Tenant Directory
OPEN MONDAY to FRIDAY 8.30 am - 5 pm 01226 249590
Fifteen years ago, I Do Magazine began as a simple idea. Heather Tiffany was working on the popular Around Town Magazine when creating a wedding edition was suggested. Heather responded with a challenge: if enough people were interested, she’d create the magazine.
Fast forward to today, and I Do has evolved beyond print. Heather, the founder, works closely with her marketing expert Natasha Fisher to deliver a vast array of services. They began hosting wedding exhibitions around thirteen years ago and now cover Sheffield, Leeds, Doncaster, and the East Midlands with big plans to move into more areas.
Heather: “In the early days, we paid to exhibit the magazine at some of the larger fairs. We felt we could put an event together ourselves, so hired a venue and looked at what other people did. We’d have been happy if 400 people turned up and, in hindsight, realise how unprepared we were. But the day was still a huge success, and we had a footfall of over 1,000 through the doors. Over the years, we’ve ironed out the creases to build our exhibitions up to their current standard.”
Aside from the magazine and wedding exhibitions, I Do offers an online wedding directory. Wedding suppliers can choose from a variety of packages to advertise in the directory and promote their business to couples planning their wedding. Heather and Natasha are also proud to support smaller wedding fair organisers with their hosted wedding fayre promotion packages. This includes extensive promotion of wedding fairs online and through their large email database of engaged couples, as well as distributing I Do branded goody bags and the I Do Magazine out to these events.
Annual awards celebrating the wedding industry
One standout aspect of I Do’s journey is their annual wedding awards, which celebrates 10 years this year.
Natasha explains, “The I Do Wedding Awards are free to enter and are voted for by happy couples whose wedding day suppliers have helped create. Suppliers receive votes against five criteria from the couples they’ve served in the last year. We then average out the votes based on the criteria and declare a winner. As there’s no judging panel bias and is purely voted for by happy couples, it’s one of the fairest wedding awards out there. It also means that smaller businesses can compete on an equal playing field with larger ones.”
The prestigious awards evening, held within Sheffield City Hall’s stunning ballroom, is a glamorous red carpet affair with wedding suppliers donning their best ballgowns and black tie attire for an evening of celebration. As part of these awards, I Do asks suppliers to donate raffle prizes, raising much needed funds for a nominated charity each year.
Heather: “We hold a Willy Wonka-style chocolate bar raffle on the night. If a guest buys one of the bars with a golden ticket inside, they win a prize. Gifts range from champagne to hotel breaks, spa days, and jewellery. Last year, we raised £2,000 on the night for Andy’s Man Club.”
Why I Do said yes to The Business Village
I Do Magazine found a new home at The Business Village in December 2023. The facilities, networking opportunities, and convenient location were all major draws. The inclusion of a shower, bike store, and 24/7 access only added to the appeal.
Heather explains, “It feels very secure for all our staff, especially with parking and onsite security.”
The Business Village’s inclusive policy for allowing dogs also played a pivotal role. When Heather first enquired about space, they ended up going elsewhere because dogs were not allowed in the offices. But, when she reached out again more recently, she found the policy had changed.
“I was working at home with Luna, my soft-coated wheaten terrier, so the main stipulation was whether an office took dogs. We’d wanted to move into The Business Village from the start but had to find somewhere that Luna could go. I was so pleased when I learned The Business Village had changed their policy. I now have a second dog, Skye, who comes to the office too.”
Along with the benefits already mentioned, Heather talks about the advantage of having other tenants nearby.
“We currently use Phase 5 for our internet services. It’s cheaper than getting our own broadband, but the onsite support is really handy too. They popped into our office the other day to tell us about a problem we didn’t even realise we had. It’s those small things that make running the business much easier.”
Exciting growth planned for 2024 and beyond
I Do Magazine is expecting 2024 to be a transformative year. They’ve recently hired two members of staff and anticipate needing another before the end of the year.
Their plan includes expanding the wedding exhibitions into new areas. But they also have plans to launch a marketing academy offering a 1-1 consultancy for wedding suppliers.
Heather: “We often find that small suppliers don’t know how to promote their business properly. So, we’ll be offering business and marketing support, tailored to individual companies.”
I Do is also expanding into new geographical territories. They already have a new wedding exhibition planned in Manchester for 2025. But they plan to mirror the magazine and wedding awards there too.
Natasha: “We’re well-known in Yorkshire and across the Midlands. We’re now focusing on building a similar level of awareness in Manchester and will then look at going further afield to expand our reach.”
With the level of expansion planned, the I Do team hope to move into a larger office at The Business Village before long. They also want to tap into the expertise offered by Business Village staff to build new collaborations.
Whether you’re a wedding supplier or venue, I Do Magazine invites you to be part of their community. From the exhibitions, magazine advertising, online directory or 1:1 marketing consultancy, everything I Do does is to support the wedding industry and increase visibility to couples planning their wedding.
To find out more, contact the team via:
I Do Magazine Website: https://www.ido-magazine.co.uk/
I Do Wedding Exhibitions: https://www.ido-weddingexhibitions.co.uk
Tel: 01226 704682
Email: info@ido-magazine.co.uk
Wedding Exhibition Dates – 2024
Magazine Publishing Dates
