03/25/2026
Why do newlyweds seem to think people want custom wedding merch taking up space in cabinets and drawers for years to come? https://theatln.tc/IFovEyIK
The intentions behind wedding favors are good—those throwing the wedding naturally want to give a little something back to their guests. But the well-meaning gesture doesn’t always land, Kelly Conaboy wrote in 2023. This can be inferred from just about every result that comes up when one searches “wedding favors” on TikTok. A surprising number of the videos feature the word “actually” used almost as a pejorative: “wedding favors your guests will ACTUALLY use.”
Lisa Cavanaugh, an associate professor of marketing and behavioral science, hasn’t studied wedding favors specifically, but her research might illuminate a fundamental disconnect at their core: Gift givers tend to think in terms of what a gift means to them, rather than what it will mean to the recipient. When giving a customized wedding favor, she says, the giver tends to think “very optimistically that people will see it and think fondly of the event.” They don’t necessarily think about what people might actually want, or branded favors they’ve received in the past that they may have guiltily thrown in the trash.
But for those couples who still wish to give a personally branded gift, all might not be lost. Research by Mary Steffel, an associate professor of marketing at Northeastern University, shows that sharing something personal with guests can build connections. Though people tend to prefer recipient-centric gifts, Steffel pointed out that at least one study has shown giver-centric gifts to be associated with a stronger social connection between the two parties. For her part, Conaboy continues, “I’m still at a loss about what favor to give guests at my own wedding, or whether to give one at all.”
📷: Getty
