Zola (company)

Zola
Industryweddings
Founded2013
FoundersShan-Lyn Ma, Nobu Nakaguchi
Headquarters
New York City
,
U.S.[1]
Key people
Shan-Lyn Ma (CEO)
Websitezola.com

Zola is an e-commerce company that offers online wedding planning, retail and registry services. There is no cost or fee to register with Zola, and the female-led company generates revenue by selling wedding gifts and wedding-related items.[2]

History

Zola was founded in New York City in 2013 by Shan-Lyn Ma and Nobu Nakaguchi. It launched as the first all-in-one wedding registry platform,[3] allowing couples to manually schedule and exchange wedding gifts online.[4]

In 2017, Zola expanded its services to offer wedding planning through Zola Weddings. The free service includes wedding websites, guest lists, RSVP tracking, and customizable checklists.[4] The company also introduced customized wedding invitations and save the dates in 2018.[5][6]

In October 2018, Crate & Barrel and Zola partnered to allow Zola users to register for over 3,500 Crate & Barrel products.[7][8] The company has received $140 million in funding, the most recent being $100 million in 2018.[9][10]

In January 2019, Zola opened its first brick-and-mortar location, a pop-up shop in the Flatiron District of New York City.[11][12]

The company was valued at $600 million in February 2019; a The New York Times article from that year noted that Zola was "one of three companies on the list of potential next unicorns that have been fueled by millennials' spending."[13][14]

In June 2022, co-founder Nobu Nakaguchi was appointed as chief design officer.[15]

In April 2024, Zola announced an artificial intelligence tool designed to help couples split wedding planning chores fairly.[16]

Zola launched its “The Wedding of the Year” brand campaign in December 2025.[17] A study conducted by Zola, which surveyed 11,500 couples, found that 84% of weddings would cost more in 2026 compared to two years ago because of the economy or tariffs.[18]

Services

Registry

According to Business Insider, some aspects of the Zola registry, include: the ability to aggregate gifts from multiple websites; a clean user interface; selection of delivery time and location for each respective gift; simple logging of thank-you cards; experiential gifts, such as Airbnb and group gifting.[19] However, the registry lacks a physical retail space, making shipping costs for large gifts expensive. In addition to traditional gift registry options, Zola has a feature for cash giving that allows users to set up funds of their choice.[20]

In 2019, Vox wrote, "Registries may be adapting, but there’s no indication that they’re going anywhere..." citing Zola as a major source of change in the wedding registry space.[21]

In 2020, Zola added the option to send Change the Dates to guests, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[22][23]

AI

Zola has integrated artificial intelligence into its platform to assist couples with wedding logistics. In 2024, it added two AI programs: Split the Decisions, which helps couples divide wedding planning responsibilities, and a thank-you note generator tool available as a mobile app.[24][25]

Other services

  • Wedding Website
  • Guest List Planning
  • Wedding Attire
  • Decor & Favors
  • Hotel Blocks
  • Wedding Vendors

Controversy

In early December 2019, Zola was among several wedding planning sites who announced they would remove from their listings wedding locations that once were slave plantations. The move was a response to the civil rights advocacy group Color of Change, who contend that the use and marketing of plantations, namely those in the Antebellum South, as venues for weddings hides their history as sites of slave labor.[26] Though Zola initially indicated that Color of Change's concerns didn't violate their anti-discrimination policies, the company indicated they would work with the organization to ensure their policies promote inclusiveness.[27]

Later in December 2019, a Zola advertising campaign was the subject of controversy due to its airing on, and being pulled from air by, Hallmark Channel. The six-ad series featured couples of various assortments at the altar voicing vow-like regrets about not using Zola to plan their nuptials.[28] One of the couples featured was a lesbian couple that appeared in three of the ads briefly and one 30-second spot exclusively (they are shown kissing at the altar in the latter).[29] That couple's inclusion raised the ire of One Million Moms, with the conservative group urging Hallmark Channel to reconsider "airing commercials with same-sex couples." Hallmark Channel's parent, Crown Media Family Networks, obliged and announced on December 13 they would pull from air the four Zola ads that featured the couple, citing network policy that forbids its airing of controversial content, namely the women kissing.[30] After being roundly criticized by LGBTQ figures, allies, and rights groups (GLAAD president Sara Kate Ellis called the move "discriminatory"),[31] Crown Media reversed course on December 15 and reinstated the pulled ads. In response, Zola, who had severed ties with Hallmark Channel, announced they would reach out to the network to consider further advertising.[32][33]

