PalacePrincess Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I am the maid of honour in a wedding that's taking place this August. It's going to be a fairly traditional wedding, but the bride & groom will be throwing in some of their own touches. The bride's parents are definitely leaning more towards the traditional side of things, so I want to make sure I am fulfilling my duties appropriately. Not to mention, the bride is one of my best friends in the universe (and has been since I was 6), so I want to make sure I do an excellent maid of honouring job.So, while I've been to stag & does, I've never been the boss of one. I'm curious about exactly how these things work, or are supposed to work. Who is traditionally supposed to organize this? How involved are the bride and groom? I'm assuming ticket sales will cover things eventually, but who pays for the initial cost of things -- hall rental deposit, booze, other rentals, etc. What exactly is involved with putting one of these together? (Liquor license? Is some sort of gambling license required, etc.?)I'm hoping some of you will share your own stag & doe experiences with me. If you've had one, how was it put together? If you were a bride/groom, were you involved in it? If you've helped throw one, what did you need to do to pull it together?Any tips or experiences are appreciated!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hal Johnson Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I know that beer should be bought in cases of twelve because the beerstore only accpets returns on unopened 12 packs, for some reason (or maybe its 24's, but its worth looking into). If you choose to buy and sell the liquor yourself then you do need a liscence, but they're not to hard to get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishtaper Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 hookers for the dudes, rainbow parties for the broads. simple. the bride's mother will love it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubberdinghy Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 Maid of Honour and Best Man usually take care of all these details...that's what happened for us...It's nice because the bride and groom usually have tons of other stuff on thier plate to deal with...Everyone in the party should help out with cash and what not to pay up front...but the sooner you start selling tickets the more up front cash you'll get. Parents/family sometimes get involved too in the financing dept...it doesn't hurt to ask, but make sure you know where the money is coming from and who wants it back. Some folks donate the money.All you'll need is a liquor licence, go to the LCBO and they'll tell you how it works.Another thing to look at is to have it at a bar. Some place will give the bride and groom a percentage of the nights take and you don't have to worry about licences and stuff like that.But hey...all the planning for our went out the window...Just happened to be on of the nights of the infamous black out, and we had to cancel.Thankfully our guys and gals stepped up and we were still able to throw a huge party, that turned out to be better than any stag/doe I'd been too.Put it this way...some naked dude on a trampoline/covered in cake...GOOD TIMES!Feel free to email me or steph if you have any questions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davey Boy 2.0 Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 make sure you rent banner space on jambands.ca Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schwa. Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 beer store will take any case (12 or 24) that is unopened and visibly untampered with Hal....at least we did when i worked there.Beckster, make sure the best man doesn't weasel out of his responsibilities too, he's as responsible as you not to mention the bride and groom should do most of the work....it IS their wedding and their money being raised.Games stores are good to hit up for the usual fare (Crowns and Anchors game and such)My favourite game and best money maker that i've found are the tooney tosses at bottles of liquor and the Stump and Hammer game.Stump and Hammer is fun. You have to get a bunch of people in a tournament style thing and they go head to head trying to hit a nail into a stump of wood with the least amounts of hits. 5$ entry fee at about 60 people is what we got at the last one i ran. Winner gets like 100$ 2nd gets 50$ and the bride and groom get the rest sort of thing.we actually had to organize a second tournament because all of the people that didn't get in the first time were totally into it the second time around. Good times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishtaper Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 on a slightly more serious level than my previous post ... of the ones that ive attended, ive always like the ones that were more a party than an obvious fundraiser. crown and anchor games are fun, but if 80% of the evening's fun involves people forking over cash, that may not be well received. check into locals halls, like unions, veterans, italian-canadian clubs, etc. im sure there are a lot of smaller german clubs in kw. makes sure the location is convenient, and/or you can ensure safe rides home. remember, you may be legally responsible for people afterwards. and yes, a trampoline is a must-have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hal Johnson Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 beer store will take any case (12 or 24) that is unopened and visibly untampered with Hal....at least we did when i worked there.I used to work at the beer store too and it was the same way. But I definately remember something about it at my friends S&D this summer. We went and picked up the beer and the guys dad distinctly said to make sure we go through the 24's first, cuz they'll only accept the 12's for return. Id be lying if I said I remembered why. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PalacePrincess Posted January 14, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 thanks so much for all the tips, people! definitely some things to think about. please feel free to keep the ideas and experiences coming!love the game ideas too. any other favourites?anything stag & doe related that really worked? or didn't?there's a particular community centre the bride & groom have in mind -- fortunately it should be a fairly inexpensive one. i'm planning to check into that this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcO Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 Most places will give the option of letting them handle the booze. You essentially decide on your profit mark-up and sell the tickets. You'd pay a fee to the hall so they can pay the bartender for the night.Of course the other option is to go get and pay for a liquor licence, bring in all the booze yourself, pay the insurance premium, pay the fee to have a bartender, and that's another way to do it. More hassle but potentially a larger profit margin.It really depends on whether you think you have a big drinking crowd or not. The S&D I'm involved with now, we're just letting the bar handle the booze. I think the cost of a beer from the hall is like $2.30 so we sell tickets for $4 and pocket the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schwa. Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 beer store will take any case (12 or 24) that is unopened and visibly untampered with Hal....at least we did when i worked there.I used to work at the beer store too and it was the same way. But I definately remember something about it at my friends S&D this summer. We went and picked up the beer and the guys dad distinctly said to make sure we go through the 24's first' date=' cuz they'll only accept the 12's for return. Id be lying if I said I remembered why.[/quote']I'm betting that when he bought the 12's they were charged the case price of roughly 35$. and then they returned the 12's individually for around 20$ making a bit of money. the B&D guys here in KW were pulling that scam from store to store and got major busted when i worked downtown. (hint hint becks!)...and i like Marco's method of handling the booze....far less work for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hal Johnson Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 Ahh yes, thats probably it exactly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slavetothegroove Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I've only been to one stag and doe, and the hottest game there seemed to be "Who can hammer a nail in a piece of wood in the least amount of swings." More for the men as they can "prove" their masculinity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcO Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I've only been to one stag and doe, and the hottest game there seemed to be "Who can hammer a nail in a piece of wood in the least amount of swings."I've seen this called "The Great Canadian Whack-Off"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 (edited) I'd say bring in your own booze as it would be way cheaper than having the hall sell the stuff for you. Then you could make the straight profit from the sale of it, which apart from the ticket sales, will be your biggest cash in at the end of the night.You won't need to get a 'liquor license' if you're having the party in some sort of community hall that is already licensed. If you want to sell your own booze in there you'll need to get a 'special occasion permit' which you can apply for at the liquor store. They normally take about ten days to come in if your event is indoors.*edit* - and you won't have to worry about insurance. The liquor license of the hall will cover you.I'm personally of the opinion that the bride and groom should fork out all the money ahead of time. What happens should the stag and doe be a flop? It's not fair to expect your friends to be on the line just to get you a better honeymoon or a couple of mortgage payments.At my brother's stag and doe this past summer they did a condiment auction. While i think it's sick and nasty having all kinds of shit sprayed all over you and smushed in your face, they raised $2500 on it alone. Edited January 14, 2008 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schwa. Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 More for the men as they can "prove" their masculinity. Not true, at least in my case. Almost half of our participants were women and there were several in the final rounds. The game isn't about strength but accuracy. Most meathead guys look at it that way though and lose trying to beat the shit out of the nail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backbacon Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 You cannot return cases because they are not tamper proof. You can open a case and glue it back shut.You can return the twelve packs that are perforated. They cannot be resealed.Gambling games have been all the rage at many stag & does I've attended. They are cracking down on this though; at least around these parts. It's illegal and they can shut you down.If you are bringing in your own booze, going through a rep at the beer store distribution warehouse can save a lot of work. They will bring the beer and pick up leftovers, which is a huge time and energy saver. Ask about this at the beer store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swifty Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 I think buying beer with a liquor license is a bit more expensive. Is that right Backbacon???I think the bride and groom should fork out the money for expenses and should also do their part in organizing the party as well. Good luck Becky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 I'd say making a few border runs for beer/liquor from the US is so worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backbacon Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 I think buying beer with a liquor license is a bit more expensive. Is that right Backbacon???I believe it's is a extra 17% charge on all beer and liquor bought on a license. Ridiculous! I recommend not buying it all on the license. Buying almost double of all the liquor and then returning a bunch to avoid the 17% extra charge will save money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schwa. Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 ha, now the 12 pack thing makes sense. hmm, we used to take back 24's all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backbacon Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 It's a pretty recent thing I'm thinking. Never heard of it until I got stuck with about 10 cases a couple years back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-towns Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 stuck with about 10 cases I'm sure you weren't "stuck" for very long.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms.Huxtable Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 That's funny Backbacon. After our wedding in June we were "stuck" with a case of hard liquor. Jack Daniels, Jager, Rum, Scotch, Vodka and Canadian Club.We just learned to drink hard liquor. It's actually made marriage more fun than we thought it would be! We're finally reaching the end of the case. Good luck PP on organizing the S&D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavinginthewind Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 I think any game involving the maid of honour putting on a wonder women outfit would be a smash success Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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