Next Step: The Dress
A lot has happened in the past few weeks to say the least. While
the wedding seems like it is years away, there are no shortage of items to
cross off the checklist; one of the most important being the dress. And that is
exactly what this weekend is dedicated to.
One of the hardest parts about this process for me is that I am
still a student at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, a mere 800 miles
from New York City where all of the wedding planning is happening. Of course
technology has made this process somewhat easier. In fact, I can essentially be
anywhere from the comfort of my own bed with the use of Facetime. That is the
beauty of being a millennial and growing up in this day and age.
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| Image 1: Bridal Meme |
This weekend was slightly different. I made the trek from Ann
Arbor to New York for the first round of wedding dress appointments. Just as
the engagement ring selection process threw me for a loop, this was no
different. The options are truly endless, and almost anything can be altered in any way you can possibly think of including changing the color or the placement of each individual flower. As some background for those of you who are not familiar with the
process: appointments are absolutely required in order to try anything on and
Mimosas or champagne is supplied depending on the time of day. You are assigned
a salesperson to help customize your experience and find dresses that fit your
criteria. Based on what I have seen, sometimes you are able to look through the
dresses yourself while other times the salesperson chooses for you. For all you
avid watchers out there, it truly is a Say
Yes to the Dress type experience.
If you’ve never seen it, check out this video for a typical Say Yes To The Dress fitting experience:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENTYeQNzQ-0
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| Image 2: Vera Wang Bridal Shop, NYC |
In general, buying a wedding dress is without a doubt one of the
most important purchases a girl will make in her lifetime. As long as you feel
as though the purchase you are making is important, you will generally have a
positive attitude about it, and this was no different for my sister (Angell, 9/25/17). She has been talking about these appointments for months now,
doing consistent research on specific designers, trying to find exactly the
perfect fit. Although being brand conscious is not something anyone in my
family relates to, a wedding dress is a once in a lifetime purchase (hopefully)
so I would say it is acceptable to be somewhat value expressive (Angell, 9/25/17). Perhaps this concept was most vividly displayed through our visit to
the Vera Wang Bridal Shop on Madison Avenue. From the moment we arrived, there
was a sense of exclusivity and importance. The walls were painted a dark grey
tone, and the lighting was dim. The process to even enter the store took a few
minutes due to safety protocol and check in procedures. Overall it was a very high end store with beautiful displays of wedding gowns. This experience
differed greatly from our next visit to Mark Ingram on the Upper East Side.
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| Image 3: Mark Ingram Atelier, NYC |
This store was interesting because of the atmosphere, and that in
and of itself had a lot of influence on the purchasing decision in this
process. My sisters, mom, and I all felt a huge sense of belonging and
acceptance immediately upon stepping off the elevator. The lighting was bright
and fun while the music was lively and upbeat. These aspects are referred to as
stimuli and can have a big impact on purchasing decisions (Angell, 9/18/17). Before even looking at any dresses, there was a sense that my sister might find
the dress of her dreams in this store solely because the first impression of an inviting atmosphere.
In addition to the store atmosphere, group influence has had
tremendous impact on the process of choosing a dress. As I mentioned in the
last post, several of her friends have already tied the knot. And because much
of the wedding process is based on recommendation from friends, she is shopping
at all of the same places they did in the past. This somewhat limits the dress
selection, as it would be a crime to wear the same wedding gown as your friend!
But more importantly she has been influenced by her group of friends as to
which places to shop and which styles and designers are the best. One of the greatest parts about seeing your friends go through the process before you, and being a bridesmaid numerous times is that you get to learn from their experiences! I guess that is inevitably
part of the process when your 13 best friends are your bridesmaids.
Take this quiz to find out the best wedding dress for you!: https://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/where-should-you-get-married?utm_term=.mpA89bxqz#.clOQ3dWl6
While Samantha tried on several dresses, it was her first
round of appointments and a decision is not in the books quite yet. Because it
is one of the most important purchases she will make, it will most definitely
take time and serious thought before making a final decision. However it is for
sure is not the last decision to be made! Next time I will discuss the process
of consulting with a party planner and making purchasing decisions related to
decorations, entertainment, photography, catering, etc. I will keep you all
updated on the progress of the dress, but I won’t be making any reveals until
after the wedding! You will have to stick around until September to see what
happens.
