So, you set an appointment with a bridal salon and show up for your appointment, only to discover the bridal salon does not have your size. In fact, they have only one size (maybe two, if you are lucky), either an 8 or a 10.
To make matters worse, said sizes 8 and 10 are not really 8 or 10. There is no size standardization in bridal, which means the gowns fit more like anywhere from a 4 to an 8, depending on the designer. In rare cases, the fit is "true to size," which means the size runs closer to the "street" sizes with which we are familiar. The reason for this is more complicated than simply an expectation that all brides will be a size 10 or smaller.
The bridal industry as a whole certainly needs some major changes in how the retailer/vendor relationship works, and one of them is actual retail store inventory. The reason for "sample sizes" is this:
Bridal shops are expected each season (twice a year) to purchase their sample stock from the designer. Bridal shops, as a rule, are not given samples by the designer. Additionally, the pricing of the samples is not any less than what the shop would pay wholesale for a customer's gown, meaning, of course, that they are not cheap. Thus, the boutiques are limited with what they can purchase. For example, if each sample costs $1,500, it does not make sense for a shop to buy a "size run" (i.e. a 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, etc.) of any one gown. Their entire buying budget would be eaten up by one style.
So, the shop chooses the lesser of two evils, so to speak. In order to have a nice selection of styles to please the customer without also blowing their budget, each shop generally buys one style in one size, the compromise generally being a bridal size 10 (whatever that means). Of course, this leaves out a vast number of body types on both ends of the spectrum, which unequivocally sucks.
This whole method of purchasing samples is totally avoided by stores like David's Bridal, J. Crew, and the like. This is because they make all their own products in vast quantities overseas, and so the price of the fabrics and the manufacturing is much lower. This allows for a larger range of "stock" pieces for customers to try on or even purchase on the spot.
So, really, the reason for sample sizes is all in the dollars and not in the sense...it's nothing personal! The upshot to all of this, of course, is that buying a bridal gown IS personal.
Now at least you know the reason for the madness!
All items via Flicker
To make matters worse, said sizes 8 and 10 are not really 8 or 10. There is no size standardization in bridal, which means the gowns fit more like anywhere from a 4 to an 8, depending on the designer. In rare cases, the fit is "true to size," which means the size runs closer to the "street" sizes with which we are familiar. The reason for this is more complicated than simply an expectation that all brides will be a size 10 or smaller.
The bridal industry as a whole certainly needs some major changes in how the retailer/vendor relationship works, and one of them is actual retail store inventory. The reason for "sample sizes" is this:
Bridal shops are expected each season (twice a year) to purchase their sample stock from the designer. Bridal shops, as a rule, are not given samples by the designer. Additionally, the pricing of the samples is not any less than what the shop would pay wholesale for a customer's gown, meaning, of course, that they are not cheap. Thus, the boutiques are limited with what they can purchase. For example, if each sample costs $1,500, it does not make sense for a shop to buy a "size run" (i.e. a 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, etc.) of any one gown. Their entire buying budget would be eaten up by one style.
So, the shop chooses the lesser of two evils, so to speak. In order to have a nice selection of styles to please the customer without also blowing their budget, each shop generally buys one style in one size, the compromise generally being a bridal size 10 (whatever that means). Of course, this leaves out a vast number of body types on both ends of the spectrum, which unequivocally sucks.
This whole method of purchasing samples is totally avoided by stores like David's Bridal, J. Crew, and the like. This is because they make all their own products in vast quantities overseas, and so the price of the fabrics and the manufacturing is much lower. This allows for a larger range of "stock" pieces for customers to try on or even purchase on the spot.
So, really, the reason for sample sizes is all in the dollars and not in the sense...it's nothing personal! The upshot to all of this, of course, is that buying a bridal gown IS personal.
Now at least you know the reason for the madness!
All items via Flicker
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