In the heart of Mount Vernon’s historic downtown there is a shop selling wedding gowns. That’s nothing new. Bridal boutiques are one of the few brick and mortar retailers who have survived the emergence of online shopping. But Leslee Hughes and Laura Williams of Astraea Bridal consignment have their eyes on the future.
“Inclusivity and sustainability are the two pillars of our business,” says Williams. “We’re taking something that’s a single-use item and giving it more lives.”
I admit, I’ve never thought of a wedding dress that way, but that was not the only fresh take on the bridal industry that I got while chatting with Astraea’s owners.
“Bridal is awesome—it’s so much fun—picking out somebody’s dream dress and making them feel beautiful,” Hughes begins.
“We’re selling an experience—making her feel really good,” Williams finishes.
Photograph by Nicole Kimberling
Hughes and Williams have worked together for eight years altogether: four years in the rigorous corporate wedding fashion industry and four years as owners of Astraea. They’re cheerful, realistic, and refreshingly uncynical.
And they finish each other’s thoughts a lot.
Here, they explain the genesis of Astraea:
“People get wedding dresses and don’t use them more often than you realize,” Hughes says. “And for a lot of different reasons. And I was scrolling through an online marketplace seeing people trying to resell their unused, high-end wedding dresses and I was thinking that no one would ever go to another person’s house to try on a wedding dress. You need an…”
“Interim neutral space?” I offer.
“Exactly,” Hughes nods, gesturing around Astraea’s big, light-filled showroom. “And you need a person who can see quality. Websites can be really deceptive.”
Williams picks up the thread right away: “We started in 2019 and then Covid canceled so many weddings. It actually worked out for us. We had our first anniversary wearing masks and social distancing, but with a lot of good inventory.”
It’s hard to overstate the historical, biographical, and psychological complexity surrounding wedding dresses. I would argue that no single garment stirs so many complicated emotions, as evidenced by the number of tissue boxes discreetly placed around Astraea’s pretty showroom.
Apart from their dedication to reducing waste, Astraea’s owners came together because of a mutual frustration with multiple aspects of the bridal industry.
“We’re both mothers and we came from a place where our bosses wouldn’t let us take time off if we had a sick kid,” Williams says. Hughes continues, “I feel like women have to choose sometimes between: have family as the top-priority or choose competing in the corporate grind and getting sales. Here we put people over profits, doing the right thing for her every time.”
“We’re not going to sell you the wrong dress just for a commission,” Williams adds firmly.
Photograph by Nicole Kimberling
“You know what,” Hughes says, “what I think about is our customer, if she’s going to look at that framed photograph of herself on her wedding day every single day of her life, how did she feel that day? I want her to feel beautiful and remember being happy.”
Honestly, as she spoke, the sincerity in her eyes choked me up. I’ve been married for thirty-eight years already, but leaving Astraea, I felt a pang of jealousy toward all the future customers who get to benefit from both Hughes’ and Williams’ dedication and technical expertise.
Astraea Bridal is open by appointment for bridal consultation. Schedule your appointment or review Astraea’s consignment terms at astraeabridal.com. 324 S. 1st St., Mount Vernon, 360.755.6537, astraeabridal.com
