Formal Spot

Reviews 3

A

A Private User

Most brides dream of their wedding day most of their lives, they envision themselves with the most amazing gowns, they plan every single detail that will be part of their big day and eventually dream with that reality coming true. I was NOT that bride, growing up I never really envisioned the big day. I did not have an idea or concept in mind that I had to meet and I did not have the picture perfect image of what my gown would look like. With that being said, shopping for my gown was quite an adventure. I went with some very special people to shop for my gown. The group included my mom, future mother in law, my sister, future sister in law and an amazing uncle. The locations for our shopping adventure were selected by my wedding planner, since I had no idea what I wanted I basically gave her my budget and let her pick the spots that we would visit. My last location was Formal Spot. But wait, before getting to Formal Spot my visits consisted of me “liking” every single dress that I tried on, seriously, what wedding gown isn’t amazing? But the wonderful group that I was with would NOT let me settle, they wanted me to have that gasping moment, the chills, and the tears in my eyes (and theirs), when they saw me in the perfect gown. That had not occurred! So, we arrive at Formal Spot, Lisa greets us and we begin picking gowns. During the trial process without even realizing it Lisa would ask me what my favorite thing from each gown was. For some it was the neckline, for some the style, for some the texture, etc.! Most importantly, she was also asking me what I “didn’t” like about the gowns…. I still had not had the gasping, chilling moment yet. Lisa asked if she could pick a gown for me that she thought had all of the things I liked from the individual gowns I had selected myself. With nothing to lose I said “sure, go for it” She walked into the room with an Allure Couture gown that I would have personally NEVER picked out of the rack. It was the last gown that I was going to try on for the day (gown #30).. As soon as she slipped the gown on I gasped!!!! I got chills and I had the BIGGEST smile!!!! When she opened the door for my family to see they were all speechless (which doesn’t happen often) and they indeed started crying! It was the gown of my undreamt dreams!!!!! I distinctly remember her asking me what I “didn’t” like about this gown and I could not pick one single thing out.. Yes, it was finally the PERFECT gown! When shopping for a gown I realized that the goal should not be to just find what you think you have been looking for all along.. It should be to find an amazing location with a consultant that will not only feel out your personality but also pay very close attention to the things that you are falling in love or out of love with during your trial process. With that level of attention the consultant will know exactly what it is that you should be looking for and will help you select a gown that you can wear on your special day with confidence, joy, and of course a gown that will reflect the true you, in addition to all of those wonderful things we all want our grooms to fall even deeper in love with us which can only happen if in some way the gown reflects us in some special way. I must say that my groom felt like that gown was perfect for me and I felt like it was made just for me. Needless to say I did not want to take my gown off! I must thank Lisa because again, I would have never picked that gown and clearly I wasn’t aware of what it was that I really wanted and what it was that my personality was going to flourish in. I loved my experience at Formal Spot and can honestly say that shopping for the gown of my dreams was an experience that I will never forget!

NA

Nancy Schurrer

Future brides please be aware that there are a plethora of bridal salons in Orlando - shop wisely. Make sure that the salon you purchase your gown from is committed to seeing you through the entire process so that the gown and the experience are truly special. You should also check the reviews on Yelp for this bridal shop. You will see that there are far more negative than positive reviews there. I am the mother-of-the-bride, Victoria, who posted a review a couple of days ago. Since Formal Spot replied to her review making her seem unreasonable and insensitive, I wanted the opportunity to weigh in. Of course, we are not complaining that the seamstress was in an accident. We wish her the best and sincerely hope she was not injured badly. Our issues with the Formal Spot are as follows: 1) Formal Spot has yet to contact us with any type of apology or opportunity to reschedule the fitting. Despite what they said, we never received any message with an update or rescheduling of the appointment. They have my number as well as my daughters number and neither of us received a call. 2) Formal Spot takes no responsibility at all for anything. The first fitting, when the seamstress accidentally took my daughters gown home, leaving us with no gown to try on at the first fitting their response was "Oh well mistakes happen". Now this time their response is "Im sorry you feel this way". 3) As for their excuse "Its difficult when a bride is from out of town". The real issue is that their seamstress is out-of-town. Brides buy their gowns out of town and in some cases out of the country all the time. If you cant accommodate brides who dont live locally than you have a responsibility to tell them that before they purchase a gown. I have two daughters getting married this year. My other daughter purchased her gown out of town as well from Alfred Angelo in Tampa and we have had no issues with them at all. It is a complete lack of business skill and sense to have one seamstress, who works one day a week (and thats not even a weekend day) and who lives out of town. Come on - Business 101 - have a back up plan in case of any emergency; especially when dealing with such an important event where time is of the essence. Since I was not about to let Formal Spots incompetence negatively affect my daughters wedding; I promptly called two other bridal salons (Something Blue in Bradenton, FL and Jeannines Bridal in Cape Coral, FL) and explained the situation. Even though I didnt purchase the gown from them, both salons went out of their way to schedule a fitting right away and to assure us that the gown would be altered in 2 weeks. Formal Spots turnaround time is 4 weeks. I feel so much more confident having gone with another salon where customer service seems top priority. This unfortunate incident is a blessing in disguise since we wont be dealing with Formal Spot any longer.

CH

Christie Byrd

With a mother, sister, and close friend getting married in the next several months, I have spent quite a bit of time in bridal shops in the greater Orlando area recently. My sister was set on a dress that she found at Formal Spot, and before we went to place our orders I suggested that we check around at alternative shops because I though the price of the dress (compared to other dresses of a similar style and make) was steep- $265 ($238 with the 10% off special for the month of September). Lisa, the owner of Formal Spot, stated that they have the most competitive prices on dresses, and that we needed to order the dress as soon as possible to ensure delivery by my sisters wedding (which is in March). Reluctantly, we went ahead with the purchase, only to find out after checking with several other bridal shops that Formal Spots prices are anything but competitive. Other shops were selling the same dress (as authorized dealers of the brand), at $173, a $92 difference. When I called the store and spoke with Lisa regarding the significant price difference, she seemed less than interested since store policy states all sales are final. She suggested that Formal Spot charging 50% more was due to the fact they were an authorized dealer of the brand. However, this information was incorrect as well, as her competitors selling the dress at $173 are indeed authorized dealers. After a few phone calls, Formal Spot agreed to drop the price to $219, however we would now have to pay for the removal of a strap and alteration as a result of the removal (that she mentioned when we were trying on was easily removable, and stated would be included in the price of the dress) - coming to a total of $250. How gracious of Lisa to drop the total amount by $5. I believe that there are bridal shops that offer the same (if not better) variety in selection, service and attention, as well as competitive/fair pricing. As a consumer I understand that prices will vary by location, but as a business owner when you state that your prices are the most competitive, and fail to deliver on that promise, it is your responsibility to do better than $5.