Sources:
Angell, A. (2017, September 18). CB Chapter 3-5: How Perception, Comprehension & Emotion Influence the Consumer.
Lecture presented in University of Michigan in Ann Arbor
Angell, A. (2017, September 25). CB Chapter 7: How Attitude and Level of Involvement Influences the Customer's Decision Making.
Lecture presented in University of Michigan in Ann Arbor
Image 1: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/542543086334722994/
Image 2: http://www.weddingsalononline.com
Image 3: https://overthemoon.com/planning/wedding-dress-shopping-stylish-bride-julie-sabatino/
Sadie, I absolutely loved this blog post. Your blog has a unique twist given many (if not all) of us have yet to buy wedding dresses for ourselves– but we are given a lens into your sister's purchasing decisions and thoughts when considering one of the biggest purchases of her life! I don't personally have a sister, so I found your blog to be something I was super excited to read and learn more about. I love how much you personalized the blog with vivid details and included consumer behavior concepts very seamlessly and smoothly. I'd be so curious to know if there are "micro cultures" or specified subgroups within the greater wedding dress brand designers? Do you think Vera Wang is its own micro-culture given the types of customers, celebrities, and brides who pursue her style (Babin). In the same way that Harley Davidson has a following of consumers who have similar characteristics that almost form their own community? In addition, I'd be curious to know the familial influence in your sister's purchasing of her wedding dress. Given your mother is from a different generation, does she have a differing opinion on the style of wedding dress that your sister should pursue? Do you think your sister considers your personal opinion of dresses when deciding to purchase, or, ultimately, is she going to buy a dress that she likes regardless of your opinion? I would be very curious to know. Here is an interesting article on Vera Wang to understand more on her background as a designer. Who knew she was an incredibly talented figure skater turned wedding dress designer!
ReplyDeletehttp://ic.galegroup.com/ic/bic1/ReferenceDetailsPage/DocumentToolsPortletWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&jsid=c207b3b0d09593e22f18be670e4966b6&action=2&catId=GALE%7CAAA000032446&documentId=GALE%7CK1618002608&u=sale11189&zid=b0dad08ca7c1e48bcc724e482f06ac95
Oops. Here is my other citation
ReplyDeleteBabin , B. J. (2016). Consumer Behavior (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning .
I can very much relate to this topic, as my fiancée and I are planning a wedding. I proposed on April 27th, so I guess that is about six months ago, but the whole wedding planning process has been fun. I was not with my fiancee when she picked out her wedding dress, but we have had many people involved in the planning process.
ReplyDeleteGroup influence is a good thing 99% of the time, but sometimes it can be a little stressful when several family members have and express their opinions about some part of the process, whether it be the menu, music, or decorations. Less is sometimes more.
Sadie,
ReplyDeleteWow, I really love your blog! I too have an older sister and am starting to imagine the stress (and fun) that will come with helping to plan her dream wedding. I think it’s awesome how supportive of a sister you are and that you flew all the way from Ann Arbor to New York City to help her find the dress of her dreams. I also agree that technology probably is probably super handy for you throughout this process as you can stay connected from miles away. I can’t imagine how many texts you probably get on a weekly basis with pictures of centerpieces, dresses, flowers, and more.
I think it is very interesting how people’s shopping habits change when they are picking out their wedding dress versus any other typical article of clothing. Buying a wedding dress definitely would not fall under the category of “impulsive shopping” as it is a huge purchase and is not spontaneous (Babin, 2016, p. 233). However, I am curious if you would categorize your sisters shopping experience as acquisitional shopping, epistemic shopping, or both? Acquisitional shopping are the activities associated with a specific, intended purchase. Epistemic shopping are activities oriented towards acquiring knowledge about products (Babin, 2016, p. 232). Did you sister research different dresses and styles before her first fitting? If so, maybe she participated in purely acquistional shopping. However, if she used her first appointment experience to learn more about wedding dresses in general, then I think she participated in both types of shopping. I also think its great that your sister is shopping for a dress way in advance of the wedding date in order to avoid time pressure (Babin, 2016, p. 229). I can’t imagine the stress she would be feeling if she decided to make this huge purchase only weeks before her big day! Lastly, it is really cool how the different atmospherics of the store environments influenced you and your family’s feelings regarding the purchase decision (Babin, 2016, p. 239). It is crazy how small things such as the lighting, music, and arrangement of the store can completely influence one’s purchases.
