Weddingbee boards

This past weekend while visiting my family in Colorado my step-mom, sisters, and I went out wedding/bridesmaid dress shopping. Our first stop was at a boutique and the second stop was at a David's Bridal.

The first place, Wedding Treasures in Castle Rock, was nothing short of perfection. We happened to get the place to ourselves, the girl who helped us, Ashley, was wonderful, and I found THE dress. It was perfect in every way, I felt and looked amazing in it and lo and behold it was the first dress I tried on! BUT... I didn't want to jump the gun so I got the dress info and still went to my appointment at David's.

What a complete 180 from the boutique! First off it was busy and our bridal assitant was helping other brides, this was entirely understandable so that was not a problem, the problem was that she kept pushing the sale the entire time! It was pretty evident I was not loving the dresses I was trying on and yet she kept pushing, despite saying to me at one point "you don't seem to be having any fun." I wasn't! I felt bombarded! I felt like she was trying to sell me a used car not a dress! I finally found one I liked but the bride next to me also wanted to try it on, which was fine, but this made the girl sell it even harder and kept going "doesn't it look great on both of you? ok so we'll order it in your size then?" NO! I finally had to say look I am torn between another dress elsewhere and we'd like to go to lunch to think it over. Then she started in badgering me about the other dress and it's price and went about trying to find something that was comparable all while still pushing the dress I liked. It was so crazy! Finally we are able to convince her we need to decide outside of the store because grandma was hungry and she's like ok, let's set up a follow up so you can come back and buy the dress! What?!!? 

Needless to say I did not end up coming back and it made me want to buy the other dress even more. I called back after we decided I should get the other dress and after asked why I was canceling the appointment, because I went with a different dress, the woman on the other end HUNG UP THE PHONE ON ME!!!!! 

I had planned on getting my bridesmaid dresses from David's but will now be looking elsewhere. I made sure to send them feedback on the experience and let them know as much too.

Has anyone else had an experience like this at David's? And adversely, has anyone else had a great experience?

I had a good experiance when I went.. but then when I went back with my bridesmaids the same consultant was much less friendly and very pushy

I had a terrible experience at DB, too, so you are not alone. And I agree that chances are, it's just the time/consultant/place just all happened to fall together to create a horrible day, it left a bad taste in my mouth and I haven't been back since.

I had made an appointment, showed up, waiting 30 minutes when the store was empty, finally got my consultant, she didnt help pick a single dress for me, instead she handed me a magazine and said "pick ones you like out". I was like "UHH..what?" It was my very first dress shopping experience and she was no help at all. I finally pointed a couple out and she would not help me put on the long line bra and barely helped put on the dresses. She opened the curtaindoor and said "come out, nobody is in the store, its ok" Uhhh..again "WHAT?" the entire storefront is a glass window lady. I dont wanna walk around in my underwear.  She kept referencing what would look flattering on someone "my size" (plus size) which was offensive to me since she didn't pick a single dress for me to try on herself. Kept reminding me they don't carry many dresses in my size, which I happen to know is a lie, it's one of the reasons I picked Davids, I am a size 20! I happened to try on a couple dresses I had pointed out myself and thought they looked nice, I glanced over to her and she was looking at her watch and tapping her foot. I kid you not. I was seething, so after I got dressed I told her I'd let her know and left. She was pushing me to order the same day.

Something else that really bothers me and I find unprofessional is that when we sat down to fill out the pre appointment paperwork, she had me give a lot of my personal information. I told her I was not comfortable sharing things like phone/email and she promised they did not share the information, it was just for their records. TOTAL LIE. I get nothing but spam and junk in my email/real mail now, and have even gotten phonecalls from random "bridal package" companies since going to DB. She made it out that not only did they not share any info, but we couldnt continue the appointment without it..

It makes me mad to think about it actually. I am sure that people have better experiences though, and I didnt have a problem with the dresses...I am sure I would have even liked them more if she actually helped by zipping them or buttoning them up.

