Debenhams reports monsters-in-law battle over wedding spotlight

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 16:16:58 GMT

Debenhams has reported that mothers-in-law have thrown out the wedding etiquette rule book, much to the annoyance of brides.

Thanks to increasing numbers of step-mothers-in-law now invited to nuptials, a new breed of thrusting, cougar-esque mothers-in-law have ripped up the first commandment for weddings; thou shalt not upstage the bride.

While the happy couples have cut back slightly on the big day to save cash, research for Debenhams has found spending by fashion savvy mums has soared to an average of £430. This is compared to five years ago when they paid out an average £190 - a 126% increase.*

By comparison the overall cost of getting married has risen by only 52% to £19,779**. This is a drop from an all-time high of £20,273 in 2008.

According to high street store Debenhams, the growth in sales has been driven by the increasing numbers of divorces and second marriages: when asked the reason for wanting to look extra special, 39% of mothers-of-the-bride or groom said they were competing with their ex-husband's new wife or girlfriend.

Alain Mehada, Debenhams Personal Shopper, said: "It seems that brides are a casualty of the sartorial battle between wives past and present.

"In their determination to make an impact, mother-in-laws are regularly ignoring the main tenants of previous decades, such as do not wear white, do not wear black and do not wear anything low-cut, tight fitting, or which is likely to gain you more attention than the bride on her big day."

Personal shoppers have dubbed it the 'Raquel effect' after Raquel Welch's famous thunder-stealing behaviour at her son's wedding.

Raquel Welch, aged 65 at the time, turned up 12 minutes late to her son Damon's wedding, wearing a skin-tight, little black dress with cutaway frontage revealing that famous décolletage, all topped off with a huge brimmed white hat and dark glasses.

Nearly 80% of women questioned said their main goal when dressing for their child's wedding was to look younger than their years, with 63% of women agreeing that an expensive looking outfit was imperative.

Women agreed that figure accentuating dresses were the most important part of the look with eye-catching hats or fascinators, expensive-looking high heels and immaculate hair and make-up following accordingly.

Debenhams looked at spending through its personal shopper service and found the average mother of the bride outfits bought by style conscious mothers for weddings cost £130, handbag £40, shoes £75 and hat £60 and £50 went on new cosmetics.

This adds a new level of competition to the already existing, but less brutal contest between the mother of the bride, and mother of the groom.

'Ladette to Lady' Social & Etiquette Expert, Liz Brewer commented: "The number one rule for mothers and stepmothers-in-law is not to do anything to draw attention away from the bride. Be as elegant as you like, but it is incredibly bad form to upstage the bride on her big day."

END

Notes to Editors:
* Figures from Debenhams’ Personal Shopper Records
** RPI figures June 2001 to June 2011

About Debenhams:
Debenhams is the second largest department store chain in the UK with a strong presence in key product categories including womenswear, menswear, childrenswear, home and health and beauty. Debenhams is. Debenhams operates 167 stores in the UK and Republic of Ireland. Debenhams also has 61 international franchise stores in 24 countries and six Magasin stores in Denmark. Debenhams’ online stores are available at www.debenhams.com and www.debenhams.ie.

Designers at Debenhams include Preen, Jonathan Saunders, Jonathan Kelsey, Roksanda Ilincic, Ted Baker, Jeff Banks, Jasper Conran, Erickson Beamon, FrostFrench, Henry Holland, Betty Jackson, Ben de Lisi, Julien Macdonald, Melissa Odabash, Jane Packer, Pearce Fionda, Janet Reger, John Rocha, Lisa Stickley, Eric Van Peterson and Matthew Williamson.

Debenhams to launch limited edition bridesmaid dress

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 14:13:01 GMT

Debenhams has announced that it will be selling a limited edition version of Pippa Middleton's bridesmaid gown in stores later this year after being inundated by demands from customers.

So great is the anticipated demand that the retailer has taken the unusual step of creating a 'lady-in-waiting list' to allow customers to reserve the departments store's homage to Pippa Middleton’s iconic figure-hugging bridesmaid gown.

And for fans of Pippa’s style the retailer will also be selling a version of the emerald green evening gown that Kate’s sister wore to the evening 'do'.

In addition a black lace sweetheart frock and a flower girl dress, all inspired by Kate Middleton and her breath-taking bridal party will go into stores later this year as well.

Russell Fish, Head of Occcassionwear Design at Debenhams commented: "Like everyone we were glued to our tellies for the wedding and have been huge Kate and Pippa fans ever since.

"We've taken the best of the dresses and added our designer twist. Now you can get the Middletons' look at High Street prices."

Debenhams' slender ivory gown is a slinky, cowl neck number with a button-back detail and elegant cap sleeves.

An ivory flower girl dress will also launch in store to sit alongside the sleek adult gown. Featuring a delicate lace trim, puff sleeves and a pale gold sash tied in a sumptuous bow at the back, with retail prices varying depending on age.

An emerald green evening gown, with embellished neck detail and a full, floor length skirt perfect for dancing is the final gown which will hit Debenhams stores this autumn.

Debenhams is also launching a black mid-length evening gown, inspired by the dress worn by the Duchess of Cambridge on her wedding day. Featuring intricate lace detail and trim, the full-skirted prom dress is a classic take on this timeless style women everywhere want to emulate since the royal wedding.

Alain Mehada, Chief Personal Shopper, Debenhams Oxford Street added: "Both men and women everywhere were instantly talking about Pippa, so naturally brides-to-be will want to emulate her classic look, both for themselves or their bridesmaids.

"We have been inundated by customers asking if we have anything similar to the dresses worn by Kate, Pippa and the flower girls, but the ivory dress worn by Pippa is the most requested by far."

