When the wedding dress store Alfred Angelo filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last week, the news sent brides around the country into a panic — and presented an opportunity for some wedding vendors to swoop in with deals.
According to Fortune, “Alfred Angelo filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last week — meaning the company sought to liquidate rather than restructure its debt. Brides who still hadn’t received their orders from the shop with more than 60 locations panicked, wondering whether they’d get their dresses in time for their wedding — or if they would get a refund at all. In the company’s bankruptcy filing, it revealed that it had no more than $50,000 in assets, but over $50 million in debt.”
The news also lit up social media, with brides venting their frustration, strangers offering the loan of their own dresses and local and national competitors, including David’s Bridal, promoting special discounts for affected brides.
While florists aren’t directly affected by the news, some shops are working to help their own customers stay informed. In Pittsburgh, Cheryl Bakin of Parkway Florist, used her Facebook page to share information with her own customers.
“The local news here has run a number of stories of local brides that have dresses that are hung up in this mess,” she said. Two Parkway brides had ordered bridesmaids dresses from a local Alfred Angelo and were still awaiting updates. Another bride who ordered her own dress from the company was relieved when the dress store reached out to her directly.
“[They called her and put aside the sample of her dress,” Bakin said. “It is a slightly smaller size, so the dress shop told her that they can alter it without any problems” in anticipation of her wedding next summer.
So far, the lawyer representing the company has received more than 7,300 emails from distraught brides. (Around 10 out of 62 stores nationwide are thought to have closed their doors, although the exact number is hard to pin down, according to Fortune.)
