On November 5, 2011, I opened the doors to my very first bridal boutique in the Reading Bridal District in Cincinnati, Ohio.
I had six wedding gowns.
Yep. SIX!
One of those gowns was actually my own wedding dress. Another belonged to a girlfriend of mine, and the other four were gowns that women had brought in to consign.
My little store was called Yours Truly, Kelly, and it was a bridal consignment boutique.
I had placed a tiny business-card-sized advertisement in our local community newspaper announcing that I was opening a bridal consignment store and needed wedding gowns.
And that’s pretty much how it all started!
I had no idea that fifteen years later, that little boutique would turn into three bridal stores, seventeen employees and a business that has helped so many brides find their wedding gowns.
I was just SO excited to have a little store of my own!
From Six Wedding Gowns to Something Bigger
By the end of December 2011, less than two months after opening, I had acquired approximately 100 more wedding gowns!
Some came from brides who wanted to sell their dresses, and others came from bridal boutiques in the district that didn’t have enough room to store them.
And let me tell you, I had some REALLY ugly wedding gowns in that store.
But the prices were affordable, and brides were excited to find dresses that fit their budgets.
I’ll never forget my first big sale.
$495!
I thought I was RICH!
Of course, since it was a consignment store, I had to give half of that sale to the woman who owned the gown.
So my share was $247.50 before expenses.
But I didn’t care. I was thrilled!
I remember thinking that I could actually make a business out of helping brides find affordable wedding gowns.
And things just kept growing from there.
In 2013, Yours Truly, Kelly evolved into Lace Bridal Couture, and we began focusing on new, special-order wedding gowns from bridal designers.
We were operating out of a little 1,500-square-foot building, and business was going incredibly well.
Allen joined me in the business full-time about a year later, and we started dreaming about what else we could do.
We eventually purchased an old service station on the corner of the district.
Yes, an actual SERVICE STATION!
We spent over a year and a half renovating that building into what is now our beautiful Lace Bridal Couture boutique.
And if you’ve ever visited Lace, it’s pretty funny to imagine that building as an old service station!
Today, Lace Bridal Couture continues to help brides find their dream wedding gowns, and that building is one of the things we’re incredibly proud to own.
One Bridal Boutique Becomes Three
Once Lace moved into its new location, we had our original building available again.
And that’s when Love Curvy Bridal was born.
We had recognized that so many plus-size brides were having a difficult time finding boutiques with beautiful wedding gowns they could actually try on in their sizes.
We wanted to change that.
So we opened Love Curvy Bridal, specializing in wedding gowns in sizes 16–32.
And WOW, did brides respond!
Love Curvy became an incredible success, and to this day, it remains one of the businesses we’re most proud of.
Every bride deserves to feel beautiful and celebrated while shopping for her wedding gown, regardless of her size.
A few years later, we purchased another building in the district that had previously housed European Bridal.
Fun fact: That’s actually where I purchased my wedding gown when Allen and I got married!
We opened a luxury bridal boutique in that space called Cincy Bridal, carrying some incredible couture designers.
Unfortunately, the timing wasn’t exactly in our favor.
Just as the store was beginning to gain momentum, COVID happened.
UGH.
Like so many other businesses, we were forced to close for approximately three months.
And when we reopened, Cincy Bridal just never really gained the momentum we’d hoped for.
Eventually, we made the decision to close it and move Love Curvy Bridal into that beautiful, larger space.
Which turned out to be a wonderful decision!
That left our original building available again.
And that’s when we opened The Reading Bridal Outlet.
An off-the-rack bridal boutique offering beautiful wedding gowns at discounted prices.
And here’s what I find so funny about all of this.
Fifteen years ago, I started with a tiny store selling affordable, gently used wedding gowns.
Today, The Reading Bridal Outlet offers brides beautiful off-the-rack gowns at affordable prices.
We no longer sell consigned gowns, but in a way, we’ve come full circle!
