Photos: iStock / JHVEPhoto /Joe Hendrickson
Are David’s Bridal and Ashley a Perfect Retailing Match?
David’s Bridal is partnering with furniture and home furnishings retailer Ashley to give a few lucky newlyweds every quarter a start on starting a home together.
Shoppers visiting any of David’s Bridal almost 280 locations across the U.S. on March 31, beginning at 6 p.m., can according to a press release expect the following rewards until close that day:
- The first five people in the store will receive a $100 David’s Bridal giftcard;
- The first 25 people in the store will receive $100 worth of Ashley Cash;
- All shoppers will receive a 10 percent discount.
During that time window, the store will put on a trunk show displaying David’s Bridal’s spring 2023 collection. David’s is also making a promo code available, for those unable to make it to the event, to shop at Ashley and save $100 on an order of $750 or more. The partnership comes as 60 percent of David’s Bridal shoppers surveyed reported that they purchased furniture shortly after getting married.
This is not the first move that David’s Bridal, the largest seller of wedding dresses in the U.S., has made recently to make itself a bigger part of the full wedding experience for customers, from the planning stages to the celebration and beyond.
In January the retailer announced the introduction of a vendor marketplace as well as a wedding planning platform/app called The Pearl by David’s. The Pearl contains features such as a vision board, planning checklist, online event showcase and registry as well as tips and videos for wedding planning and inspiration. The vendor marketplace puts customers in touch with a range of photographers, caterers, bands, florists and even other companies that sell dresses.
As for Ashley, while the brand name might not be as immediately recognizable to U.S. customers as other global furniture companies like IKEA, Ashley is the largest supplier and retailer of furniture in the country, according to Business of Home. The company boasts $5 billion in annual revenue and has 1,000 retail stores, most of which are franchisees or licensees.
Discussion Questions
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Do you see David’s Bridal and Ashley’s partnership being beneficial for both retailers? What types of future partnerships should David’s pursue?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Georganne Bender
Principal, KIZER & BENDER Speaking
Bob Amster
Principal, Retail Technology Group
The right partnership can be very mutually beneficial, and so the idea of offering products and services to David’s brides-to-be makes sense. The question is if it will resonate with David’s customers and how well it’s executed in the stores. “Door-crasher” or narrowly timed promotions seems like a mismatch for the considered purchase a wedding gown entails. Regardless of how this particular partnership turns out, David’s should continue to explore these opportunities.
This is a lesson in how to make promotion so complicated that nobody understands it.
This is great synergy. Today’s newlyweds need to fully furnish their new home, so this makes perfect sense. One-stop shopping is an attractive offer, plus there is a little gamification thrown in if you are first in store. Ashley, with its 1,000 locations, aligns well with David’s national presence.
Also, by leveraging their respective strengths, the two companies are able to provide a more holistic solution to newlyweds. Other retailers should be exploring similar arrangements to provide a more complete service to their customers. It’s a win-win situation.
It appears too convoluted. I am sure that was not intentional, it was just not well thought-out.
This is a fairly blunt mechanism to try and drive footfall and purchasing. What’s interesting is that it’s a joint effort between two retailers that you wouldn’t normally put together. For Ashley it helps increase visibility, for David’s Bridal it gives brides another reason to use the chain over others. Given the specific nature of both retailers, I don’t see it moving the dial to an enormous degree, but it may help marginally. And, as a point of note, Ashley isn’t the largest supplier of furniture: Wayfair has higher sales in the U.S.
This is an example of a cross-promotion, where two non-competing retailers come together for mutual benefit. Both retailers will benefit from the extra exposure and additional sales stemming from the gift cards and discounts.
It’s a smart move for both retailers. The additional benefit is the frequency with which it happens because word of mouth will continue to grow each quarter the promotion is run. Let’s hope they stick with it long enough for it to catch on.
What could be more logical than offering newlyweds a streamlined pathway to building all the cornerstones of their new home?
Being a huge fan of “uncommon partnerships,” I applaud the inventive nature of this marriage (pun intended). The challenge lies in communicating the value proposition effectively, connecting dots between the seemingly strange bedfellows, and convincing newlyweds that timing is good to look at furniture.
As for other uncommon partnerships, David’s should definitely be on the lookout to broaden its reach and increase its ubiquitous reach. Perhaps considering alliances with travel partners for honeymooning, banks and savings institutions, and real estate firms. Thinking outside the box is a sure path to true breakthrough innovation!
This seems like a logical synergy between two companies. But I doubt that it will result in significant sales for either. It requires the bride to rush to make her dress decision and at the same time for her and the groom to be thinking about what furniture they want to purchase.
Partnerships are becoming the most powerful initiative companies are employing to drive new customer/member acquisition, provide extended value to members through partner benefits and indeed generate new sources of revenue to offset program expense. This is a perfect match!
Couldn’t agree more, David. The path to successful partnerships can take many forms, and I think this one has some interesting possibilities once the speed bumps are overcome.
With people waiting longer to get married, and fewer people getting married in the first place, those who are doing so probably have had their housing and furniture situation long worked out. This seems like a plan that would have made more sense in the 1960s. Cross-promotions with United Airlines or FTD or Progressive Insurance all would be more logical nowadays.
I like the collaboration, I think it needs to be easier to understand. I hope they can fine tune this — it has the potential to be a great promotional vehicle.
I like the concept here to cross promote, because it’s a very customer-centric way of thinking about a customer lifetime journey and how people shop. But this promotion is confusing, and thus may not perform well on paper at a post-promo review meeting.
Hopefully they can keep iterating for customers and create smoother, more effective promotions for long-term loyalty.