David’s Bridal CEO challenges Walmart and reveals secret comeback weapon after closing 100 stores & going bankrupt twice
THE CEO of David’s Bridal has revealed the secret weapon to the company’s comeback after its second bankruptcy.
For the second time in five years, the bridal shop filed for bankruptcy in April and was sold to Cion Investment Corp. in July. sold, which is expected to keep nearly 200 stores open.
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Despite these past challenges, CEO Jim Marcum is confident in the future of the company, which has managed to keep customer reviews at an average of 4.9 stars, he told Business Insider.
Marcum also noted that the company will continue to be popular despite being careful about its wedding budgets, as David’s serves a wide range of brides.
“What’s unique about David’s is that we have dresses in the $199 range and dresses in the $2,000 range. We also have a wide range of aesthetics,” he said
According to Insider, the bridal company is known as the “Walmart of Bridal,” to which Marcum said, “I don’t think we could be better positioned for the segment we’re in than any other retailer in this country.”
The CEO challenged the major retailer by saying, “We are targeting the mass market in America.”
“I’ve heard that comment about Walmart so many times. I challenge Walmart to achieve 4.9 stars in service.”
“We sell more wedding dresses in a weekend than a boutique, often not just in a month but in an entire season.”
In addition to these amazing sales figures, the company also has its secret weapon to master its market comeback: Pearl.
Marcum explained, “Now we have wedding planning checklists and vision boards to help you determine the style of your wedding.”
“We have the registry and now we have the provider marketplace.
“The reason we did this was because we wanted to be with the bride in advance when she first got engaged.
“85 to 90 percent of all brides will come through our funnel. Not everyone buys their clothes from us. That’s fine.”
“But there’s a chance that if they don’t buy their wedding dress from us, their bridesmaids or their mother will.”
The CEO isn’t worried about competition from The Knot because David’s has a good reputation and “has a highly recognizable name” and believes the company’s future is bright.
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