STOCKIST FEATURE // REVELLE BRIDAL

We love our stockists!

MWL has stockists all over the globe and we want to give our MWL girls a chance to get to know them better.

This week we heard from Earleen, owner of Revelle Bridal in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Share the story of Revelle.

Having been in the wedding industry producing wedding trade shows since 2014, I came across an opportunity in 2016 to take over a bridal shop that recently closed and had existing sample gowns in their inventory. What started as Encore Bridal was an initially an off the rack and consignment boutique only but I quickly realized that Ottawa brides were looking for something fresh and new, unique and fashionable, and styles that weren’t already offered in Ottawa. I started researching new, up and coming designers and started with a handful including Made with Love, which was the very first designer we added. As we noticed that our ideal bride was strictly coming to us for made to order gowns, we got rid of our consignment and off the rack inventory and focused on adding exclusive, indie designers to our collection. In the summer of 2017 we underwent a complete rebrand from Encore to Revelle Bridal and moved to an exciting, new location on Wellington West. Fast forward to this July 2021 and we decided it was time to expand and we moved down the street into our current location in Westboro where we have more than double the amount of space; 9 independent designers; an in-house accessories collection and so many more exciting projects coming up. As a family owned business, it’s important for us to remember why we started and truly it’s because I love what I do.

What inspired you to go into the bridal industry?

I’ve honestly always loved everything about weddings. I was that little girl who believed in fairy tales and happy endings and I was that bride who purposely had a 2 year engagement to make sure my wedding day was perfectly planned out. Having worked with so many of Ottawa’s wedding vendors, I felt a sense of belonging in the industry even though my involvement in the industry was producing wedding trade shows that brought the industry pros together. When the opportunity to start my very own business in the bridal industry came up, I jumped at the chance and haven’t looked back.

Tell us a bride memory that always brings a smile to your face.

I feel like every bride I’ve dealt with over the past 4+ years has put a smile on my face but once specific memory that stands out is when one of our brides had come back to see us to say yes to her dress and even after she had decided that Stevie by MWL was her dress she asked if she could walk around the store in the gown. Of course, I obliged and somehow we ended up sitting in our back office with the bride, the bridal stylist and myself with a bottle of bubbly celebrating with the bride for what seemed like the rest of the day. To this day I still remember that moment and how happy Alex was that she had found her dream dress at our boutique and we were so genuinely happy for as well. Her beautiful wedding is still part of the happiest moments from when I first started the business.

What gets you most excited to go to work each day?

Aside from our gorgeous new space, my staff make it so fun to go to work every day. And of course, knowing that we get to play a part in making a bride’s dreams come true is a pretty good incentive as well. I like to approach each day as a brand new day with exciting possibilities and just the fact that our job is filled with meeting happy people is enough to put me in a good mood every day.

What’s one piece of advice you give to every bride?

The best advice I give to brides is a piece of advice that was given to me when I was planning my wedding and that’s to enjoy every moment. Enjoy every moment of your wedding planning journey because the actual day goes by so fast. I also remind our brides to make sure they steal a private moment with their new spouse on the day of the wedding just to take everything in, enjoy one another’s company, and revel in the fact that all the hard work and planning you went through got you to your special day.

“The fact that our job is filled with meeting happy people is enough to put me in a good mood every day.”

What makes your team stand out from the crowd? Tell us about them!

I honestly have the best team ! As I mentioned, Revelle is a family owned business so myself and my brother, Lorenz, are co-owners. Although Lorenz doesn’t have an active role in the day to day operations of Revelle, he does play a part in any important business decisions especially when it comes to finances. My daughter, Marisa, is Revelle’s Boutique Operations Manager and I honestly don’t know what I would do without her by my side. Marisa takes care of pretty much everything that involves running the boutique including managing our staff, liaising with all our designers, ensuring orders are correct, quality checking brides’ gowns, and everything else in between. She is the one who makes sure everything runs smoothly at Revelle.  Claire is our Boutique Sales Manager and Lead Bridal Stylist and she has the coolest British accent. She’s only been with us for a little over a year but her expertise and knowledge is such an asset to Revelle. As our Sales Manager, she is responsible for ensuring that our inventory is up to date as well as making sure that our Product Knowledge on all our designers is up to speed. As our Lead Bridal Stylist she not only caters to all bridal appointments but she also ensure that the other stylists are performing their jobs to the Revelle standard.  Sarah is our Boutique Assistant and is the first face you see as you enter the Boutique. Sarah welcomes all our brides and their guests in and keeps the boutique in order at all times. Without Sarah, our client experience would not be as incredible as it is because she makes sure our brides are take care of from the moment they walk through our doors.  Micha is our Social Media Manager and she makes sure that our website and online boutique are always updated and that all our social feeds are always featuring inspiring and aesthetically pleasing posts. Taylor and Yolanda are our Bridal Stylists who are there to assist our brides in finding their dream dress and they are pretty good at it too ! I think what makes the Revelle team stand out from the crowd is that we are more than just a group of ladies who work together – we truly are a family. Our mutual love and respect for one another is something I will always cherish and I’m so grateful and proud to have these wonderful ladies in my corner.

What’s one moment in your career in bridal that you’ll never forget?

Every day working in this industry is so rewarding so it’s really hard to pick one moment that is unforgettable. But the most recent thing is definitely our move to this new space we are in. After a pretty rough year with the pandemic and knowing that our owls was forever changed, I knew that in order for our business to grow well, we had to grow. So realizing that we had outgrown our old space and need to move to a bigger and better location was definitely something I will always remember. Despite the challenges that the pandemic brought on, the stress of the renovations and the move, when this new space was finally completed and I walked in knowing we had built this –  that is truly a a special moment that I will never forget.

If you were choosing a MWL dress for your big day, which one would you pick?

That’s such a hard question because there are many amazing MWL dresses and I truly love them all. But if I had to pick one at the moment, it would be Archie. I love everything about that dress – the luxurious crepe fabric, the sexy silhouette, and that cowl back – Archie is modern yet timeless, classy and sexy and definitely makes statement.

Contact.

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