Wedding Vendor Platform

I got married in 2023 and dealt with dozens of wedding vendors-photographers, decorators, caterers, makeup artists. Almost all of them complained about existing wedding platforms. They'd say 'I'm paying ₹50,000 per year and getting maybe 3-4 bookings'. The ROI wasn't there for vendors in Kerala because major platforms focus on North India. Most listings I saw were from Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore. Kerala vendors were paying premium prices but getting ignored. I realized there was an opportunity for a hyperlocal wedding marketplace focused exclusively on Kerala. Smaller market, but much less competition and better unit economics for vendors.

I created a simple Google Form asking Kerala wedding vendors three questions: 1) Do you use major wedding platforms? 2) Are you happy with them? 3) Would you pay ₹999/month for a Kerala-only platform? Posted it in 8 wedding vendor WhatsApp groups. Got 156 responses in 2 days. 89% said they'd switch to a cheaper Kerala-focused alternative. Several vendors literally said 'Please build this, I'll be your first customer'. When people beg you to take their money, you know you've found product-market fit before building anything.

I didn't reinvent the wheel. Copied the basic structure of wedding platforms-vendor profiles, portfolios, reviews, inquiry system. But I added features specifically for Kerala weddings: filters for Hindu/Muslim/Christian ceremonies, Malayalam language support, integration with local preferences like sadya catering and Kathakali performances. Built it on WordPress with custom plugins because I'm not a developer-hired a freelancer from Upwork for ₹45,000. Took 3 months from design to launch. Kept it simple. No mobile app, just a responsive website.

Launched in January 2024 with a strategy I called 'vendor-first.' Instead of trying to get couples first, I focused on getting vendors. Reached out to 200 vendors personally-photographers, decorators, caterers, makeup artists. Offered them 3 months free. 80 vendors signed up. Then I ran Facebook ads targeting engaged couples in Kerala with the pitch 'Find Kerala's best wedding vendors'. Had vendor inventory first, so couples actually found value. That's the chicken-and-egg problem solved-get supply first in marketplaces.

Growth exploded during wedding season (November to February). Kerala has 3-4 peak wedding months. I timed my launch perfectly. Couples would find vendors, vendors would get bookings, they'd tell other vendors. By month 6, I had 150 vendors paying ₹999/month. Added a premium tier at ₹2,499/month with featured listings and priority placement. 40 vendors upgraded. Currently at 280 vendors total-240 at ₹999, 40 at ₹2,499. That's ₹3.4L from subscriptions. Plus I take 2% commission on bookings which adds another ₹70K. Total MRR: ₹4.1L. Haven't spent more than ₹30K on marketing in any month.