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Company Overview - David's Bridal
David's Bridal was started in 1950 in Fort Lauderdale as a neighborhood bridal salon owned by David Reisberg. It was purchased by Phillip Youtie in 1972 who opened 18 more salons in Florida from 1973 to 1988. David’s Bridal went public in 1999 and was acquired by May’s Department Stores for $436 million in 2000. The company filed for bankruptcy in November 2018 with over $700 million in debt. It came out of bankruptcy in January 2019 after reducing its debt by $450 million. Today, the company has over 300 stores located across Canada, the US, the UK, and Mexico. Detailed information is below.
History and Origins of the Company
- David's Bridal was started in 1950 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The company started as a neighborhood bridal salon owned by David Reisberg.
- Phillip Youtie from Florida purchased the salon in 1972 intending to expand the business. The company was built on the idea that every woman deserves the wedding dress of her dreams regardless of her shape, style preference, size or budget.
- Its mission is to help every woman find the bridal gown that will allow her to be the best, most genuine version of herself on her wedding day.
- David's Bridal uses expert seamstresses, informed stylists, and online planning tools to help women buy a dress that they like. The company offers products for the bride and the bridal party.
Company Growth
- The company started as a neighborhood bridal salon in 1950. After buying the company in 1972, Youtie opened 18 more salons in Florida from 1973 to 1988. The salons operated mostly from leased spaces in department stores.
- With wedding dresses exorbitantly priced at the time, Youtie targeted brides who did not want to spend thousands on a dress they would most likely wear once.
- The first David’s Bridal Warehouse was opened in Hallendale, Florida, by Youtie and his business partner Steve Erlbaum in 1990. The warehouse differed from others as it stocked dresses of all sizes at a fraction of the cost, unlike others that stocked just sample sizes.
- David’s Bridal went public in 1999 and was acquired by May’s Department Stores for $436 million in 2000.
- Right through the 2000s, David’s Bridal expanded and started selling other types of clothes such as bridesmaid dresses and prom dresses.
- In 2003, 20% of all bridal gowns were purchased at the company. David's Bridal was valued at $1 billion when it was acquired by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in 2012. However, today, the value of the company has gone down with the overall decline in weddings in the U.S. David's Bridal has partnered with upscale brands like Vera Wang to try to boost sales.
- The company filed for bankruptcy in November 2018 with over $700 million in debt but its shops remained open. David's Bridal came out of bankruptcy in January 2019 after reducing its debt by $450 million. The company's stores are now offering low priced dresses, more sizes, and free personal stylists to successfully compete with other trendy stores.
- Today, David's Bridal has grown to over 300 stores located across Canada, the US, the UK, and franchise locations in Mexico. Also, one in three brides in the U.S. buys her dress from the company.
Countries of Operation
- David's Bridal operates in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Mexico.
Number of Locations in Each Country
- There are 291 David's Bridal locations in the United States.
- There are four locations in Alabama, one in Alaska, six in Arizona, three in Arkansas, 25 in California, six in Colorado, four in Connecticut, one in Delaware, 18 in Florida, nine in Georgia, one in Hawaii, one in Idaho, 12 in Illinois, nine in Indiana, four in Iowa, three in Kansas, five in Kentucky, six in Louisiana, one in Maine, and five in Maryland.
- We also have six locations in Massachusetts, eight in Michigan, six in Minnesota, four in Mississippi, six in Missouri, one in Montana, two in Nebraska, three in Nevada, one in New Hampshire, nine in New Jersey, one in New Mexico, 13 in New York, 10 in North Carolina, one in North Dakota, 13 in Ohio, two in Oklahoma, and five in Oregon.
- There are also 13 locations in Pennsylvania, one in Rhode Island, five in South Carolina, two in South Dakota, seven in Tennessee, 25 in Texas, three in Utah, one in Vermont, six in Virginia, six in Washington, one in West Virginia, and six in Wisconsin.
- There are 12 David's Bridal locations in Canada, including two in Alberta, one in British Columbia, one in Manitoba, one in Nova Scotia, and seven locations in Ontario.
- David's Bridal has four store locations in the UK including one location in London, one in Glasgow, one in Birmingham, and one in Watford.
- The company has four locations in Mexico.
Headquarters
- The headquarters for David's Bridal is in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.
Financial Information
- David's Bridal had $1.5 Billion in revenue in the third quarter of 2018.
- The 2018 e-commerce global net sales for the company totaled $270.9 million.
- The company filed for bankruptcy in November 2018 with over $700 million in debt. It came out of bankruptcy in January 2019 after reducing its debt by $450 million.