Here is a cool like I found that goes over all of the wedding dress shopping timeline deadlines that a lot of brides utilize in order to help with their purchasing timeline! Maybe this can help: https://www.theknot.com/content/wedding-gown-shopping-checklist
Babin. B.J, & Harris, E.G (2016). In CB 7 (7th ed). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning
Hi Sadie,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I am very jealous of the fact that you get to be a such big part of someones wedding. I am constantly bothering my friends in serious relationships asking them to tie the knot so I can help plan weddings and all the events that go with it!
I found it very interesting that you preferred the Mark Ingram Atelier over the Vera Wang store as it has always been my dream to get married in a Vera Wang dress. After reading your descriptions of the rooms and seeing the difference in pictures I can definitely understand what you mean, Vera Wangs store would probably make me a little uncomfortable since the atmospheric elements do not really fit the fun and exciting process you are about to start (Babin/Harris, 2016, p. 241). However, I still feel as though a wedding dress is such a big deal that I would not want the environment of the store to effect what dress I chose despite of the experience (Babin/Harris, 2016, p. 233). After all, the wedding will not be in the store.
I also agree that since this is hopefully a one-time purchase, the mental budget for the dress is pretty high and can be made bigger (Babin/Harris, 2016, p. 246). The series, Say Yes To The Dress really shows that as it is not uncommon for the dress buyer to increase the budget throughout the episode to make sure the right dress is bought. However if you look at the article below, you will see that people are actually spending LESS money on wedding dresses! Hopefully, the prices of dresses will eventually go down as people want to spend less on them.
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/04/18/wedding-dress-cost_n_16078396.html
Babin J. B., Harris E.G.,CB, 6th Edition
I enjoyed reading your post and can relate to many of the things you are saying. One of my good friends, who is a grad student here in Ann Arbor, is engaged and will be getting married in May. I went with her to try on wedding dresses and the experience was truly exciting. One of my other friends has a cousin whose wedding was recently shown on Say Yes To The Dress. You can watch a preview of their episode which is linked below.
ReplyDeleteAs you mentioned buying a wedding dress is very different from making a normal purchase. I would love to hear more about what individuals your sister chose to go wedding dress shopping with and how she took their feedback into account. In my experience, my friend depended on the individuals she brought with her and took their opinions into a lot of consideration (Angell 2017). Did most of the people your sister brought along share a a set of expectations (Angell 2017)? Or were there a lot of differing opinions and how has this impacted your sisters decision making? Sometimes on shows such as Say Yes To The Dress there can be differing opinions and tastes oftentimes between older and younger generations and it is interesting to see how this impacts the purchasers decision on such an important item. It would be thought-provoking to hear about that experience through your Consumer Behavior lens.
Angell, Amy. (2017) CB Ch 8 Groups and Social Influence. Lecture presented at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor.
Say Yes To The Dress video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfGFpDWchxY
Sadie! I love your blog, I've always wanted to be a bridesmaid; it sounds so fun - but I'm sure its stressful as well. I definitely agree that finding your wedding dress is one of the most important aspects of your wedding. I've been thinking about what my dress would look like since I was a little girl. It's very interesting how the different aspects of the store can change your purchasing decisions. This stimuli can change even the smallest details (Angell, 9/18/17). I've actually never been to a wedding, so I've never had any experience in the planning process. I've always wanted a beach wedding, which makes me think about all the different aspects you need to consider in choosing not only the right dress, but the right decor.
ReplyDeleteBuying a wedding dress is definitely not comparable to any other purchase in your life. It's a one time purchase (hopefully) that you will remember for the rest of your life. I totally understand that your sister is willing to value an expressive purchase in this choice. (Angell, 9/25/17).
I can imagine how much responsibility you have as a maid of honor, especially being so far away from home. It seems like you are very on top of it and doing a great job! Your sister is lucky to have you.
Angell, A. (2017, September 18). CB Chapter 3-5: How Perception, Comprehension & Emotion Influence the Consumer. Lecture presented in University of Michigan in Ann Arbor
Angell, A. (2017, September 25). CB Chapter 7: How Attitude and Level of Involvement Influences the Customer's Decision Making. Lecture presented in University of Michigan in Ann Arbor