Terrible Experience
Unfortunately, I had a terribly upsetting experience at this boutique and absolutely urge any brides to AVOID this boutique as it is not worth the headache on such an important and expensive purchase, their customer service is lacking and they turned one of the happiest experiences of my life into a terrible nightmare, without taking any responsibility.
I purchased my wedding dress here in March and was assured that the gown in my size would look identical to how it had been clipped on me in the sample size. When the gown arrived in my size, the bodice was monumentally shorter and lower than that of the size I initially tried. It was shocking how different it looked, almost like a completely different dress. I had my mother, my mother-in-law, and a friend all see me in the sample size gown and my dress and no one could believe that they were the same given how dramatically difference the sizes looked on me. I was devastated having had my mother pay over $2,000.00 for a wedding dress that there was no way I could wear without feeling extremely self-conscious on my wedding day. I am not busty by any means and it looked like I was falling out of the dress in my size, this was an issue I had actually called my consultant and inquired about the next day after saying ‘yes to the dress’. I was concerned that this strapless style in my size would be too low cut and made it clear that I really didn’t want that. I was told it would look EXACTLY the way it had been clipped on me so not to worry.
I trusted these professionals to guide me through a process I had no experience in. At the end of the day, I expressed that there was no way I would feel comfortable wearing this dress on my wedding day, nor would I be comfortable incurring such a cost to altering the dress entirely. I came back into the boutique with a friend to further express my concern and show the store manager and my consultant specifically the areas of concern on my dress. The store manager was very defensive and hesitant to acknowledge the concern, saying that the sample gown I tried was 3 sizes larger so of course there would be a difference in size and that the inch and a half difference in size of the bodice was not that much. However, my consultant looked on the designer’s website of the model in the style and said to us that “I was right. There would have been no way I would have known the dress would look like this in my size the way I had been clipped in.” To me, this verified that I was not losing my mind, even the consultant could see how dramatically different it looked. The store manager gave me a few options but told me that ultimately it came down to what the store owner was willing to do for me. I received a call from the store manager indicating that the owner was not willing to allow me to choose a new dress since I had authorized the measurements taken and there was no defect with the dress itself. She could order more fabric to have added to the dress (which would be my expense to alterand the seamstress that the store recommended told me she wouldn’t be able to do that due to the material of the dress), or the owner could authorize a 15% discount on a new dress…..it was almost a humourous offer given that 15% of a $2,000.00 is $300.00…..not even the tax!!!! I ended up speaking to the owner and she reiterated that she needed to balance her store policies while offering me assistance to make this right “if she could”. She DID NOT apologize for this experience and did not take responsibility for her consultants, even after I explained my entire experience. She told me that if she had to refund every bride that changed their mind on style when the dress came in she would be out of business….and while I do understand that, this was very far from my situation. I LOVE the style I picked but unfortunately, the style I selected was not the same in my size, and had I have been made aware that it would be lower cut and with such a short bodice I would never have said yes to it. I had gone to bridal shops where consultants went over and beyond to clip you in a dress from the front and the back, told you how different straps would sit in your size, etc. This was not done here, and I did not know enough to ask, and really, how could I have??
At the end of the conversation with the owner, she told me that she wanted to help me, she would help me probably more than she should, but that she needed to take some time to think about a solution that helped me but still respected her store policies. I thanked her, and she told me that she would call me back by the end of the day. Well, at 5 o’clock I got a call from the store manager again, not the owner. She informed me that the owner was willing to offer me a store credit of a little over the 40% second payment I made on my dress. If I agreed to this the store would retain my original dress….and I would still be responsible for paying the 60% balance of a new dress plus alteration AGAIN. None of this sat right with me, I cannot understand how a wedding dress boutique business can hold the client responsible for mistakes made by it’s consultants. How could they retain my dress, sell it I AM SURE and make double the amount off of me???? Store policies are in place to protect the business, I understand that, but they should never be in place to take advantage of a customer and that is exactly what has been done here. I asked if I could even get the 40% deposit as a refund and they could keep my original dress because I just didn’t want to deal with them anymore, I was told in response that the owner, Michelle, had already gone over and beyond to rectify my situation and that due to COVID, their business simply could not offer me any kind of refund, but I was welcome to come and pick up my dress and sell it privately. I was once again, devastatingly upset.
This has been a nightmare of an experience, it has left myself, my mother, my family and friends upset and angry. I cannot believe that what should have been one of the happiest and wonderful experiences of my life has been turned into such a black spot. Not to mention, I drove back and forth from Trenton (over an hour away) to try and correct this time and time again.
What I still cannot believe, is the lack of responsibility, ownership, or care taken. I would have appreciated the owner to work with me, to call me back herself. She lacks in customer service skills and since it is her policies in place, I would simply never trust a business such as this one. I cannot stress enough the urge to warn brides to steer clear of this boutique. Do not trust them with such an important investment and take your business to a boutique that aids and comforts brides without blaming them for their mistakes.