Henri’s Cloud Nine

Can’t say enough good things about Henri’s.
First, I knew about them because I once modeled at a bridal show for them in Akron (via their Minerva store), and so I happened to be aware of this as a bridal option. They also sell prom dresses and pageant dresses, but rest assured the bridal department is sophisticated and varied — first blush at the Polaris location can be a bit misleading with a riot of sequins, feathers, and color.
Second, I have to set the scene a little bit. I’ve always wanted the high-​end wedding dress experience with champagne in hand, all the closest women in my life huddled around me in a luxurious changing lounge (not room!). I’m thinking tufted ottomans and cabbage roses. Well, those places also come with at LEAST a 6-​month lead time and at LEAST a $ 3,000 price tag.
Now flash forward to my reality. I’d just impulsively decided to get married on New Year’s Eve, which was less than 5 months away at the time I made such a rash decision (my original wedding date was the following OCTOBER, so we’re talking 10+ months ahead of the original plan). Not enough time to order a custom dress. My champagne tastes were headed to Off-​the-​rack-​ville. I couldn’t do David’s. I just couldn’t (no offense to anyone who goes to David’s, I’ve seen beautiful gowns come from there). Now, Henri’s absolutely has custom dresses that require 6 months (or more) lead time. They also have items available off the rack. It’s the variety that was a perfect fit.
I walked into Henri’s, tried on maybe 4 dresses. Found The One, and we left with it that day. And it was waaaaaay under my dress budget. Like, way. Way way. The best part is that I didn’t even know the price until I’d selected it. Does life ever get that good? I didn’t go anywhere else, though sometimes it was tempting. I also want to add that it was a nasty rainy day, and I had an ulcer on my eyeball so I was feeling about as gross as possible.
I will admit that my experience with the sales person wasn’t great. She didn’t seem to understand the adjectives I was giving her, didn’t seem to help make selections that were right for my venue. Not strapless, no lace. (I like lace, but for NYE it seemed too summery?). I think my mom picked out the dress we eventually bought. Eventually another sales associate took over and we had a better experience. He helped us get excited and make additional suggestions.
My dress was so under budget that I decided to get a second, short «party» dress for the NYE dance-​a-​thon I knew was to come. After looking MANY other places, I eventually found it at – you guessed it– at Henri’s. The costume change was so fun!
Was my wedding gown my 100% perfect DREAM dress? No, but gosh darn it, I really loved it. And if my dress had cost $ 10,000 (as the dresses are I see now and think «oooh, that would have been to-​die!») — honestly?– I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy the dress as much, even if I would have died for it. The cost would probably make me sick and haunt my dreams. For me, Henri’s is the perfect nexus of beautiful, unique gowns and cost. Which is important, because the dress is such an early part of the wedding process — it’s easy to think you have more to spend at the front end. When other costs exceeded budget, I was so glad my dress was under. And it really fit the occasion beautifully. No regrets whatsoever.
Oh, and just to wrap up the story… as soon as we bought the dress, we spontaneously took it to my best friend’s house (her parents have a bridal staircase, aptly named). We brought champagne. My friend’s mom let me borrow some of her diamonds. We had the perfect moment, even if it wasn’t at the dress salon. :)

I had an absolutely fantastic experience at Henri’s shopping for (and eventually purchasing) my wedding dress! My sister and I are both having our weddings a month and a half apart, and we came in to the Columbus store for double appointments during the same time slot. We wondered if this might be a consultant’s nightmare, but they acted so happy to work with us and said they had looked forward to the appointment. We worked with Shawna and Aurilla, who were truly awesome (seriously, if you’re setting up an appointment, ask for one of them!). They did a fantastic job pulling dresses that were exactly the styles we were looking for and they were happy to accept our opinions on the dresses — never trying to convince us to like something we didn’t care for, but also offering options for aspects we might have preferred to change if they were possible for specific gowns we otherwise liked.
I knew I had found my dress by the end of the appointment, but already had another appointment scheduled for later that day. There was no pressure to purchase that day (which I GREATLY appreciated!), and I came back the following week to try on, take pictures, and order and my gown. Aurilla placed my order, as Shawna wasn’t working that day, and Shawna even sent me an e-​mail the following day to tell me congratulations again on my dress and let me know I can always contact her with any follow-​up questions.
I went dress shopping in Dayton, Columbus and Cincinnati and found my dress in several different shops. Henri’s was by far the best deal, even without a sale or special promo. They won’t close the shop down for your appointment and serve you cupcakes and champagne, but they’ll save you precious wedding budget dollars on a beautiful, authentic dress and make you feel like they’re genuinely happy for you to have found the dress that you’re going to get married in, regardless of how much you’re spending. If you’re looking for a great selection, fantastic deal, and wonderful consultants, I highly recommend Henri’s!

Every single time I go in Henri’s the sales associates are the BOOOMB! They are so cute, funny, and they give me the best sales experience I’ve ever had at any clothing store, period. They act like they’re your best friend and are the sweetest guys and girls ever. Also, the music in there is funky and upbeat. I will choose it over Saks any day.
LOVE LOVE LOVE. Getting my first dress tonight!!! (its super hot by the by)