You can see PreOwnedWeddingDresses.com in today’s print edition of the New York Times. The article writes about a surprising trend that we’ve been noticing for a while now: Multiple Dress Brides.
These are brides who buy not one, but two, three, four, five, or in one case even seven (yes 7!) wedding dresses. I’ve literally heard this same story from scores of brides. And why the particulars vary from bride to bride, the common thread is usually that they jumped at a dress early in their engagement (either from sheer excitement or from sample sale – get it or it will be gone – pressure).
As their engagement progresses, they realize it what they thought was “The Dress” is really not. So they buy another (and sometimes another, and another) until they get it right.
One bride, Heather, realized she would purchase a second dress when her sister asked her, “are you more uncomfortable with spending the money on a second dress or with the idea of walking down the aisle in a gown you’re not in love with.” (Heather did end up buying another dress that she says was “truly meant for me”).
For sellers, buying more than one dress definitely adds to the stress level. But for buyers, it can mean great savings on gowns that have never even been worn. (Here are three examples of gowns for sale from Multiple Dress Brides).
1. Sample Carolina Herrera: $1700 ($4800 less than retail)
2. Sample Melissa Sweet: $1900 ($1950 less than retail)
3. Sample Alvina Valenta: $900 ($2600 less than retail)
And I’ve also had Multiple Dress Brides tell me that they don’t tell too many outside of their inner circle about their dress count. But if you are a bride like this, I can tell you, you are definitely not alone 🙂
