How to Open a Bridal Shop: A Practical Guide to Navigating the Secretive World of Bridal Retail Paperback – December 16, 2025

How to open a bridal shop – THE Essential guide to a Successful Retail Bridal Business in the UK 2015 Edition including ‘The Bridal Business Plan’, Spread Sheet Example and Prospective Brides Questionnaire. Many start-up books will give blanket advice on retailing and owning your own business. There has never been anything specific to the bridal trade, this is because it is a very guarded industry and those who work in it wish to keep their secrets to themselves. With over 250,000 weddings happening in the UK every year the market is huge but it is also highly competitive. Fashionista’s who dream of opening their own wedding boutique will find the industry will close ranks and refuse to offer a helping hand to the novice. Instead they will allow a fledgling bridal shop owner to flounder, as the little sister of the mighty fashion trade the wedding industry will make the uninitiated sink or swim. If you can prove yourself only then will they deign to proffer a seat next to them and offer polite conversation. No-one else will tell you the truth, the secrets or the little white lies of the Bridal Retail Business. This book will be your Best Friend. Within these pages you will discover; ~ How to choose the right Business name ~ How much Wedding Gowns really cost ~ Where you should buy your dresses from but more importantly where not to buy them from ~ Realistic start-up costs involved ~ Exclusivity ~ Employment issues ~ Designing your work space ~ Staff training ~ Closing the sale ~ How to take the all-important brides’ orders ~ Getting the right fit – the role of the seamstress ~ Marketing ~ The right paperwork to use ~ Dealing with complaints ~ The Bridal Retail Calendar And much, much more. ‘How to Open a Bridal Shop’ provides clear guidance to the entrepreneur, delivering hard hitting and no nonsense inside information. It is quite possibly the book the Bridal Industry will not want you to read! Is this the best kept scandalous secret or a unique opportunity to cash in on? With over twenty year’s experience in the bridal trade the author S L Harbour has been involved in every aspect of the wedding industry, from working on the shop floor to award nominated wholesale labels. If you are seriously thinking of starting a new business and believe that opening a Bridal Boutique could be the right career choice for you, or even if you’re mildly curious about just how much money bridal shops make… Scroll up, click and find out more. Read more