Wow, in this morning's paper there is an article about Sister's Bridal closing their doors and leaving a lot of brides high and dry without their gown(s). Unfortunately, I have been expecting this for a long time. We removed them from our favorites list several years ago because they were "short selling". This is how it works; you come in and choose a gown at XYZ Bridal Shop, and instead of ordering YOUR gown with the down payment, XYZ orders Jane Smith's gown, who came in six months ago and picked her gown out and made a deposit (which XYZ used to order the gown of a bride who's wedding was closer)! Then XYZ waits for another bride to come in and put money down for HER gown to place the order for YOUR gown. It's a vicious cycle, and basically a downward spiral because they are always hoping someone will order a dress, so that they can purchase the dresses that someone has already ordered (but they've already spent their deposits). Stores that start doing this get into sticky wickets with their suppliers too, because they are waiting on their money, and the suppliers put them on COD delivery so that they know they will get paid. Basically they are robbing Peter to pay Paul, as the old saying goes.
A reputable gown shop will not require full payment up front, if they ask for that much, beware!
Unfortunately a lot of brides have been caught in the crossfire. If you are one of these brides, Here Comes the Dress here in Valpo, might be able to help you get your gown. Here is the comment they posted on the article:
"We are another Valparaiso bridal boutique, and we've been able to assist brides who've been unable to get their dresses from Sisters. We can contact the same designers and get the dresses re-routed to our store for pick up. If you know of anyone in distress, they can contact us. 219.728.1328 or herecomesthedress@gmail.com"
We're also willing to do what we can to help at Affairs. This sort of thing just shouldn't happen to a bride, but unfortunately it does.
Have you been affected by this closing? Leave a comment and share your experience, in the hope that it will help other brides avoid a heartache like this in the future.
