Carbonneau Bridal & Formalwear — Attraction in Worcester

All of my bridesmaids ordered their dresses from Elegance by Carbonneau in December of 2015. Some had been sized in a separate store, and came in telling Elegance this was the size they ordered, others were sized in the store. Three of the dresses did not fit when they arrived in March(?) and from there it was a horrible experience. I understand that waivers are signed saying I understand I am ordering X size, but you would think that as a business they would want to make things right for the customer.

Separately from my bridesmaids, I happened to be in my friends wedding and also ordered from here (my dress fits perfectly). My bridesmaid and I ordered from the same designer, in the same size, and my dress fit me perfect but her dress did not fit me. Same person, same size dress, same designer, one fits and the other doesn't. I brought both dresses with me to the store, tried them on in front of the girls and they measured both in front of me, agreeing that the dresses were in fact measuring a different size. They kept both dresses and said that they would speak to the designer. About 2-3 days later, I got a call that said "the designer has confirmed the smaller dress is true to size and they won't send us a new one, so there's nothing we can do". As a customer, THAT is for sure not my issue or responsibility to pay for a new dress when the one I ordered is flat-out wrong (and EBC agreed it was wrong to my face). It was very frustrating that they refused to make a customer happy and pay for the corrected dress themselves - because we certainly were not going to. If I could leave a review for the designer, I would do that too. But I also never actually spoke with them directly because I was told "they do not speak to individuals, only businesses they work with" when I asked for a number to calll them directly.

The second dress was ordered a size SMALLER than they suggested, and it still was laughably too big for my bridesmaid. I could take the dress in my fist and wrap it around my hand. Of course, they still refused to do anything and she ended up ordering a different dress from eBay, in TWO sizes smaller than they initially told her to order and it fit perfectly.

All of the girls I spoke with on the phone were very pleasant and we had a wonderful experience in-store (both for my wedding and my friend's). It's such a shame that this is the way things ended. For all of the stress/hassle, it really is not worth taking your chances here. Go down the street to Bella Bridal, they were also great and I wish we had gone through...

I went to this store since there aren't too many places to shop in the Worcester Area. We browsed through the dresses - where they have all the dresses only in like one size. There was only one other party there and probably 3 workers, but of course, no one bothered to help us. So my bridesmaids found the dress they wanted, had to track down one of the workers to get their measurements. Now the wedding is January 8th, about 3 months from when we're purchasing. We told them the date and the woman assured us that we would get the dresses in time for altering and whatnot - of which they can't do themselves. So we paid in full since the dresses weren't much more expensive than the $100 deposit they wanted. The next day, I get a call saying they needed an extra $40 per dress for a rush delivery. The rush delivery would have the dresses in by December 16th, where normal delivery would be by January 3rd.... so why couldn't they tell me this before we paid for the dresses? So my maid of honor called back later. also questioning about the deliver. This time, they told her the dresses would be in by December 16th, but we wouldn't be able to pick them up until December 20th. She then asked if we could get our money back, to which she said no. I got a call back from the same woman, saying she was the manager, and that we could get it back. After asking her why she told my maid of honor she couldn't, she said she had to consult with the owner. What is the point of the manager then? Thankfully, we got our money back and went to another store right after: QLook Bridal on main street in Worcester. We told them the date of the wedding and asked the charge for rush delivery. $25 to have the dresses in by the end of November - definitely a deal compared to that other store. Not to mention a lot more dresses to choose from and the workers there are a lot friendly and more willing to work with you (cost-wise too, you can bargain...

My daughter and i went to Charbeneau’s to look for her Bridal dress. She fell in love with a dress on the rack. We were told that the dress would be cleaned and ready for pick up and was given a referral to a seamstress. We received a call several months later stating the dress was clean and to come in and try the dress , make final payment etc. When we arrived, my daughter put the dress on, and it looked like someone put a highlighter to the breast area of the dress. I asked “What happened”? The lady said “Sometimes that happens with certain cleaning products “ and that I should have ordered a “New” dress. My daughter and I were devastated and had to quickly purchase another dress that cost additional money. If we weren’t up against a minimal time frame, I would have requested my money back and went elsewhere. To add insult to injury, they recommended a seamstress. We took the new gown To their recommended seamstress and the place was filthy. There was no way I would let my daughter put on her dress on such a dirty rug. It was disgusting!!! I would never recommend this place! I have many friends whose family members are getting married and after this incident, will never step foot in your bridal store!!! you should’ve inspected the dress and called us in a timely manner so we could’ve Remedied the situation. You should’ve offered another dress for no additional cost. You should check out your referrals, i.e. seamstress before sending your customers into a disgusting...