Bridal Elegance — Local services in Cascade Charter Township

If you want a stressful and terrible customer experience, this is the place for you. I purchased my dress, same day, off the rack at Bridal Elegance in Grand Rapids. This place offers a lot of upfront discounts and packages and then will come back and try to “nickel and dime” you. I hadn't booked a wedding venue yet (when I purchased the dress) and they offered a "discount" for buying my dress 8 months in advance, so I provided a best guess at my wedding date that was easily 8-9 months out. I ended up finding a venue a month after purchasing the dress and called them to give them my updated wedding date which put me at 6.5 months out (or 7.5 months from the date of purchase). They told me I would need to pay an additional $62.00 for the discount they originally gave me for purchasing the dress 8 months in advance.

I ended up speaking to the manager (Nicole) and asked why they have the policy and she told me it is was to allow enough time for the dress to get in (remember, mine was already in because I bought it off the rack) and enough time for alterations. I asked how long alterations normally take and she said 3-4 months. I told her I could come in tomorrow and do the alterations (which is 6 months before my wedding). She then started to stumble around and say I would need to have 3-5 appointments and they are spaced out closer to my date. I told her I would not need many alterations since I bought the dress off the rack and it already fit me very well and that I wanted to come in this week and start the alterations and she would not let me do that. She told me I had to wait and come closer to my wedding date.

I explained I understood her position, but it really didn’t seem fair to charge me $62. The reason they “offer” the discount is to allow enough time for the dress to come in and enough time for alterations. My dress was already in, and we have over 2 months more time for alterations than what they allot. She would not budge and insisted I pay the $62 which was 100% revenue and zero cost - it was just a way for them to squeeze more (unnecessary) money out of me.

I also purchased one of their bridal packages for $250 that included things like 20% off alterations, storage of dress, garment bag (yes, they charge you for a garment bag!), and a discount off my vail. I told her I wanted to come pick up my dress and take it elsewhere for alterations because I was so dissatisfied with their level of customer service. I also said I wanted refunded for the $225 package I purchased since I would be picking it up and she told me she was going to charge me $99 for storing my dress there for a month. They ended up giving me $195 of the $225 back for the package (I didn't get the full amount back because, of course, there was another "discount" hidden in there for the vail for purchasing one of their packages).

When I went in to pick up the dress and vail she handed me my vail in a plastic cover (same material as garbage bag or that you'd get from the dry cleaners) and then handed me my dress without anything on it to protect it. So, I had to ask her to wrap it in the cheap plastic cover like she had done with the vail.

This place is unbelievable and one of the worst customer experiences I have ever had.

This place does not care about the bride… they care about ripping you off and sucking any penny they can...

This place was absolutely amazing!!! I am getting married in three months so I knew I was really pressed for time in regards to finding a wedding dress that would work with our low budget but also make me feel beautiful. After going to four different stores, I felt very discouraged because none of the dresses made me feel like a bride-to-be. Most were too expensive, others just weren't my style, and some wouldn't even get over my hips even though they were "my size". My fifth and final stop was Bridal Elegance and they completely saved the day. First of all, my appointment was scheduled for five o'clock in the evening and I did not leave until about seven thirty and even though they close at four, they did not make me feel like I had to rush and all of staff were genuinely ready to assist me. That should already tell you something. Second, the staff members were super friendly and helpful. Hillary was the associate who assisted my mother and I with finding the right dress. She asked me questions about what style I was looking for and was not at all afraid of taking action and picking dresses that I might like as I was looking in another part of the store. She really took her time with us and answered any questions we had and did not make us feel like a burden at all. As for the prices...I still cannot believe I got my dress for such a wonderful price; especially since this place is not a discount store, but a rather elegant boutique. Finally, they were all very helpful in explaining how the fittings and alterations would work out. Although I have no plans on buying a wedding dress again, I would most certainly go back to this shop if I had to. At the very least, I strongly recommend that any bride-to-be check out...

I could not have had a better experience at Bridal Elegance! I had been to 2 shops already and was feeling a little discouraged about finding THE dress that I LOVED. We had narrowed down the style and look I really liked, but hadn’t found anything I loved that day. The previous shops had their dresses separated by price, and Bridal Elegance had them separated by style, which made it SO much easier! I only had to go to one rack and found a bunch of dresses that were exactly what we had narrowed down that I liked. And guess what.... THE DRESS was there and was the first one I tried on. It was everything I could have possibly wanted in a dress! And the other ones I tried on I liked better than the previous shops! Very high quality, beautiful gowns! Gina was my consultant and she was so fun to work with. I still tried on other gowns just because, but I knew that was the one. At the end, I put it on again and Gina found the PERFECT headpiece and veil and my look was complete!! I said yes to the dress and we had a little party! It was such a relief and such a pleasant experience after being let down at the other shops! Oh and the best part... they had a deal for 30% off in-stock gowns that week and mine was in-stock! Plus I got 5% off everything for it being a weekday, 5% off everything for it being more than 9 months before the wedding, and 5% off everything for it being my first trip to the shop. I ended up getting the gown, headpiece, & veil for under $1400 when the gown by itself was originally $1725!! I could not recommend this shop enough! Beautiful gowns and a great experience! Gina was my favorite consultant of all the shops I had been to and was genuinely fun and excited about me finding my...