Wedding Belles have returned from ‘The Welsh National Wedding Awards 2011’, Llanelli with three awards, Northern Wales. The bridalwear company with bridal stores in Llanfairpwll, Anglesey and Llandudno, Conwy brought home Best Bridalwear, Best Menswear and Best Wedding Jewellery.
“We were thrilled having been nominated in five categories and winning three. England and Scotland have their own National awards, this is the first annual Welsh Wedding Awards. It’s great to celebrate our achievements in Wales,” said Diane Roberts, Proprietor of Wedding Belles.
The finalists were nominated by their brides and grooms with voting taking place online and at wedding fairs in Cardiff and Swansea. “We asked brides to vote for us through our website, Facebook page and newsletter. Brides want perfection on their special day so knowing they have voted for us and left us lovely feedback is wonderful,” said Diane.
Wedding Belles were finalists at the Network She Awards on the Friday and they won the Welsh Wedding Awards on the Sunday. “After a hectic weekend we are back to work feeling very honoured, humbled and grateful to all our clients who took the time to nominate and vote for us,” said Diane.
Wedding Belles has been trading in Llanfairpwll for 15 years with a second bridal store opening in Llandudno in 2006. Diane and her team have built up relationships with top UK designers and exclusively stock many designer labels. Benjamin Roberts from Swansea is one of their favourite designers, they stock all his bridal ranges and he won the Best Wedding Designer in Wales at the awards. They have their own range of bridal jewellery designed in-house by Fiona Roberts, Manager at Wedding Belles.
In addition Wedding Belles stock occasional wear for all the bridal party, including menswear at the start of 2011. “We work hard to provide great customer service, high quality product and have recently added Menswear to our range. If we get it right for the brides then it follows we can do a great job for grooms, bridesmaids and Mums,” said Diane.
Providing great customer service and quality wedding-wear for the whole family has helped Wedding Belles beat the online industry. “When you are buying a sophisticated and glamorous dress for your special day you need to be sure the quality and finish is exceptional. We can get the best dress at the best price and guarantee it is of the best quality,” said Diane.
Other changes to the bridalwear industry have seen all UK designers moving their manufacturing capacity aboard, striving to provide quality at an acceptable price point. “Lead times for delivery on dresses are now longer. I am trying to get the message out to encourage brides start looking for their special dress a minimum of 10 to 12 months before their wedding. It will take us a minimum of 7 months to have a dress made, even longer with internal corsets and detailed embellishments. We then need time to make sure we have the perfect fit,” said Diane.
