Earlier this year, 53 percent of respondents to a RetailWire poll rated Urban Outfitter's chance at succeeding with a new bridal concept it has planned to open in 2011 as good or excellent. Only 12 percent rated the chain's chances as poor.
Now, Nordstrom is looking to get its share of the bridal business with the opening of 14 new salons in its stores. In a test at nine locations, Nordstrom saw a 30 percent increase in new shoppers.
"This is a great way to meet new customers and show them what we can do and earn their business for life," Brooke White, a spokesperson for Nordstrom, told the Chicago Tribune.
"It is a business, to a large degree, that department stores really abdicated going back to the 1980s," Anne Brouwer, a senior partner at McMillan Doolittle, told the Trib. "Department stores were the bridal centers. You went to the department stores first. That's where people started."
Discussion Questions: What do you think of Nordstrom testing bridal salons in its stores? Do you see this as part of its flagship store operations going forward or as a standalone concept? Do you think there is an opportunity for a bridal version of a Nordstrom Rack, as well?