# Wedding Dress Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?



## microsquid (23 Mar 2006)

A well known bridal boutique has just gone bankrupt down here, and I was unlucky enough to be one of their last customers!  
Dozens of dresses in the shop bagged last night, 185 irate brides-to-be ringing 96FM this morning....
I might be OK based on threads I've read about coverage because I paid via credit card, but a work colleague paid for her dress by cheque.
Obviously there's a lot will be revealed over the next few days but can anyone give us some gems of wisdom in the meantime?


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## CCOVICH (23 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

CC customers should be ok.

If someone has paid by cheque-they may be able to cancel the cheque (if it hasn't been cashed).

If the cheque has been cashed, they are probably out of luck.  There will no doubt a long line of creditors in front of your colleague.  Read the posts on Rocca Tiles and ID Design for more info.


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## fobs (23 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

WAs just telling this story to my sister who bought her wedding dress there in 2002. They were VERy expensive for dresses even back then (my sister paid 700 euro for a shop model) so feel sorry for anyone who has paid up for a dress there. Getting married is such an anxious time and I can just imagine the horror some women must be feeling!


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## microsquid (23 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

Fobs:
They've been offering good deals for the past 6 months. eg. 10% off if you paid in full within a week of ordering.
That made the dresses that bit cheaper than the others in the area and widened the net of people caught in the crunch.

Looking back at the deal it would seem they've been having cash-flow problems for a while, but how anyone can lose money in the Wedding Business is beyond me...


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## RainyDay (23 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*



			
				microsquid said:
			
		

> Fobs:
> They've been offering good deals for the past 6 months. eg. 10% off if you paid in full within a week of ordering.


Any service that requires payment in full before delivery of the product raises alarm bells for me.


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## Guest107 (23 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

It seems that some bridezillas in Cork broke into their warehouse and made off with a scatter of dresses today , well I never.


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## pokerwidow (24 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

This was on TV3 news and the shop issued a statement saying that everyone who had paid a deposit would get their dresses.  It was reported that one woman spent €5,000 on ONE dress.  I am really that out of touch or is this bloody mad?


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## Past30Now (24 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

Clearly the amounts of cash spent on wedding dresses are absolute lunacy.  

However people are entitled to be protected from this kind of overtrading.  From the sounds of things these people were selling dresses on the basis of paying a very large deposit (one deposit given on the radio was €750) or paying upfront for a 10% discount.  They were then waiting for a period greater than six months for the dresses to be made.  If all went well they got their dress and went off happy.

What I believe actually was happening was the cash paid by bride A in say january was effectively used to pay for and order the dress for bride B who ordered and paid for her dress in the previous October.  This becomes a vicious circle for the shop owner as the cashflow shortage at the beginning of the cycle has only got bigger and bigger.  A number of furniture shops in Dublin seemed to do something similar a year or two ago.  I recall one supplier sending solicitors letters to Brendan about a thread that appeared on AAM at the time.  They sold the goods at a 20% discount for cash upfront with a six week delivery timeframe promised.  Six weeks turned into six months.  I was lucky (and like a dog with a bone) and got my money back.  Others weren't so lucky.

Those that got their dresses yesterday were lucky.  Anybody who paid a deposit in the last couple of months probably won't be so lucky.


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## JohnnyBoy (24 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

I hear that the staff in the shop were obnoxious.Apparently they would ask people who they were marrying & where else they had looked.
However I'm sorry,much as I have sympathy for the people who lost their money,I have to say,spending the amounts quoted so u can look like a meringue for a day are nothing short of obscene!!


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## CCOVICH (24 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

Cost of dresses etc. are not really relevant.  

Shop has gone bankrupt, people will lose money.  

Let's keep this on the facts: what are their rights etc.

In today's Irish Times, the owner advises those affected to contact his office in Mallow (I'm not sure what good it will do to be honest).  A creditors meeting (can any creditor attend?) will be held in the Imperial Hotel (Cork) an April 7 at 9am.


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## Brendan Burgess (24 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

CC

I agree and have deleted the posts which did not relate to the original question. If any of the deleted posters wants to Let Off Steam about the costs of wedding dresses, they are welcome to do so in the Letting Off Steam forum.

BB


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## Bamhan (27 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

The solicitor in charge of dealing with the fiasco is Eugene Carey in Mallow. He seems to be fielding all the calls and dealing with all the brides to be.


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## Lorz (27 Mar 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

Solicitor representing Directors of Wedding Dress Shop, Eugene Keary of Mallow has spoken on local radio this morning and confirmed...

*120 No*. *Wedding Dresses* have been supplied (they are not dealing with accessories and bridesmaid dresses currently)
Meeting now at *Clarion Hotel *on *Fri, 07 April at 9am *- open to public
Creditors will appoint liquidator at this meeting.
Some suppliers are reluctant to deliver the wedding dresses which have been paid for to the Wedding Dress Co and yet they must be delivered to a wedding dress shop.  Pronuptia have this morning offered to accept delivery.

*AIB* are *not issuing refunds *on dresses paid by Credit Card.
*BOI are issuing refunds *for dresses paid by Credit Card.

Not everyone will be sorted.
Mr. Keary is going to contact AIB today to discuss refunds on credit card payments.


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## ClubMan (7 Apr 2006)

*Re: Shop goes bankrupt: options for customers?*

[FONT=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica]Brides to lose out as shops leave €1m debts - RTÉ News.[/FONT]


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## uncorked (9 Apr 2006)

What is AIBs reasoning for not issuing refunds on dresses paid by Credit Card?


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## liner (10 Apr 2006)

An article in The Examiner at the weekend listed all the creditors by name. It said that the brides to be were at the bottom of the queue of creditiors and would be the last ones to receive anything and for that reason would probably not get a cent. Dreadful situation.


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## bond-007 (10 Apr 2006)

uncorked said:
			
		

> What is AIBs reasoning for not issuing refunds on dresses paid by Credit Card?


Suppose AIB don't want to join the list of creditors that will get nothing?


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## microsquid (10 Apr 2006)

Suppose this may be going OT, but from my limited understanding, by the very act of operating a Visa franchise is AIB not obliged to honour the full CC contract and refund the purchases? Don't have an AIB Visa m'self so can't check the T&Cs...


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## Lorz (10 Apr 2006)

Interesting to note that the directors husband who runs a construction company did some renovation work on the premises costing ~€345k which was paid in full!  I find it insane that they were able to open a new shop in Kerry just 4 months ago!  You don't just go bankrupt overnight!


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## bond-007 (10 Apr 2006)

Company law really needs to be reformed to prevent this from happening.


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