Showpo enters new category with first bridal collection

Heather McIlvaine

4th Jun 2019

Women’s fashion site Showpo has expanded into the bridal category with the launch of its first collection of affordable wedding dresses.

The retailer’s Wedding Shop, which launched on Thursday, May 30, offers dresses, jumpsuits and two-piece sets for brides, bridesmaids and wedding guests, as well as shoes, accessories, beauty and lifestyle products for weddings, hen’s nights and engagement parties.

The move into bridal wear was based on internal data, according to the online retailer. Occasion wear has long been its best-performing category, but recently, Showpo has seen strong growth in bridesmaid-appropriate styles.  

At the same time, the team noticed a gap in the market for affordable wedding dresses in the range of sizes and styles that Showpo typically offers.

“We know how expensive weddings can  be and we don’t think a bride should have to compromise on looking and feeling amazing on their special day because of their budget,” Showpo CEO Jane Lu said in a statement about the launch.

According to Easy Weddings’ 2018 Australian Wedding Industry Report, the average cost of a wedding is $31,368, and the average price of a wedding dress is $2552.

Many of the dresses in Showpo’s Wedding Shop cost around 10 per cent of that. And all of the dresses, jumpsuits and two-piece sets come in a range of sizes, with most available in sizes 4 through 20.

The retailer is looking to further expand its Wedding Shop over the next few weeks with sleep and swim wear for brides and bridesmaids and more gift wear and accessories.

Showpo has set itself the goal of reaching $100 million in annual turnover by 2020 and has consistently said it is on track to reach its goal. New categories like the Wedding Shop and international expansion – the retailer recently opened a pop-up in Los Angeles – are helping to drive growth.

The retailer also continues to expand its existing categories with 105 new styles landing each week – all of which are designed in-house in Sydney. The next collection to launch will be its ‘Euro Vacay’ collection, which caters to Australian customers travelling overseas during the Southern Hemisphere winter.