Bliss: New bridal store opens in Mitchell, and owner is optimistic

• Bliss Bridal

Megan Sabers stands in front of a rack of wedding dresses in her recently opened Bliss Bridal store on Main Street in Mitchell. (Photo by Candy DenOuden/Republic)

Talk about it

Megan Sabers knows bridal shops don’t have a great track record in Mitchell. Even so, she is boldly going where others have failed before.

The owner of Tickled Pink expanded last fall when she opened Bliss Bridal on 302 N. Main St. in Mitchell.

The location makes sense — it’s in Tickled Pink’s old location, and Sabers said most customers use the Tickled Pink store entrance for both stores.

“It was easy for us to be able to run both locations,” Sabers said.

Sabers, 29, opened Tickled Pink in November 2011 as what she describes as an “upscale resale” store.

There is also a partial boutique at the front of the store with new clothing and accessories. The “something old, something new” idea naturally lent itself to the wedding world, Sabers said.

“We had so many people stop in and ask if we did bridal, and also we had people bring in a lot of consignment bridal,” she said. “So we said, ‘Hey, let’s see what happens.’ ”

Bliss Bridal opened in September, around the same time Sabers said Mitchell’s only other bridal shop, Everlasting Moments, closed its doors.

Does another shuttered wedding store discourage Sabers?

Not really. Prom dress sales have remained strong for Sabers, she said, bolstering the ups and downs of the wedding dress season, which is entering its fashion frenzy this month that typically lasts through the spring wedding fever.

“We’ve been selling prom dresses all year round,” Sabers said. “We’ve sold at least one to two each month, so I’m probably going to keep them out all year-round.

“I mean, I sold prom dresses to tourists.”

Additionally, Sabers said she hopes her youth will help bring a fresh perspective to wedding shopping in Mitchell.

“I think … because I’m closer to the age of the majority of the women getting married, I’m bringing a fresh approach to it,” Sabers said.

Sabers said Bliss Bridal started with mostly consignment bridesmaid and mother of the bride options, but worked its way into bridal gowns. Now, Sabers said she already has sold a handful of wedding dresses

“It’s starting to pick up now,” she said. “There was a need for it in Mitchell. When there wasn’t a bridal shop in town, people were coming to us because we were the closest thing to it.”

The store also does tux rentals and carries a select amount of jewelry, which Sabers said she hopes to expand soon.

While she has considered stepping into shoe lines, she said for now, she’ll likely stick to basics.

“I can’t carry a huge overhead in shoes,” she said. “We’re just trying to get into it and still learning. We go to market so we can learn everything we can.”

While she said the 2013 gowns aren’t yet in her store, there are always other options.

“A lot of our consignment dresses are new,” Sabers said. “You can walk away with a brand-new gown at a fraction of the price that you would originally pay for it.”

She said the stores carry bridesmaid, prom and wedding gowns, used and new, that can range from $60 to $2,500.

And, while bargain brideswear might have been a fashion faux pas in the past, Sabers said the white winds of time have changed.

“It seems like a lot of brides are on a budget. I don’t think people care like they used to … I think they brag to their friends,” Sabers said.

“People are out there looking for a bargain.”

Tags: wedding guide, life, business, local, mitchell