Bill Lippolis is the executive director of Bridal Expo. He lamented to the IFA that men’s formalwear companies are not measuring up to marketing potential when it comes to bridal shows—at least the shows his company produces. Bridal Expo presents events in the New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania, and most often comes up short in participating tuxedo specialists. Bill’s comments were confirmed by lists of exhibitors at other bridal fairs. The Great Bridal Expo’s website shows less than a handful of men’s formalwear suppliers at each event. David’s Bridal and Men’s Wearhouse were the only such vendors at a major fair in Atlanta. They were joined by Zeller Tuxedoes in New York City. In LA, it was back to just David’s and Men’s Wearhouse. It makes one wonder, are David’s and Men’s Wearhouse the giants by default—because few other companies are aggressively going after the bridal fair market?
Bill can’t understand why specialists are reluctant to participate, especially since at every event gowns are in abundance. According to Bill, the men’s formalwear industry’s lack of interest certainly is not due to no demand from consumers. He noted that at a recent show in the greater Philadelphia area 124 couples paid to attend—that’s 124 potential customers. His shows have registered as many as 1,500 couples! As with every show, there was a runway fashion exhibit but it was just gowns. He noted that when tux shops participated they tend found favorable results. Tux exhibitors at recent shows have included Dante Zeller Tuxedo, Sarno & Son Tuxedo, Savvi Formalwear and Chadmoor Formalwear—all NJ based.

For a $700 to $900 fee, the tux exhibitor gets a prime location booth and five models to use in the fashion show. Bill wishes tux vendors and retailers would “… look at the whole picture.” He added that some specialists he approached told him that such shows take up too much time and/or effort. But he quickly counters such claims with numbers. However, sometimes “numbers” don’t come to the total exhibitors might want.
Wendy Graziano is the owner of Chadmoor Formalwear in Turnersville NJ. She has participated in a handful of Bridal Expo events and while she is very polite and positive, she is not necessarily a front-string cheerleader for such happenings. She explained, “The shows are well produced but we found that men’s formalwear isn’t one of the main reasons couples are there. The brides may not be getting married for two to three years so they want to look at florists, caterers and other services that need a lot of advance time. If you’re a detailed follow-up person maybe it could be more beneficial. The show gives the vendors a list of attendees and you can contact them later.” She also noted that at the shows in which she participated, Men’s Wearhouse and/or David’s Bridal were there, too.

Larry Levin, of Expressions Formalwear has a different spin on such events. He found them to be very important to see couple’s reactions to his products and to be in direct contact with the couples. “The more exposure we get the better,” he remarked. Larry admits that it is virtually impossible to keep a perfect count on how much business a bridal event brings in because his company has such a wide and varied marketing campaign, but he guesses that about 10 percent of the couples he sees at a bridal expo will eventually come into the shop. All things considered, that’s an impressive amount of business.

The Bridal Expo deal includes a strong marketing campaign via print and electronic media. For more information visit website bridaltradeshows.com or call 973-546-1503 X 14. The Great Bridal Expo can be reached at 1500 Cordova Road, Suite 306, Ft Lauderdale, FL 33316, Phone 954-522-7001, Fax 954-522-7337, info@greatbridalexpo.com .

Give us your best marketing tip. What special trick sets you apart from the competition?
Send your idea to the IFA’s editorial office at tonydem@juno.cm. Please include your name and phone number. Here are some savvy ideas we found on websites:

• After Hours Formalwear: Deals offering free groom’s tux and $20 off other tuxedos, win 6 free tuxedos, and a cruise or 2 airline tickets.
• Dunhill Tuxedos, Merriville IN, has monthly specials. For October, they were: Free Groom's Tuxedo with 5 paid rentals, free ring bearer's tuxedo and free invitations.
• RSVP Tuxedos in New York features an Internet special coupon offering a groom’s tuxedo rental free plus $20 off every tuxedo rental in the group. All reservations must be made at least two weeks in advance.
• LeSeur’s Tuxedos, Arizona, is wooing the prom crowd with a sweepstakes to win a Laptop, Moped or I-Pod.

Many of the leading bridal magazines’ websites feature photos of actual couples on their wedding days. Considering their enormous popularity, the websites are becoming places couples turn to for ideas as well as information. It might pay off for you to occasionally visit the sites to see what he wore--- your prospective customers certainly are!

Here is such a photo from brides.com:

Bride: Sarah Carmichael
Groom: James Schneider
Location: Lake Walden, Michigan

Wendell Brown, the fashion editor of ESQUIRE reports that the December issue will feature a major special section on formalwear.

Santana is having a blowout sale of pocket squares, $4.50 a dozen. For details call 800-SANTANA.

I am Dennis Schmidt of Milroy’s Tuxedos, the third generation of a reputable tuxedo company for over 45 years. I do not want to talk about myself or Milroy’s at this time (I would love to at another time), but talk about the IFA and this industry today!

The question I have for everyone in the Tuxedo Industry is:

What would be the result of No International Formalwear Association?

My answer: A disaster to any; organization, communications, public relations, standardization & quality issues in product, specialist & manufacturer relationships, optional benefits, and more to the TUXEDO INDUSTRY!

If everyone could be in the board rooms to see how everyone there cares so much about this industry and how we can make it better for everyone (Small or Large)! I have many great friends and relationships with IFA Members who care deeply in the direction of this industry and the IFA Organization! This is not a plea for help or desperation from the IFA, but my personal opinion on my experiences in the last 15 years and the last couple of years being on the board. The truth is, if I didn’t become as dedicated to this industry and the IFA, Milroy’s Tuxedos and I would have not had the successes it has had. I am proud to have every one of my stores & our wholesale division up for the year, ordering new products from manufacturers, and the excitement of dressing the memories of my customers into the future!

I ask of you to please commit your input on this subject and to be completely open, by contacting me personally. Because I do care very much about what I do and this industry’s future & the IFA!


Thank You

Dennis Schmidt
Milroy’s Tuxedos
1216 Commercial Street
Waterloo, Iowa 50702
Phone: 1-800-747-4889
Fax: 1-800-285-7559
Email: dennis@milroystuxedos.com

Send your letter to the IFA newsletter at tonydem@juno.com.

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