I'm sorry your experience was so crappy - I loved my david's bridal experience.  I think it all depends on the consultant you get

I went in with my mom in September to pick up a flower girl headpiece for my sister's wedding.  It was an over an hour before close and we asked if I could look around at dresses while we were there.  They said yes, but that no one would be able to help us so I couldn't try any dresses on.  There was one other customer trying on bridesmaids dresses with one consulatant.  Meanwhile at least three other consultants stood around and chatted together and could not be bothered to help us.  So I browsed (honestly didn't see anything I had to try on or liked better than some of the dresses I had seen elsewhere) and I left knowing I would never return.  I was completely turned away by the DB consultants' laziness and lack of customer service.  Very glad I spent my money at small local shop instead.

I don't like David's Bridal and refuse to do business with them. 

I have been to one location probably 5 or 6 times, for friends weddings for BM dresses and twice to shop my my wedding dress.

I don't like the quality of DB.  The bridesmaid dresses are of lesser quality than other labels I've looked at, and unless you get the clearance dresses, they aren't any cheaper.  The wedding dresses are the same.  SOME ARE GREAT. An Oleg Cassini gown from a few seasons ago was a contender for me.  But, mostly, the way the dresses are constructed leads me to believe they are ridiculously over produced.  Also, I have several friends that have ended up wearing the same dress because they only shop at DB.  This might not bother some brides, but if I knew of someone, say, on my facebook with same dress, I wouldn't like it very much.  And some will argue the cost...yes, DB is less expensive than some, but not really.  I found my dress which is a high end lable at a low price (less than most DB dresses) because it was a sample sale.

I didn't have a very good experience at DB, but it wasn't horrible.  It was what I expected at a store like DB.  At a chain store like that, you just won't get the same expertise and love you'd get at a small, family owned boutique.  The consultants I worked with only saw me as an opportunity to make money, not a bride. 

I'm happy for your brides with good experiences, it sounds like your consultants really enjoyed working in the wedding business and that's awesome.  I would never tell a bride not to go to david's, especially because of the shear number of dresses they have, and its a good way to "get your feet wet" with dress shopping.  But, David's bridal just wasn't for me.  I'll spend the same amount or less on my wedding attire elsewhere.

My biggest advice is this: Don't limit yourself to one store.  Open your eyes and see what's out there!

My experience at DB was awesome. I had no appointment, but came in with a list of probably about 8 - 10 dresses that I was interested in. I was also presented with a magazine, and picked a couple from there as well. My consultant was wonderful, and she pulled all of the dresses that I had on my list. She gave me privacy when I wanted it, and assistance when I asked for it. She wasn't pushy or impatient, she was nothing but helpful.

I went back for my first fitting, and checked out veils as well. DB's veils are stupidly over priced. DH (FI at the time) refused to spend over $100 on a veil. 

When I went back for my final fitting, I was uncomfortable with the way my arms looked, and wanted a bolero. The alterations lady brought me a few to try on, but nothing was doing it for me. I didn't have time to order one either. 

I suppose that a sales consultant caught wind that I needed to purchase something for coverage on my arms. She came and asked questions about what I wanted, and discussed differences between a wrap/shawl, shrug, or bolero (jacket). She brought me a bolero that totally worked, and we purchased it! I thought it was so nice that although she wasn't my original consultant, she was willing to help, even for a very small purchase. 

My experience at DB was awesome, and I am so sorry that some of you had bad experiences. I say blame the consultant and not the entire chain. Your experience will almost be completely based on how your consultant treats you. 

OP, I'm glad you found your dress!! 

I went there for my BM dresses, they were pretty helpful after we reminded them a few times why we were there and that we needed help. My only complaint was that the one sales consultant kept insiting that I could shove my BM's in whatever I wanted because I'm the bride. If he would've picked up on ANY of my body language/comments he would've realized I do NOT handle being in the spot light/center of attention very well. My wonderful BM had to keep bringing the attention back to her because she could tell how uncomfortable I was getting.

@Aure: Same here. I felt bad about being a walk-in but all my needs were met immediately and my consultant was the friendliest lady on the planet. I swear her default mode is "best friend forever".

I wasn't the easiest customer not because I was picky but because I really didn't know what the hell I wanted, other than "not too expensive and not too princess-y". Chose the 3rd dress she picked out.

And I knew I made a good choice because FI took dress photos of me in front of the mirrors and sent them to his mom, who showed the rest of his family. Their first reaction was "WTF? Why are you showing me a wedding dress?" and the mom said "Because that's her!" They all thought I was a model.