A bride and groom held their wedding ceremony at an Indianapolis coffee shop on New Year’s Eve without getting permission to do so.
Mansion Society coffee shop owners Ana and Zoraida Lezama created social media posts on December 31 and January 3 describing ‘the pop-up wedding’ that took over their business.
The first social media post indicated that 20-30 guests held a wedding, took pictures, and asked employees to take their coats and purses.
The Lezama’s answered additional questions asked by social media users in their second post and added a video of the ceremony.
According to a GoFundMe page created on January 1, wedding guests only bought ‘six lattes’ and lost $500 worth of potential business.
A bride and groom married in front of 20-30 guests at Mansion Society coffee shop in Indiana on New Year’s Eve
Everyone with the wedding party rearranged furniture and expected employees at the coffee shop to take their coats and hang them up
The ‘small owned business’ opened in 2022 with a brand ‘Immersed in Wes Anderson’s film.’
The owners began their December 31 social media statement by saying it does its best to provide ‘the best service to all.’
Mansion Society allows customers to hold private events at their shop starting at $500 and used their first social media post on New Year’s Eve to let others know why they are discussing the incident.
‘We are ultimately sharing to ask out patrons to please be considerate, mindful and consider booking us for a private event, other than showing up and taking control of our small business with no notice.’
A wedding officiant, photographers, and bride and groom parties were among the guests that attended the ceremony.
‘They were asking us to take coats, purses, and watch personal items as if they had rented us out for a private event,’ the owners stated.
The Lezama’s created their second social media post to ‘answer all questions.’
The wedding ceremony took place without notice and has led to backlash due to various social media posts created by Mansion Society
Shop owners Ana and Zoraida Lezama described the entire experience shortly after the party left in social media posts are now viral
Ana discussed the Indianapolis shop its ‘Immersed in Wes Anderson’s film’ brand in an interview back in 2022
The bride sent an email to Mansion Society after the ceremony and offered a $200 donation.
One of the owners responded to her email and added screenshots of their response to the second social media post.
She wrote the store does not need a $200 donation but needs them to pay the fee for a venue they ‘did not previously hire for a wedding ceremony.’
The bride was told of the normal weekend rate by the owner, who does not believe the shop will receive ‘any sort of compensation’ from them.’
The co-owner noted that wedding guests did not use parking spots and their donation doesn’t match consumption requirements, rental fees, or staff tips.
The GoFundMe page is helping Mansion Society earn the money they lost because of the wedding ceremony.
Social media users had a lot of questions about the first few posts made on New Year’s Eve, which was one of the reasons behind the others that were published on January 3
The bride emailed Mansion Society after New Year’s Eve and offered to donated $200, less than half of the usual $500 weekend rental fee. The owners admitted in one of their January 3 posts that they are not expecting to receive any compensation from the wedding party after everything that’s happened
Ana made a GoFundMe on January 1 and gave a quick recap on the unexpected wedding ceremony the day before.
She explained that the goal is based on the amount of money the business would’ve made if 30 customers bought lattes, tips – as well as for the additional burden on the shop.
The page closed earlier this month, but was reopened by Heidi Melton by request.
The business has made over $500 so far.
Ana and Zoraida are not the only ones angry at everyone from the ‘pop-up wedding’ anymore.
The GoFundMe was reopened by Heidi Melton on January 7 after individuals sent messages to the business saying they wanted to donate
Instagram users were not allowed to comment on Mansion Society’s posts about the incident and Facebook users requested the business release the bride and grooms’ names
Facebook users wrote various responses throughout the week.
Some wrote they ‘would’ve called the cops’ and a few users praised the shop’s ‘classy response.’
Others dissed everyone involved with the wedding.
‘No respect for private property and small business owners…it’s the new smash & grab culture. I’m sorry you and your staff had to deal with this,’ wrote Tammie Gist.