Bridal Shop History
January 16, 2012
Did you know every year, 2.5 million brides get married in the US and the wedding industry is now a multi-billion dollar enterprise? So, how did this happen? How did a wedding become such a big event?
Before the 1900s, most couples were married in their home and not in a church. The wedding industry changed and evolved to we know today between the 1920s to 1950s, and many of our traditions today were developed during this time by advertisements and promotions from major retailers, jewelers, caterers, and many other companies. One of the clearest and earliest manifestations of the new conception of the bride as a profit center was the introduction of bridal departments in large stores. Many stores began to offer a whole section of merchandise devoted to the bride and her big day. These and small clothing shops are the forerunners of the modern bridal shop.
This industry is atypical of United States companies in that it is made up of many small parts, and many of them are local. There is no one major company that provides all the services for a wedding yet but several have to be contacted, scheduled, and paid for separately; making the planning and organization of the modern wedding very complicated.
In the 1960s and 1970s brides started to change up the wedding plan again, and moved the wedding outside of the church. This developed the idea of the "destination wedding," and is still very popular today.
Cheers,
Natalie T.
1-800-701-4026
