The Something Blue Shoppe — Local services in Hartselle

On June 5, 2014 at 6:15p.m. I, (The Bride) went to the Something Blue Shoppe with one of my bridesmaids to have her fitted because my bridal consultant informed me that they would do a price match for a Bill Levkoff dress (489)which was $220 at Madison Town & Country because at the Something Blue Shoppe it was $235. I told the young lady that was assisting me that Madison Town & Country gave me a total price of $203.83(including tax) and I stated that they DO NOT charge for shipping. The dress was originally $220 with a 15% discount for purchasing 2 or more dresses then add 9% tax with free shipping equals $203.83. For the store manager TJ free shipping was an issue because he told me that I was wrong and that Madison Town & Country does charge for shipping. I stated to him that I specifically asked that question and the lady at Madison Town & Country said NO THEY DON'T CHARGE FOR SHIPPING. TJ, the store manager, could have politely stated okay let me verify that information in the morning and I'll contact you as soon as it is verified, but instead TJ yelled at me stating that I was wrong very loudly in front of associates and customers. TJ was very unprofessional, disrespectful, overly rude in tone and has lost my business as a customer for treating me this way. I WILL NOT BE TREATED THIS WAY AND THIS COMPANY EXPECTS ME TO STAY AS A CUSTOMER!!!! I, along with others should not have to spend our hard earned money in an entity that does not respect you nor show good customer service. I am disgusted at how I was treated and understand if no one speaks up for fear of losing their job. Jobs are hard to come by nowadays but in order to keep your business thriving you must treat others especially your customers with RESPECT!!!! I asked for the owners information and the young lady that was assisting me was very hesitant but I could tell she wanted to help. The store manager TJ yelled to her that the owner would not be back for 5-6 weeks. So I said okay I will call her on the 7th week because you have been extremely rude to me today. He yelled again that I can just call the store if I want to speak to the owner when she gets back and that the owner does not need to be bothered with this situation. I immediately left the store because the situation was not being resolved. I was told by my bridesmaid that an older heavy set lady(associate) came over to the young lady that was assisting us and asked "So, how is your day going?" This associate is not helping the situation. The lady that was assisting me was not the problem it was her manager TJ who was unprofessional. I hope this situation can be resolved by the owner Sarah Morris(I found the name on this site) and a situation that TJ can reflect on to ask himself how could he have handled this situation better. I am a Dissatisfied Bride. This is suppose to be an exciting and happy time but yet I am on the BBB website writing about a horrible experience from a Store Manager named TJ. I would like my bridesmaids to be refunded their deposits so that we can take our money and...

0 stars would suffice. Stay away as they are pushy, poor communicators, and really just seem they can the sale and leave you out to dry afterwards.

From the get go, we knew only 4 months turnaround time left us with quite a tight window. We specifically asked if a dress should be purchased off the shelf to prevent issues. We were reassured 4 months would be no issue to get the dress in and make necessary alterations. We were encouraged to pay for rush shipping, however. We paid several hundred dollars for the necessary rush shipping and thought all was well.

One week later my wife received a text that the estimated arrival was one month later than initially estimated. Was a text a professional way to handle this?

This left just 3-4 weeks to make the necessary alterations. This became worrisome as she would likely need multiple appointments and would also be moving 4 hours away while working a full time job. This is not the bridal shop’s fault by any means, but this was communicated up front and she was reassured multiple times it would not be an issue.

After learning of the later estimated ship date she asked if she needed a new dress and was told no, and that 3-4 weeks would be plenty of time of the necessary alterations. This was intriguing to us as they do not actually provide the alterations, but we thought perhaps they’re in this business and know more than we do.

Still, we were uncomfortable, and my wife’s parents grew increasingly uncomfortable. The stress of planning a wedding is enough, let alone worrying if the dress would arrive on time.

Having been delayed once, we made the decision to purchase a second dress on our own, from a different shop, and off the shelf.

At the end of the day they certainly claimed plausible deniability. We were anxious and did not want to worry about any further delays. But we certainly feel we were purposely and tactfully led astray and then efficiently “left out to dry” and felt it was ultimately our fault, despite disclosing the timeline from the get go, and paying the rush shipping fee.

As it turns out, the dress arrived on time as originally scheduled, ironically.

Just a forewarning: communicate as crystal clear as possible if you choose to provide business, and do not be surprised if issues come up.

We never received an apology, let alone any sort of empathy for the bad position we were in, with both parties certainly bearing some fault.

I hope they can learn from this, but I have my doubts. A...

I visited the Something Blue Shoppe on Saturday, March 20, 2021. As most everyone on Google has said in their reviews - it was a great experience, but for me it was...right up until it wasn't. I waited a few days to write this review because I wanted to do some research on whether or not it has become customary in the prom/pageant/bridal gown shops to ASK FOR A TIP. Being a former pageant participant, having bought my own wedding gown when I married, and being a participant in more bridal parties than I can count, I have NEVER encountered being asked for a tip when I went to pay for my purchase. I tracked down some friends who are still working in the bridal shops in Birmingham to get their input. I wouldn't want to post this, unfairly, if this had just become the trend. From all of my feedback - IT HAS NOT. Most of them were absolutely appalled. Being caught off guard by the tip line on the receipt, when I was paying for the purchase (bridal gown for my younger cousin), I asked the lady behind the counter, "I have never encountered a tip line at a dress shop and would like to do the right thing, what is customary?" She replied that they had just started the practice and most people were leaving 10% or more (which, for my purchase would have been, at least, an additional $170!!!). SO - whatever you're thinking about for a budget you will have to think about adding in a tip or feeling like a jerk for not tipping. I did leave a tip because the associate who helped us was absolutely fantastic, but I felt very put-on-the-spot and somewhat taken advantage of. I have no complaints whatsoever about the woman who helped us or the experience we had while shopping; however, being shocked, caught off guard, and feeling pressured to leave a hefty tip soured the experience very quickly and completely. This experience has also made me feel that A) this shop is being greedy and trying to wring every cent they can out of their customers by asking them to tip on high-dollar purchases or B) they are not properly compensating their associates and are passing that cost along to the customer. This is a great shop with a long history of serving brides, etc. I have been there for a purchase, before. I just can't recommend them after this experience. I don't want to leave a bad review, but I feel customers should be informed about this practice before they go shop. At least, that way, they can plan ahead and not be...