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Dont Say Yes To The Dress! Say Maybe

Congratulations! You're engaged. Now you have to find the dress, the best store to buy it and the best place for alterations.

Learn what questions to ask before selecting the bridal salon.
Learn when is the best time to go gown shopping and who to take with you.
Decide whether you should buy a wedding gown on-line.
Decide what information the bridal salon really has to know and why.
Set your budget.

It’s survival of the fittest. Get ready to battle with poofy skirts, corsets, itchy fabrics and commissioned salespeople

Battle Bride

Ready for Battle

There are a lot of emotions and high expectations associated with the purchase of this dress. Unless you were a debutante or a beauty queen, you have no experience with “special order” apparel. Everything about it is different and you are entering an alien world where you do not speak the vocabulary. What do you do to achieve a successful outcome?

Let’s define Successful Outcome

The right dress at an affordable price from a store with great customer service, knowledgeable staff and excellent alterations.

Set Your Budget

In general, there is no connection between the price of the dress and the quality you receive. There are great quality gowns for $800.00 and poor quality gowns for $2,000.00. This is a very personal decision to be made wisely and maturely. A wedding gown is a costume. It is made to be worn only once. Many, if not most, cannot be cleaned. Your daughter will not wear it; either will your younger sister.

Is Honesty Really The Best Policy?

Yes and no. You want the store personal to be completely honest with you. But you should not be completely honest with them. There are 2 secrets you need to keep.

Never tell the sales clerk your real budget. Tell them an amount that is 20-25% lower than it really is. If you do tell them the real number, they will start there and go UP. Even if you tell them on no uncertain terms your absolute maximum is $XYZ, they will not stop there. Your only defensive move here is to lie upfront and tell them a lesser amount. Let’s see how hard they try to stick to your budget.
Never tell them the real date of your wedding. If time allows, tell them your wedding is 3-4 weeks before it actually is.

Me Tarzan. You Jane.

On-Line or Off-Line

Would you be surprised to hear that over 40% of brides buy a gown they have never seen in person? There are plenty of products that can be bought on-line without hesitation. I am not saying that buying a wedding gown over the internet never works. I sold wedding gowns sight un-seen for 17 years as a dealer for the first wedding gown discounter in America. They had 40 years’ experience in the bridal industry. When they failed, everyone got hurt financially. If they couldn’t pull it off, I do not believe anyone can sustain that business over time. Build a relationship with a local business. You need a place to go when or if things go wrong and where people know you. It’s harder to screw around with someone who is in your face than someone over the phone in another state.

The Wedding Committee

Let’s go shopping. Who is coming along? Did you need a committee to help you pick the groom? I hope not. The more people you take along, the more confusion, distraction, and passive-aggressive behavior you will be subjected to. A successful gown shopping excursion should include one mother and one other person whose style you admire and honesty you can rely on. If a mother is not available, ask an aunt or grandmother.

Strapless Gown with Natural Waist

Strapless Gown with Natural Waistline

Not Ready To Shop Yet

There are many things to consider before you walk into a salon. Call each salon first and find out the following information before making your appointment.

Check their store hours. Do their store hours work well with your work schedule?
What is the price range of their dresses? If you budget $1,000 and the store offers dresses from $2500 and up, this store is not for you.
Ordering Time: If you have only 3 months before the wedding and their gowns take 4 months, this store is not for you.
Does the store offer alterations? Are the alterations done on-site? Are the alterations included in the price? If so, what if you don’t need alterations? Is the alteration price list available for you to read? How many fittings do you get? How long do alterations take?
Other Services : Does the store steam and/or press your gown after you have worn it for your bridal portrait or photo shoot? Do they prep it for transport by stuffing with tissue paper and hanging on a cardboard form?
Do they work by appointment only? Many salons prefer to and you don't want to be turned away if you did not make the necessary appointment.
Intangibles: Your phone survey is not done. What was the treatment you received as a potential customer. At this time, they are on their best behavior. They are in the courting stage. After they have made the sale, things could go downhill. They had better be starting off at a very high level. Was the sales staff courteous when answering your questions? Were they knowledgeable?
Security: There is an excruciatingly high rate of business failures in the bridal industry. It is a very difficult business to stay in. You do NOT want a store to go belly-up with your deposit.The first rule of buying a wedding gown is only pay the minimum deposit and put that deposit on a credit card.
On-line Reviews: While we all know that reviews are not always authentic, pro or con, read them. They might alert you to certain issues that you should ask about. It is not possible to make every customer happy. Things do go wrong. But it is how things are handled when they go wrong that is revealing. Before purchasing your gown, call the Better Business Bureau in your area and ask if there are any unresolved disputes.

All illustrations are by the creative and whimsical hand of Caitlin Loe, exclusive cartoonist for www.favorsyoukeep.com. Her designs are available on wedding welcome bags, cocktail napkins, stadium cups and koozies, favor bags,totes and gable boxes, signature posters and platters, keepsake coasters, thank you notes and Save The Dates.