The Wal-Mart of Weddings: One company, David’s Bridal, outfits one-third of America’s brides—on the cheap. | The Big Money

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I came across an interesting article on David's Bridal that I thought I'd share with all of those soon-to-be-weds out there:

The Wal-Mart of Weddings: One company, David’s Bridal, outfits one-third of America’s brides—on the cheap. | The Big Money

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What I find most fascinating about the (almost outlandish) level of success DB has had recently is that some portion has to belong to brides-to-be who won't consider an alternative (and perhaps more creative) source for gowns. Certainly we must have more than the two obvious options presented to us (aka: the overpriced specialty bridal shop or DB.) Take, for instance, trunk shows, consignment stores, online boutiques, Etsy creations, wearing vintage -- or better yet, wear a special relative's gown -- and online sources like PreOwnedWeddingDresses.com, which help you buy and/or sell your dream dress at a fraction of the original cost.

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It's true that some things work for some and not for others, but I also don't think that the collective "we" need not to continue to buy into what the wedding machine has convinced us is "normal" or even necessary. I'm so thankful that I found my dress at the local Filene's Wedding Dress event. Sure, it was weirdly fantastic to be able to shoe shop whilst trying on ludicrous amounts of gowns stripped down to my skivvies in the middle of a store, but it worked for me because not only did I pay less than I would've anywhere else, it is one seriously effing fantastic gown that there's no way in h-e-double-hockysticks I could have afforded otherwise. I had a really unique experience in finding it and, at that point, I could immediately stop thinking I needed to spend my flower budget on a dress that I'd wear less than one day. Srsly.