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IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO ALL BRIDES
Bridal Discounts May Be Deceptive
Every bride wants the best price when purchasing her wedding
gown. Be certain that you are comparing "apples to apples"
when making your decision. A "discount" does not necessarily
mean that you are saving money. Look at the "free services"
that are included (or not included) in the price and the
terms of payment. Be especially cautious of anyone who requires
you to pay in full before ordering your dress.
"No Inventory" Dealers
Many discount offers come from part-time "gray market" dealers
who have no dresses. Some call themselves a personal shopping
service; but instead, they ask that you shop around and
find the style you want and call them with the manufacturer's
name, style number and your measurements. They order your
dress, not from the manufacturer, but through a third party.
You may have to pay shipping charges, the full amount before
seeing your dress, find a seamstress, go to another location
for fitting, and, in many cases, pay more for pressing and
alterations than in a bridal store. When you add up all
these extras, you would have probably paid less, and saved
a great deal of time, by buying the dress from the bridal
store that assisted you. Our advice, "If a dealer can't
show you dresses to try on, don't show her your money."
Payment Requirements
Savvy brides should beware of discounters that require you
to pay in full for your dress before they order it. They
are saying, in essence, "We do not service what we sell.
We do not guarantee the fit. We do not want to be responsible."
Our advice: A bride should never pay in full before her
dress is ordered.
800 Numbers and "The Internet"
It's smart to buy some things over the phone and the Internet,
but not an item that requires measuring, fittings, alterations
and professional pressing. Following is a TRUE story. A
bride had been in a full-service store looking for her wedding
gown. She found what she wanted; however, she ordered it
over the Internet as she found a source that would sell
her the same gown for $100 less. After receiving her wedding
gown: (1) in a small box, (2) dirty and (3) not the correct
size, she is having to pay $250 for the necessary alterations
and $175 to have the gown professionally cleaned and pressed.
When she tried to phone the Internet business where she
ordered the dress, their number had been changed to an "unpublished"
number. In an article in USA Today, it was reported that
shoppers were getting a poor deal from Internet retailers.
The Consumers International research group ordered 151 items
from various Internet sites. It found that one in ten items
never arrived. You wedding gown is too important to take
a chance.
National "Chains"
Many brides that buy from a national chain do so because
they assume they will save money. It's our opinion that
they do not. It's understandable how a bride could be confused,
because a chain may advertise $99 bridal sales and, like
Wal-Mart, proclaim, "We sell to the masses." However, unlike
Wal-Mart, some bridal chains only offer their own line of
imported wedding gowns. They do not offer the designer wedding
gowns featured in the bridal magazines. They sell the same
style dress to many brides. It appears that they carry more
styles than they actually do, because they stock many dresses
of the exact same style. One of the comments that we hear
is that a chain store may have styles that look similar
to designer gowns, but the fabric is lower quality. Our
advice: If there is ever a time when you deserve quality,
it's your wedding day!
Full-Service Bridal Stores
Many full-service bridal stores offer their brides savings
on shoe-dying, tuxedos, invitations, and gown preservation
that far outweigh the so called "discount" being offered
by others. These are owner-operated stores that specialize
in assisting brides select their gowns. They encourage brides
to try on various styles to find the perfect dress. They
fit the style and offer alterations services. They press
the gown, place it in a protective bag, and take responsibility
for customer satisfaction. They feature nationally advertised
designers and offer many different styles. The selection,
service, and individual attention are big advantages. A
bride also has the option of special ordering her gown or
buying the one she tries on.
The Best Place To Buy Your Gown
We recommend that you buy your gown at the store that gives
you the best service. Beware if the store cannot provide
gowns to try on as well as assist you with your fitting,
alterations, and pressing services. You can usually save
time and money by doing it all at one place - with assurance
that your satisfaction will be guaranteed. 
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