The Owens Collective launches a one-of-a-kind wedding ceremony venue
We’ve wandered down the 101 Maitland Road laneway many times over the years to chat to the owner of The Owens Collective, Clint Marquet. Clint’s always had an interesting story to share and collaborative concepts taking shape.
The address is not only the home of Clint and Brad, but also doubles as loft apartments, features an art gallery and event space, and it’s also where you’ll find Sukimama’s delicious Korean street food.
Our purpose for this visit is to hear about the next iteration of The Owens Collective - Mrs Owens Chapel.
Initially launching to cater to micro weddings Clint explains that they’ve tweaked the offering as the micro model wasn't quite resonating,
“The majority of our ceremony's have catered for around 50 peope, but the venue can hold up to 150, with the sweet spot being around 100, so we've altered our packages so we can appeal to a broader mix of weddings.”
There’s so much history in this building, and we wanted to highlight that, give it its own identity.
“Whenever I post on the Mrs Owens Chapel social pages I always say, ‘Mrs Owens would like to congratulate the couple’, which pays homage to the owners - R .J. Owens.”
Whilst the venue has had a name change, Clint explains they still offer elopement and micro wedding packages, but didn’t want to limit it to just this.
“This venue has such a unique urban industrial style, and there aren’t many other ceremony venues like it in the city, and that was the appeal for us to do this - to be able to offer couples a really unique ceremony experience.”
Mrs Owens Chapel offers couples a variety of packages, with the basic package inclusive of up to 50 guests, an hour of photography, a celebrant, the styling, and confetti cannon, and the ceremonies can be as fuss-free as you like.
If couples want to take a little extra time and offer guests food and drinks, your package can be adjusted to suit. Whether it’s a grazing table or Sukimama’s street food, Clint takes care of all the food arrangements.
A beer and bubbles station is naturally included across each of the packages, because we all need to cheers the lovely couple!
Clint’s all about fuss-free, and the types of couples they’ve attracted so far are those not looking for the really elaborate style weddings, as Clint explained,
“I’ve found there is a big shift away from the rules where the bride's parents paid for the ceremony and the groom's parents paid for the alcohol, which was how it was in my era. Now parents aren’t paying for anything and it's all on the couples, and couples aren’t wanting to spend as much money on their wedding day, paying off their mortgage is more of a focus.”
From the initial enquiry through to serving drinks on the day, Clint is all about making the experience as easy as possible.
“I work the ceremonies myself, I get a bit of a buzz from that experience, plus it puts the couples mind at ease that everything's taken care of, and their day will be as relaxed as possible.
Whether you’re after an intimate ceremony or a lively celebration, Mrs Owens Chapel offers a flexible, modern wedding experience right in the heart of Newcastle. To explore packages or book a viewing, visit The Owens Collective and discover how this historic space can set the stage for your big day.