Sales boffins at the retailer predict that these dresses will follow in the footsteps of a Star by Julien Macdonald dress that sold out before even reaching stores after fashionistas heralded the design as the look of the season a couple of years ago.

To find out as soon as the Bridesmaid dresses are available, customers can send their details through to ladyinwaitinglist@debenhams.com.

About Debenhams:
Debenhams is a leading department stores group with a strong presence in key product categories including womenswear - including party dresses - mens fashion, kid's shoes, kid's designer wear, home and health and beauty.

Debenhams is the second largest department store chain in the UK.

Debenhams operates 161 stores in the UK and Republic of Ireland. Debenhams also has 61 international franchise stores in 24 countries and six Magasin stores in Denmark.

Debenhams launches size 16 mannequins

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:23:39 GMT

Debenhams has announced that size 16 mannequins will appear in its windows in a trial to gain feedback from customers to see if they like the idea.

Like most retailers Debenhams currently uses standard size 10 mannequins in all its window displays. However the majority of women in the UK are either a 14 or 16.

Signage next to the mannequins, which will be wearing the recently launched Principles by Ben de Lisi range, will ask customers 'I'm a size 16, do you want to see more of me?'

Debenhams stocks up to size 26 in its womenswear department, and a huge 42% of sales come from size 14 and 16 garments.

Debenhams Head of Creative, Mark Stevens commented: "We are proud to offer a broad and varied choice for women of all ages, shapes and sizes in store. So we thought we should reflect this in our window displays. If it's popular with customers we would love to roll it out."

Susan Ringwood, Chief Executive of charity Beat, which lends help to people with eating disorders and their families, voiced her support for Debenhams' trial. She said: "Women often feel it is their fault that clothes don't look as good on them as they do in the shop window, so we congratulate Debenhams on taking this initiative."

Mark Fast caused waves when he sent size 12 and 14 models down his catwalk last London Fashion Week, and gorgeous size 16 model Crystal Ren has had a huge impact on the fashion industry recently.

The window, which celebrates a realistic interpretation of the British female physique, was unveiled at Debenhams' Oxford Street branch in February. The size 16 mannequins can be seen in the newly launched Principles by Ben De Lisi window as well. The initiative will be later rolled out across the country, again to get feedback from customers.

ENDS

About Debenhams:
Debenhams is a leading department stores group, and has a strong presence in key product categories including women’s wear and dresses, men's wear, home wares, health and beauty, accessories, lingerie and children’s wear.

Debenhams has 139 stores including seven Desire by Debenhams stores, across the UK and Ireland with approximately 10.1 million square feet of trading space and employing around 21,500 employees.

The Topshop Bicycle Club Hits New York City

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:50:03 GMT

To welcome the arrival of summer in the city, Topshop will be celebrating its love of 'cycle chic' with free bicycle rentals from its New York store, plus cycle styling tips for the ultimate bike look.

For one week from 20th June, New Yorkers can hire one of 30 Topshop bicycles and free-wheel around the city in style. There will be no charge for the bike hire, and there will even be a bike valet outside the store to take care of customers' bikes as they shop. Everyone who borrows a bike will receive a fashion map which will take them round a choice of three separate routes via Topshop's favourite New York haunts. The route will encompass sweet treats at Tea & Sympathy, a visit to DIY- clothing emporium Home Ec from the owners of boutique clothing shop 'Flirt', and a trip to Pixie Market to browse the up-and-coming designer offerings. The map will also include hidden gems such as the fabulous nail bar Hello Beautiful in Williamsburg, and luxury Italian apothecary Santa Maria Novella in Soho.

In true Topshop style, people cycling around the city will be invited to take street style snaps of their cycling looks and enter them into a competition hosted by fashion authority site Chictopia.com. The competition will run over a month, and each week there will be five winners - four chosen by Chictopia.com users and one chosen by Topshop. Each winner will receive a set of wheels. In-store, customers will have the opportunity to have their picture taken by legendary nightlife photographer Nicky Digital in front of a street style backdrop. There will be a special Style Advisor team on hand to advise customers on how to look as good as possible on their bike and all the photographs will be uploaded onto Flickr and Topshop's Facebook page, allowing people to tag themselves and comment on their favourite images.

Topshop will also be hosting an exclusive al fresco screening of classic film 'Blow Up' on 26th June at The Yard in Brooklyn. After the film there will be DJs, including Mia Moretti and Erin Lucas, dancing and drinks - plus a bike valet so winners can ride their bikes to the event. The only way to get a much coveted ticket is by finding one of the winning tokens hidden around the store in the days leading up to the screening.

-Ends-

Notes to Editors:
At the film screening, ticket holders will be entitled to one free drink and one box of popcorn to accompany the screening. Additional drinks will incur a charge. NB: Topshop does not endorse cycling whilst under the influence of alcohol.

About Topshop
Topshop was established in 1964 and is part of Arcadia Group Ltd. Sir Philip Green became owner of Arcadia Group Ltd in 2002.

Topshop is continually recognised as being an authority on womens fashion, having won several awards for design reputation and new service. Topshop was the first fashion retailer to show on schedule at London Fashion Week in September 2005 and continues to grow its reputation for supporting exciting new talent at London Fashion Week.

Topshop opened its hugely anticipated first store in New York on 2nd April 2009 on Broadway and Broom, which has since become one of the hottest shopping destinations in the city. The store includes the best of Topman menswear and Topshop's womens clothing, including designer concessions, Topshop Unique, Topshop Boutique, shoes, dresses, accessories and jewellery. Celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Lindsay Lohan and Kylie Minogue have passed through its doors, and the store's Style Advisor team have dressed the mo

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Debenhams reports monsters-in-law battle over wedding spotlight

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