Tariffs Could Devastate Bridal Gown Industry, Reps Say

Source: Sacramento Business Journal, Ann Anne Stych
Photo: Designers say they can’t get the materials they need to make wedding dresses anywhere but China. (GETTY IMAGES, RANCIC ALEKSANDAR)

President Trump’s proposed higher tariffs on goods from China would devastate the U.S. wedding dress industry, which relies heavily on imported fabric and trims to create its designs, industry representatives said this week at a hearing conducted by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

Stephen Lang, owner of New Jersey-based Mon Cheri Bridals, testified that the U.S. bridal industry could be out of business in a year if a 25 percent tariff is enacted, Fortune reported.

Even gowns that are made in America rely on China for silk and other specialty fabrics and trims, said dress designer Rebecca Schoneveld of Brooklyn’s Schone Bride.

She pointed out that while she can create designs using different fabrics in the future if necessary, brides have already ordered gowns from her current line and want what they ordered.

And Lang said he can’t get the materials he needs anywhere but China.

Ann Campeau, president of the National Bridal Retail Association, told Fortune that since brides order their dresses months ahead of time and pay in advance, manufacturers would likely absorb the higher cost of goods in the short term. But they will eventually pass higher costs on to bridal shops, which then won’t be able to afford to order as many dresses from the manufacturers, she said.

The tariffs could provide new challenges for chains like David’s Bridal, which emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January after just two months, outlining a recovery strategy that includes lower prices on best-selling dress styles, an extended assortment of sizes for brides to try on, expanded choices online, and in-store special events geared around wedding planning.

Weddings are big business, with couples spending an average of $34,000 on the big day, per The Knot. The average number of wedding guests is 136, and $258 is what couples spend per guest on average.

The Knot 2018 Real Weddings Study found that the average cost of a wedding dress in the United States, including alterations, was $1,631.

https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2019/06/21/tariffs-could-devastate-bridal-gown-industry