A bride-to-be has told of her stress and anger after her wedding dress order was cancelled following the shock closure of a bridal shop
The furious woman was told she would not be getting her money back.
Many customers were left in the dark after being sent an email saying their wedding dress supplier had gone into liquidation.
Whyte Weddings in Worthing appears to have shut down without warning as its website and Instagram disappeared, leaving dress orders unfulfilled.
One bride, a 30-year-old woman from Chichester, is due to get married in April next year and had ordered her dress from the shop.
At around 10pm on Tuesday, she received an email from the store which said: “I write to advise that Mode Bridal and Whyte Weddings have ceased trading on August 23 and, as a result, your order will not be fulfilled.
“Unfortunately, we are unable to offer you a refund and suggest that in the first instance you contact your bank or credit card provider to get your money back.
“I apologise for the inconvenience caused.”
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The woman said: “When I received the email, I just felt anger to be honest.
“It’s not like buying a piece of furniture, it's a really big part of your wedding day and it’s horrible they continued taking money off people knowing this could happen.
“I had no help from Whyte Weddings with this and no advice.”
Another bridal shop, Brides of Southampton, has stepped in to save the day for some customers. The woman will receive her gown, a strapless design by Justin Alexander, through Brides of Southampton.
She said: “They reached out to me today and are really nice and reassuring after all of this.
“I did have so many shops reach out to me trying to help. I think a lot of them are shocked at how we were just left to it.”
Gemma Cranmer, manager of Brides of Southampton, issued advice to brides who now find themselves in the same situation.
Customers should contact the designer of the dress to establish the nearest stockist.
Gemma said: “They will have to pay for the dress again and then claim the money back.”
The Argus contacted Whyte Weddings for comment.
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