Life

These Women Are Helping Brides Affected By The Alfred Angelo Closure

by Cameron Norsworthy

Imagine this: You're weeks away from your wedding, and you're convinced you've got everything covered. From food to flowers, only a couple last-minute arrangements need to be made. Then you hear the news that your bridal gown retailer has gone bankrupt, and you're totally dress-less. What can even be done? Unfortunately, this is a real scenario some brides across the country recently experienced. Thankfully, people are helping those same brides affected by the Alfred Angelo closings in a really sweet way: Kind-hearted Twitter users have come to the rescue, offering up their gowns to bereft brides, taking the term "something borrowed" to a new level.

The mayhem started as Alfred Angelo Bridal announced it was filing for bankruptcy earlier this month, affecting 1,400 locations and 60 stores worldwide. A statement on the company's website wasn't super helpful for future brides and bridesmaids, sharing that "all Alfred Angelo stores, corporate offices and Alfred Angelo wholesalers are closed," and referring current customers to an email address for next steps. "We apologize for the inconvenience and hardship resulting from this event," the message reads. The Alfred Angelo lawyer, NPR reported, has already received 7,000 emails about the issue.

JP Yim/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

Brides-to-be who had selected, fitted, and even paid for their dressed were suddenly left empty-handed by the bankruptcy filing. Many began expressing their heartbreak over finding "the one" just to have it snatched away from them. Despite working with attorneys and credit card companies, justice may be far off, and quite possibly way after the wedding date for some brides.

Luckily, some unlikely heroes have swept in to save the day. Former brides everywhere are now offering up their own dresses to right these wrongs, free of charge. Using an #AlfredAngelo hashtag, connections are being made online, and gowns are finding new homes.

One Instagram user eager to share her wedding dress wrote:

I just feel like I need to offer since it's cleaned/pressed and sitting in my closet while women are frantically searching for another dream dress. I encourage any other women with dresses just sitting in their closets to do the same.

Some brides-to-be even tweeted out their success stories. (No, I'm not crying, you're crying):

Other bridal companies are also helping out; David's Bridal is giving 30 percent off of wedding gowns and 20 percent off of bridesmaid's dresses, waiving any last-minute alteration fees.

Last-minute changes to years-long planning can be devastating but, where a company has fallen short, community rallies instead. Dresses of all sizes and styles are now being shared online ever hour. Looking on the bright side: Isn't a borrowed dress just that more special?