Used Wedding Gowns: Eight Guidelines Retailers Need To Be Aware Of
If you are in the bridal gown businesses, you see all kinds of wedding gowns. You often see brides asking themselves if they should buy a brand new wedding gown or purchase one that has already been used. If they are going the “used” route, they should look at four different things to determine if it’s worth anything. These four things include: the age of the dress, its condition, who designed it and what was its original price.
As a retailer, you already know that the more popular the dress is and the more well known the designer is, the more money you can make on it. Age and condition also apply to this rule.
What are some guidelines to follow if you are selling used wedding dresses?
First, any new gowns that have tags should be priced about 25 percent near the original price. New gowns are the ones that were purchased but never actually worn. Some dresses may never have been tried on by someone either.
Second, gowns that are new but have no price tags should be sold around 30 to 50 percent off the original price.
Third, if you have sample gowns, you can sell them for about 100 percent of the price. Of course, this means that there were no alterations made and it’s still a sample piece.
Fourth, if you have used gowns you are trying to sell, mark them about 50 percent off the original price. However, if the dress style is popular, 40 percent is still good.
You should also keep three other guidelines in mind.
First, be mindful of the wedding gown’s age. The above guidelines are for wedding gowns that are less than three years old. If your gown happens to be older than this, make sure you price it accordingly.
Second, discontinued dresses should be marked correctly in price.
Third, dresses that have stains, tears or any other defect should have a price deduction so the imperfection has been duly noted.
Fourth, if there are alterations on the gown, this can increase the value of it. Be sure you place that in the pricing.
If you need help in pricing your wedding gowns, look to other bridal shops or look at auction sites that offer used dresses to get an idea on how to mark your prices.
