Laura's Couture Collection — Local services in Shawnee

My mother had found Laura's when looking in Bridal Magazine. It had been named one of the "Top 50" bridal salons in the country. Lucky for us, it was right in our backyard. I called Laura's to schedule an appointment. I told her my budget for a dress and that I would be bringing a few people along with. We arrived 5 min early and couldn't find anyone. There had been two Salons, Laura's and the Boutique or something along that lines. We entered the Boutique, called out but no one came. We proceeded to Laura's, called and a woman stepped out looking flustered. I informed her that I had made an appointment and that we were a little early but ready to try on dresses. Laura's was nicely lit, had carpet and chairs for people to sit. However we were not in that section, we were back at the Boutique. The Boutique was not nicely lit and did not have any chairs for people to sit. The woman told us her name was Laura (the owner) and proceeded to tell me this was the destination dress area. All of us looked at each other,what does she mean by destination dresses? Her husband came out but she quickly hurried him away and started to make small talk while we waited for the woman who was to help me with the fitting. Finally after she kept saying destination dresses I informed her that I was not having a destination wedding, it was right up the road in Desoto. She then asked if we were all from Desoto after I had handed her paperwork saying that I lived in Shawnee and was with my soon to be mother in-law from out of town. I had pulled some ideas from Bridal Magazines and showed them to Laura, she looked and saw them then proceeded to tell me to pick out a dress myself from the racks. I didn't know where to start, I didn't know the prices, I had never done this before. She pulled out chairs from the back after I insisted people be able to sit, they said normally people don't bring a group to try on dresses. After I awkwardly pointed out a few dresses that looked nice the woman who was to help me with my fitting finally showed up and was extremely grumpy. We asked why we couldn't try on dresses in Laura's and they wouldn't give us an answer. Finally my soon to be mother in-law asked what the difference was from where we were to Laura's since 1) we weren't having much luck and 2) They were all sitting awkwardly outside a small dressing room. The woman who was helping me said that, those were dresses were 3-5k. While my budget was indeed less than that, there was some flexibility. I couldn't believe that they would change the experience so drastically. I am not sure how they ended up on the top 50 list other than that they do indeed have some really nice designers. I did find a dress from there and would have bought it had my experience been better and the second place I tried on dresses wasn't so much more friendlier. I tried so hard to find a dress at the second place (and did) just so that I wouldn't have to go back and deal with them.

As someone in Sales, treat your customers right no matter the size of their wallet. Word of mouth goes a long way and there are a lot of other Salons to choose from who go...

They don't even deserve one star! I was browsing jewelry stores on Google as I was shopping for my engagement ring. I came across their name and called to ask if they sell engagement rings. I spoke with Marty and he told me he was a gemologist. I told him what I was looking for and my price range. He sounded very excited and said he could find me what I was looking for at a much lower price than a local jewelry store, because he was the distributor. He called me back a couple days later and said he found a ring and wanted to make sure I was serious and asked if I was looking at other places, I told him I was. I told him I couldn't make any promises, but I was definitely going to be purchasing one way or another and I would be interested in seeing the diamonds (which were over my price range). In the meantime, I purchased another ring. I called the morning of our appointment and spoke with his wife and told her I bought another ring and wasn't going to make my appointment and apologized. Marty took it upon himself to call my job and complain about me to my superiors, telling them how "horrible" of a person I am. I called and said "I hear you are looking for me"? He proceeded to go off on me and tell me how I made all these promises that I never made and all he wanted from me was money. I am so glad I did not do business with these people, because if I did, and something went wrong, what kind of treatment would I have received? I also looked at the reviews online and realized how horrible most of them were, and I brought that to his attention and he proceeded to tell me how much his customers “LOVE” him. I would love to see them out of business!

Just an update, I ended up having to file a police report on Marty for harassment. He still continued to harass me and the police had to finally call him and tell him if he called me again he would be arrested. Finally, he stopped! Major issues...

My mother, sister, and future SIL had the best experience with Laura at Laura's Couture Collection! It was my first time in, and walking in it was gorgeous, clean, and welcoming. Laura immediately asked us if we wanted anything to drink while we waited to get started. Next, she got to know my family and remembered details from when I spoke with her about my wedding. Very personable. I was able to describe what I was looking for and the first dress she gave me to try on, was the dress I ended up picking!!! Laura is very good at what she does and is so SWEET! She makes you feel beautiful and calm. I will recommend her to all my friends and family! Shopping locally is just a different experience, and always worth it! The quality of these dresses, just can't be beat....