She Paid How Much?
She paid how much?
Every once in a while there’s a photo, usually on Pinterest, that seems to follow me. A few years ago, it was a white bridal bouquet that I must have priced out for at least a dozen brides. They were all head over heels for the same trendy look.
This December, within a two-week span, I had three clients ask for the Kim Kardashian candle runner for their holiday party. Each client loved the lush but simple look of the candles, plus how expensive could white candles really be? The real cost of this simple but striking look is not for the faint of heart.
Credit: Instagram/@steph_shep
One of my very favorite things is seeing an interior decorator break down the real costs of a design project, so I thought it would be fun to break down what some of our favorite celebs are actually spending on their star-studded bashes.
Some simple counting of chairs allowed me to guess that each table was in the neighborhood of 24 feet in length. I then broke down the per foot candle count:
Approximately 4 Taper Candles
Approximately 5 Assorted Height 3” Width Pillar Candles
Approximately 6 Assorted Height Slim Pillar Candles
Wholesale supply costs, before any markup and labor: conservatively $100/foot
It’s important to note that the cost to buy the candles is expensive alone – nearly $2400 would be needed to cover a similar size table. The real pain begins when we add up the extra costs:
Industry mark up of 2.5 - 3.5x. This is standard across the floral industry, and because we normally mark up 2.5x on hard goods and 3.5x on floral, let's split the difference and mark up 3x. $7200 is our new total, and just for one 24 foot table.
Labor & Installation is another fee that Kim K. likely paid for her candlescape, and for a job like this with layers of security and extra insurance requirements, I’m guessing it didn’t come cheap. Also, can you imagine how much time was spent unwrapping each individual candle? Let’s assume a labor rate of 40%. $10,800 is our new per table total which allows for a team of people to perfectly set each candle and come back to clean up after the party.
Looking at the photos of the birthday bash, it’s easy to make out that there were several tables which likely pushed the total spend well into the tens of thousands on just candles. That’s without figuring for draping, tenting, table and chair rentals, etc. My best industry guess– this bash ran into the hundreds of thousands all said and done.
The moral of the story: candle runners aren’t cheap. And, if your budget doesn’t support a Kim K. price tag, Helen Olivia Floral Design can help you find something equally beautiful that does.
Credit: Instagram/@khloekardashian
