Meet the planners behind Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez’s Venice wedding: London-based Lanza & Baucina’s clients have included George and Amal Clooney, and Salma Hayek and François-Henri Pinault

After nearly seven years together and a two-year engagement, Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez are tying the knot this week in the grandest wedding money can buy. Dubbed the “wedding of the century”, the multi-day event, beginning today, is reportedly setting the Amazon founder back more than US$10 million, per The Hollywood Reporter.

The couple have rented out the entire island of San Giorgio Maggiore in Italy, with the wedding itself set to take place on Bezos’ US$500 million megayacht, Koru.

While details of the wedding are still hush-hush, the Venetian island is reportedly “off-limits” to visitors from June 24 to 29, per Hola! magazine. The couple have reportedly reserved around 60 of Venice’s water taxis plus a portion of the city’s 400 gondolas for their guests. Expected attendees include fellow tech billionaires Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates, and A-listers such as Kim Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey, Leonardo DiCaprio, Beyoncé and Katy Perry, the “Dark Horse” singer having joined Sánchez on the heavily criticised all-female Blue Origin space flight earlier this year.

As far as billionaire weddings go, Bezos’ nuptials, albeit lavish, are not on par with the ostentatious Ambani-Merchant wedding in 2024 that cost upwards of US$600 million. Still, Venetians – already grappling with overtourism – are unhappy about city authorities prioritising visitors over residents. The “No Space for Bezos” movement has exploded throughout Venice, with locals threatening to disrupt the billionaire’s nuptials with peaceful protests by blocking the sinking island’s famous canals.

Amid all the backlash, Bezos-Sánchez wedding planners Lanza & Baucina have released a statement, standing up for their clients and promising minimal disruption to locals. “Before the recent news of protests arose, we had worked for there to be minimal negative impact or disruption to the lives of Venetians and the city’s visitors,” the statement said.

The event management company has previously organised high-profile weddings in Venice for clients like George and Amal Clooney, and Salma Hayek and François-Henri Pinault. Here’s everything to know about the team behind Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez’s US$10 million wedding.