References

  1. ↑ "It Started With a Jolt: How New York Became a Tech Town". The New York Times. February 22, 2019.
  2. ↑ "Wedding Startup Zola Valuation Surpasses The Knot". The Wall Street Journal. May 3, 2018.
  3. ↑ "With $100 million infusion, Zola launches major expansion". Crain's New York Business. November 2, 2018.
  4. 1 2 "Zola Moves to Take Over Wed-Tech". Fortune. April 18, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Zola Wants To Be Your Wedding Planner—And Save You From Your In-Laws". Fast Company. April 18, 2017.
  6. ↑ Loizos, Connie (2018-05-03). "Wedding startup Zola just received a lavish gift: $100 million in fresh funding". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2026-03-24.
  7. ↑ "Crate & Barrel Teams Up With Zola, Hoping to Win Over Millennial Couples". Adweek. September 21, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Why Crate and Barrel is partnering with rising digital competitor Zola: Customers 'want to shop where they want to shop'". Recode. September 18, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Wedding-Planning Startup Zola Raises $100 Million". Bloomberg. May 3, 2018.
  10. ↑ "Wedding startup Zola just received a lavish gift: $100 million in fresh funding". TechCrunch. May 3, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Zola Will Open Its First Brick-and-Mortar Store in New York City". Fortune. December 12, 2018.
  12. ↑ "The Apple Store of weddings is here". Fast Company. January 9, 2019.
  13. ↑ "The Next Wave of 'Unicorn' Start-Ups". The New York Times. February 10, 2019.
  14. ↑ "These 50 Start-Ups May Be the Next 'Unicorns'". The New York Times. February 10, 2019.
  15. ↑ Hinchliffe, Emma (Jun 16, 2022). "Exclusive: Zola founder Shan-Lyn Ma appoints a co-CEO". Fortune.
  16. ↑ Eckstein, Jakob (Feb 27, 2025). "How Zola Makes Money". Investopedia.
  17. ↑ "How Zola found its own Taylor and Travis for 'Wedding of the Year' push | Marketing Dive". www.marketingdive.com. Retrieved 2026-03-24.
  18. ↑ Quiroz-Gutierrez, Marco. "'What a waste of money': Shark Tank star Kevin O'Leary urges couples to ditch the extravagant wedding and do this instead". Fortune. Retrieved 2026-03-24.
  19. ↑ Chen, Connie. "We compared the top 5 wedding registries in the US including Amazon, Zola, and Target — here are all the pros and cons". Business Insider. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  20. ↑ "Zola Registry". www.zola.com. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  21. ↑ Valle, Gaby Del (2019-01-30). "Wedding registries are an outdated tradition, but they're not going anywhere". Vox. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  22. ↑ "Zola Weddings". www.zola.com. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  23. ↑ "Is Coronavirus Impacting Your Wedding? Here's What to Do | Zola Expert Wedding Advice". zola.com. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  24. ↑ Strauss, Alix (2025-07-12). "How A.I. Is Transforming Wedding Planning". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
  25. ↑ Chan-Danisi, Angela. "Say 'I Do' To Equal Wedding Planning With Zola's New AI-Driven Tool". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2025-07-22. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
  26. ↑ "Wedding planning sites change policies on slave plantations," from Associated Press, 12/5/2019
  27. ↑ "Zola Has Removed Plantations As Wedding Venue Options From Its Website," from BuzzFeed News, 12/5/2019
  28. ↑ Zola "No Regrets" ad (1:00 minute composite) on YouTube (accessed 12/15/2019)
  29. ↑ "Zola | Easy Wedding Planning | TV Ad Spot on YouTube (accessed 12/16/2019)
  30. ↑ "Hallmark Channel Pulls Zola Ads Featuring Brides Kissing," from The New York Times, 12/13/2019
  31. ↑ Bennett, Anita (December 14, 2019). "Hallmark Channel At Center Of Storm Over Ad Featuring Lesbian Brides Kissing – Update". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
  32. ↑ "Under pressure, Hallmark pulls gay-themed wedding ads," from Associated Press, 12/15/2019
  33. ↑ "In reversal, Hallmark will reinstate same-sex marriage ads," from Associated Press, 12/16/2019

Official website

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