—even where weddings are concerned.
Take beauty influencer Mikayla Nogueira, whose wedding was sponsored by E.l.f cosmetics and featured branded decor like a kissing booth with the beauty company’s logo, making it photo-ready for her 3.5 million followers.
Even smaller creators can cash in, like wellness content creator Yola Robert. With just a little over 40,000 followers on Instagram, Robert leveraged her influence by sliding into the DMs of brands to get the wedding she wouldn’t have been able to afford otherwise.
Her 2022 nuptials were sponsored by brands like Hum Nutrition vitamins, with freebies doled out to guests, and an open bar sponsored by non-alcoholic drink company Free Spirits.
While some brides- and grooms-to-be might view branding their weddings as a dystopian step too far, many sympathize with the practice, calling out the exorbitant prices of weddings these days.
“You know how much a dinner plate for a guest is? My dress would have a promo sticker. lol,” an X user said.
Last year, brides and grooms saw an unexpected spike in wedding costs, in part due to tariffs, with one bride having to pay nearly $300 more for her imported dress, The Associated Press reported.
That seems even small in comparison to the cost of the average wedding, which experts say is around around $36,000, a price tag that is expected to keep growing with inflation.
Unsurprisingly, those yearning for an Instagram-worthy dream wedding must ask outsiders for help.
As one user responded on X: “Have you seen the cost of weddings these days? If Capital One pays for my son’s wedding, they can have the first and the second picture.”