MINNEAPOLIS — Weddings and wedding plans changed drastically for a lot of people because of the coronavirus pandemic. Whether it was changing venues and guest lists or even postponing the big day, weddings in 2020 have been different.
For one couple, that meant the possibility of tying the knot without one very special element - a Publix wedding cake, something that topped their list.
“When Ben and I first got engaged it was kind of a no brainer that we were going to have a Publix cake at our wedding,” newlywed Erin Cohen told WINK News.
Originally, the couple planned to get married in Erin's hometown of Coral Springs, but all that changed with COVID-19, The Palm Beach Post reported. Instead, they quickly pivoted their plans to Ben's parents' house for a backyard wedding in Minneapolis. Another element of change -- many friends and family would watch the couple wed not in person, but live via Zoom.
Still, the quandry of how to get a Publix cake remained, since there were no locations near them in Minnesota, and Erin's parents weren't able attend the wedding and bring the cake with them, WINK News reported.
That's when the couple got creative and tried to reverse-engineer their dream wedding cake. However, despite multiple tries, that dream was turning into a bit of a nightmare. Then, Erin was interviewed about her dream wedding cake by the Associated Press.
Once the word got out, Publix quickly got wind of the couple's confectionery conundrum. And that's when heroes clad in aprons, not capes, stepped in to help.
“When Publix read that story and learned about what we were trying to do, they reached out and offered to make Erin’s dream come true and we jumped at the chance,” Ben told WINK News.
The grocery store chain sent the couple everything they needed to make their cake a reality, including buttercream icing, pre-baked layers of cake, spatuals, a turntable for icing the cake and decorative gum paste flowers from Publix headquarters in Lakeland, Florida, the Palm Beach Post reported.
To top it all off, Publix's head baker helped walk them through the cake assembly and decorating via a live video call, both outlets reported.
“It was truly amazing,” Erin told WINK. “It was a Friday before our Sunday wedding and it truly kicked off the wedding weekend.”
“It really elevated what became a backyard wedding and just gave it a whole other celebration. It was really special,” Ben told WINK.
WINK News says Publix also sent a replica wedding cake for Erin's parents at their Coral Springs home to help celebrate the special occassion.
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