Brides-to-be vow to save
Ever popular gown sale has greater draw in weaker economy
The brigade for bride-to-be Jenn Skeffington, 27, arrived at the Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center at 3 a.m. yesterday, ready to affix water bottles to the tops of their heads.
The result: a corps of women with cone-headed coiffures poking over the racks of wedding dresses to signal a team member's location.
Strategies like this were commonplace as an estimated 1,500 women piled into Filene's Basement's semiannual "Running of the Brides" wedding gown sale, featuring heavy discounts on designer dresses. This year, the cutthroat competition grew even fiercer as soon-to-be brides squeezed by the slow economy, weak job market, and rising food and fuel costs looked for deals for their special day.
In Boston, attendance for the one-day event rose at least 50 percent from the last sale in February, said Filene's Basement spokeswoman Patricia Boudrot. Attendance at gown sales at locations in Washington, D.C., and Chicago were up as much as 54 percent over last year, thanks to a sour economy forcing couples to turn the happiest day of their lives into a frugal one, too.
"Some of the increase is because of the economy, and people are trying to save money however they can," said Boudrot, before chasing after a rogue bride trying to hoard a clothes rack.
The average wedding gown costs $1,505, according to the Bridal Association of America. With $10,000 designer gowns on sale at a 90 percent discount at the sale, the marathon line that circled around the convention center and the death-defying sprint to the racks are welcome sacrifices for brides looking to step into a beautiful white dress without going into the red.
Two minutes after a stampede into the convention center, the racks were bare as the brides-to-be unleashed a war cry and grabbed as many gowns as their outstretched arms would allow. There's no time for discernment - shoppers sort through their findings to determine what they'll try on and what they'll trade.
Teams of women brought their own mirrors or used cellphones to snap quick shots of each dress. Beehive hairdos stuck out above the racks, along with high hats in neon hues. And shoppers bartered for dresses in the perfect size and style, chanting "Need a size 6, or 8, or 10" like amateur auctioneers.
Elyse Topp-Poirier's dream dress is $3,200 - or "crazy expensive," but she found a $250 gown at the sale that she plans to use as a back-up in case she doesn't find it. She said the money she saves on her wedding gown will help her with a down payment on her new house.
Topp-Poirier, 28, lives in South Boston and works in advertising for bargain behemoths TJ Maxx and Marshalls, so she said "discounted prices are in my blood."
Some brides-to-be traveled a long way for the sale.
Kimberley Miller, 30, flew to Boston from the Bahamas with six friends and family members for the chance to find a dress in an hour rather than toil away at boutiques for entire afternoons. Good thing she did: She's spending $500 on a dress priced as high as $6,000.
Others weren't as prepared for the chaos of the sale. Bride-to-be Lauren Franz brought along her friend, neither of whom had done their research. Expecting a casual perusal, they were "shell-shocked" to find barren racks just five minutes after the doors opened.
"There's such a system here, with the trading and the teams," Costello said. She wasn't expecting excitable exhibitionism, either. "Everyone's been really nice, and - oh, my God! That girl's just standing there in shear underwear," she said, pointing.
Franz gave up, and left empty-handed. 