How To Try On Wedding Dresses Virtually
Planning a wedding through Covid-19, and an interview with Tina Zysk of Grace and Ivory
Just as every industry has been impacted by Covid-19, the wedding industry has had to switch focus from large extravagant gatherings, to more intimate and even virtual offerings. ECBG has gone from making huge wedding cakes up to 5 times per weekend, to making tiny celebration cakes and an online store! We have to adapt to the climate and pivot in a way that makes sense to the consumer. We have to adjust to their needs and what they are ABLE to do during this time in hopes that in the future things will swing back in the other direction.
Tina Zysk, owner of wedding gown company, Grace and Ivory, however, created an offering well before the virus changed all of our lives, and plans to continue offering it well after a vaccine is in use.
Tina Zysk photo by Edward Wang
From a place of proactive and modern innovation as well as convenience and ease, Tina’s pride and joy is an AT HOME wedding gown try-on service. What an excellent solution to not only those who are planning a wedding during quarantine, but also for those who are looking for a comfortable and intimate experience from home… But I will let her tell you ALL about it with this in depth interview with Grace and Ivory!
Sarah Bradshaw Photography
1. What sets apart Grace + Ivory from other gown makers?
Grace + Ivory is approaching bridal differently by giving brides another option for how they shop for their wedding dresses. After bridal gown shopping with friends and my personal experience, I was left with some questions: Why was the only option to shop at traditional stores? Why was there seemingly so much mark-up and no transparency? Why was made-to-measure men’s suiting so widely available but there was no affordable option for wedding dresses? Why did I have to order 9-12 months in advance? And, finally, why were there not more socially conscious brands that I could choose from? With this in mind, I launched Grace + Ivory, where we offer a seamless try-at-home (TAH) experience where you can order bridal dress samples to your door to try. We work directly with our dressmaker, so every order is made-to-measure, made in 3-4 months, and a portion of every purchase goes to women’s programs.
Sarah Bradshaw Photography
2. What of your offerings do you love the most?
I love what our whole bridal experience embodies – from start to finish I want to give a bride an awesome and fun experience. If I have to pick just two, then I would say that I love that we offer made-to-measure sizing, so we’re size inclusive and it’s great for petite women (think made for your proportions!), and a try-at-home sample program that is simple to do. Not everyone wants to go into a boutique, so now brides have the option to try dresses at home, with or without their bridal parties. They can plan a fun try-on party, pop some champagne, or not. It’s all up to them.
We’ve built our website so that you can easily select the “Try on at home!” button next to the dress you want to try, select the size range you want, select specific dates to receive and try our dresses, and checkout. All of this is done right off our website. Our focus is empowering our bride so she can shape the type of experience she wants. If she desires, she can also book a phone consultation before, during, or whenever she wants to chat with us during her try-on. We’re also accessible via email and phone, so brides can chat with us when they need, in the ways they want. When a bride is ready to purchase her custom wedding dress, she can purchase directly through our website, and our pricing is stated and transparent. Customizations to specific designs are price inclusive.
3. What are the biggest challenges you have faced?
I would say starting a business as a whole is such a huge challenge, as you don’t know what you don’t know. Having a vision for Grace + Ivory, and then finding the right people to work with and execute that vision has been hard. We’re stumbled and have gone though some iterations, and it took longer than expected to build the try-at-home program last year. It really was a big logistical feat for me.
Right now, it would be spreading the word about our brand and what we’re trying to do. It’s hard to cut above the noise. When I chat and meet with brides, they love our concept, try-at-home, the quality and craftsmanship of the dresses, and the fact that we give back. So I know that we’re something that brides want, but it’s a bit of a big puzzle with meeting people, media, wedding blogs, and other things to connect with brides that vibe with our dresses and brand. I’m still looking for some of the puzzle pieces.
4. What upcoming project or offering excites you the most?
I’m excited to grow and add dress samples to our TAH offerings! We’ve been booked up with TAH orders, so brides need to book ahead of time, and so we’re looking at which designs are more popular and which sizes so we can meet this demand. Not all of our dresses have a TAH option right now and are limited in sizing, so we’re slowing building out those samples. Specifically, our Lexi, Lacy, Kefira, and Felicity dresses will have more TAH options, later this summer!
