House Of Brides

Rude Scammers who live to provide World's Worst Service.

My fiance went to House of Brides for her wedding gown. From the start, the service was appallingly awful. She had an appointment set up to be there, but the person "helping" her could spare no more than a few minutes with her. She and her maid of honor who was with her were left to their own devices in trying the dress on, figuring out how things go, how they're supposed to fit, etc. Lucky for House of Brides, and unlucky for her, she found a dress she absolutely loved. Disgusted with the fact that she was going to be purchasing from House of Brides, the business with which she received the worst service of any business she has ever been a customer of, she put her deposit down and ordered the dress.

She was told by the useless salesperson that she would have to order her dress 8-10 sizes larger than what seemed to be the right fit. When she expressed her concern about the size being much too large, she was snottily told essentially that they were right and she was wrong. She was also told that alterations were included with the price of the dress, and that the dress would be in September 9th (our wedding is on October 9th.)

We've since found out that the salesperson outright lied about the cost of alterations (its going to be $300.) We also have since found out that they lied about when the dress would be in (its still not in, and likely won't be until 9/17.) We're assuming they delay shipping the dress to avoid people going elsewhere for alterations (though we found someone who will do them with just a few days to spare, at 1/3 the cost, and likely, if the service at HoB is any indication, will do a much better job.)

So now, we're waiting for the bombshell to drop, that the good-for-nothing salesperson was completely wrong in her "order 8-10 sizes too large" assessment, and the dress won't work out at all. If that happens, we'll have to ante up with a good company and buy a new dress. We both already plan on spreading the word to everyone we know to never use House of Brides for anything. However, if there are any further problems with her dress, I will dedicate a portion of my future income to placing billboard ads in the Chicago area, informing millions of how bad House of Brides is.

You would think that when you're spending over $1, 000 on a dress, and for your wedding, that the level of service would be impeccable. To us, it seems the people the fast food joints fire because of their lack of service and intelligence, are the people who work at House of Brides. Every other wedding vendor we have (florist, limo, photographer, cake, etc.) has been WONDERFUL. House of Brides is and has been ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE.

My advice to anyone who shops at the House of Brides, is BE CAREFUL. Do not assume that your sales person knows how to properly measure you. Be sure of your own measurements, and look carefully at the size chart before any dress is ordered. They do not guarantee the fit, issue any refunds, or allow any cancellations or exchanges. They require full payment up front, and after they sell you a dress, they really do not care whether you are satisfied or not.

In May, 2008, my daughter and I went to House of Brides, Schaumburg, IL to look for a mother-of-the-bride dress. I was measured by a sales lady and based on her measurements of my chest, waist and hips, she determined that I was in between a size 4 and size 6. The sales lady was sure the size 4 would fit through the hips, but would be too large on top. I paid $250 for the entire cost of the dress at time of ordering. I was not given a copy of the store policy or even verbally told that H.O.B does not guarantee the fit of the dress. I did mistakenly believe that H.O.B would guarantee that my dress could at least be zipped up and be somewhat wearable. I do understand that minor alterations are to be expected as no dress in any given size will fit perfectly. I also understand that alterations are not free.

I picked up the dress 8 weeks later, and when I tried on the dress, I was unable to pull the dress on over my hips or zip it up. The bottom of dress was an entire size too small. The top of the dress fit perfectly, not requiring alteration, however, the bottom half was at least 3 inches too small. When I returned to H.O.B and was re-measured, the sales lady announced to me that I had gained 2 inches in my hips. I told her that was not true, I had not gained any weight, and in fact I had lost 2 pounds in the last 2 months which was honestly the truth. The sales lady measured me again 3 times and refused to note on her paper that I was the same size. No amount of explaining or reasoning with the manager did any good. The manager told me, “We are not responsible that you gained 2 inches in your hips, ” and her parting comment to me was, “Well, you are hippy.”

I am most disappointed that I trusted that sales lady. She did not tell the truth or accept responsibility for her error. Perhaps if admitted her mistake, her job would be in jeopardy. House of Brides takes your money at time of ordering and will not accept responsibility for an error. They do not value their customers or care about negative “word of mouth” or complaints on any forum.