Damn WIC.
I think women that work in The WIC - excuse me, Wedding - Industry get a certain pleasure out of making their customers squirm.
Today I called my first dress shop to make an appointment. I thought I'd check at least one out to peruse the options, check out the styles I like, and confirm what I think I want before ordering, most likely, from etsy. I'm going to take my mom on the first go and then perhaps bring some bridesmaids later.
So I called and the first thing I asked was for the price point of the shop since hell if they're gonna post that on their website. She quoted $500 to $1500, which sounded decent to me. Then she immediately asked when my wedding date was. I said, "oh, I haven't decided yet." And she goes, "Oh."
Then I launch into some other questions - how long should I expect my appointment to be? can I make it for this weekend? blah blah blah. And as soon as I'm finished, she tells me that it could potentially take 9 months for my gown to be ready to go and that I should base my date on that.
Hold the phone.
She wants me to base my WEDDING DATE on the stupid ass schedule of their ordering and sizing timeline? Helllllll no. First of all, I don't need to buy ANYTHING that takes nine months to receive except a baby, and I'm not buying that. Secondly, she's a fool if she thinks I'm basing my entire wedding - which would impact our honeymoon and future anniversaries - on that ridiculous timeline. And thirdly, so what if I don't have a date yet. I immediately got the suspicion that she got the suspicion that I wasn't seriously engaged. But why the hell would I call to make an appointment if I weren't? That'd be damn desperate.
Then she asks again about the date. "So, you don't have a date picked?" I should have said, "Oh, you know, you're right. I just forgot. It's April 12th, 2011." No, idiot, I don't have a date picked. Then she asks if I have an idea. Well sure. "2011", I tell her. And I'm thinking that should narrow it down a bit since brides these days seem to plan for actual years.
After we've established that I have no date (and now I feel like a total loser, not in reality but in relation to her ideal client), she asks for my size and how many people I'll be bringing. I half expected her to ask for my social security number after she asked for my full name and contact information. Jeez.
I had planned on making two appointments but could barely stomach that phone call and couldn't face another.
Has anyone else faced this bride vs. WICked witch?
3 comments:
we've had SO many vendors that blew us off when we told them our budget, lack of date-set-edness, whatever...to them I say patooey. not worth your time to even make an appointment in your schedule...because heaven forbid you find a great, affordable dress there, you'll have to deal with those women for a while...you know?
Oh my. That's ridiculous, and (for someone as sensitive as me) painful. I certainly hope you did not try on dresses in that shop. I I sincerely hope you followed up your phone conversation with a letter of complaint!
@Lizzie - I've had some trouble finding photographers whose work I like (ahem, love) and whose rates fit into our budget. Trouble as in haven't found one yet. And luckily they've all been nice so far when I kindly tell them that I won't be able to use their services. So, for that, I feel pretty lucky.
As for the dress hunt, verrry good point about having to work with the company/vendor for a while. I'll have to keep that in mind.
@Hindsight Bride - I'm quite sensitive, too, which is probably what spurred my post about the treatment. I can't believe an employee would try to suck the joy out of a newly engaged person, can you? I chose to follow through with my appointment despite the phone call, which I'll post about soon. Thanks for your support!
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