Today, our three boutiques offer brides three very different shopping experiences.
Lace Bridal Couture offers a beautiful selection of special-order designer wedding gowns.
Love Curvy Bridal specializes in plus-size wedding gowns, with a wonderful selection of gowns in sizes 16–32.
The Reading Bridal Outlet offers off-the-rack wedding gowns at discounted prices, perfect for brides who want a beautiful dress without the special-order price tag or wait.
Three stores, three different concepts, and one goal: helping brides find a wedding gown they absolutely LOVE.
The People Who Made These Fifteen Years Possible
Of course, none of this would have been possible without the people who’ve helped us along the way.
Allen has been an enormous part of building these businesses with me. His business knowledge and financial discipline, combined with my determination and work ethic, have made us a pretty good team over the years.
And then there’s our incredible staff.
Today, we have seventeen employees across our three stores.
Some have been with us for years, and others are newer to the team, but every single person plays a role in making our boutiques what they are today.
I especially want to recognize Haley and Michaela, who’ve both been with us for a little over six years.
Watching them grow into the leaders they are today has been one of the most rewarding parts of owning these businesses.
They genuinely care about our brides, our employees and the success of our stores.
And, I can’t go without recognizing Amanda Mullikin, who has been with Allen and I for almost 10 years and who is our most trusted, patient and loyal stylist. She has been with us through thick and thin and we wouldn’t know what to do without her!
The truth is, we’re incredibly fortunate to have a team that cares as much as they do.
And I couldn’t be more proud of what we’ve built together.
I also want to recognize the wonderful wedding professionals in Cincinnati who’ve supported us throughout these fifteen years.
Wedding planners, photographers, venues, florists, hair and makeup artists, alterations specialists and so many others.
Your referrals, friendships and encouragement have meant more to us than you probably realize.
Being part of the Reading Bridal District and Cincinnati wedding community has been such a huge part of our success.
And finally, to our brides.
Where do I even begin?
Over the past fifteen years, we’ve had the privilege of being part of one of the most exciting moments in so many women’s lives.
We’ve celebrated with brides who found their gowns on their very first visit.
We’ve helped brides who were convinced they would NEVER find a dress they loved.
We’ve laughed, cried, hugged, celebrated and occasionally had to remind a bride to stop overthinking and just enjoy the moment.
And we’ve been fortunate enough to build relationships with brides and families who continue recommending our stores to their friends and loved ones.
That is something we will never take for granted.
Here’s to the Next Fifteen Years!
When I think back to November 5, 2011, standing inside my tiny boutique with six wedding gowns, I never imagined we’d be celebrating fifteen years in business.
I didn’t know we’d eventually own three bridal boutiques.
I didn’t know we’d have seventeen employees.
And I certainly didn’t know that a little consignment store would turn into The Hill Bridal Collective.
I just knew I loved wedding gowns, loved helping women feel beautiful, and really wanted to make my little business work.
And here we are!
To every bride who has walked through our doors, every employee who has been part of our journey, and every wedding professional who has supported us along the way...
THANK YOU!
You’ve helped make the past fifteen years something pretty special.
We can’t wait to see what the next fifteen years bring!
And to think...
It all started with six wedding gowns and a $495 sale.
Not too shabby. ❤️
With love and gratitude,
Kelly
Founder, The Hill Bridal Collective
Are you a past Lace Bridal Couture, Love Curvy Bridal, Yours Truly, Kelly, Cincy Bridal or Reading Bridal Outlet bride?
We would LOVE to hear from you!
Share your favorite memory of shopping with us, or tag us in a photo from your wedding day. There’s nothing we love more than seeing our brides in their gowns!
And if you’re newly engaged, we’d love to be part of your wedding dress shopping experience.
Come visit us in the Reading Bridal District and see what fifteen years of helping brides say YES is all about!
Lace Bridal Couture | Love Curvy Bridal | The Reading Bridal Outlet
Originally published by The HBC Insider.