From first try-on to the walk down the aisle, Milan Bridal puts the bride at the heart of it all.
Milan Bridal is a family-run business which specialises in providing high quality dresses with high end service for the bride-to-be on her special day. The boutique was founded by Helen Foye who has had a lifelong passion for all things bridal: “When my grandfather passed away and left me some inheritance, my kids were all grown up and I just had to take the opportunity to stop working and follow my dreams of owning a bridal boutique.”
Helen’s passion for her business is apparent in everything she does, even naming the business ‘Milan’ after her grandfather: “I only do this out of passion – I’m not a corporate business that just wants to make money! My aim is to make the bride as happy as possible.”
Helen has done just that, with over 80 five-star Google reviews, word is spreading. After three years in the Leeds city centre’s Queen’s Arcade, the business moved just around the corner to Lands Lane after Helen found a new, bigger, and more private space with plenty of natural daylight to showcase the dresses.
Booking an appointment at Milan Bridal couldn’t be simpler; Helen has ensured that the website is user-friendly and completely fool-proof! But if online isn’t your bag, you can give the shop a call and speak to Helen or one of the friendly team.
Once your appointment is booked, get ready for a seamless in-store experience that will put you completely at ease: “When the bride arrives, we have a chat about what style she’s looking for, when the wedding is, and if she’s tried anything on before. I then give them free rein to look through our dresses and pick out whatever they want to try on. I encourage them to try on a range of different styles – plain, lace, beaded, ballgown, slim fitting, and more, we have it all!
“Once the dresses have been chosen, we offer drinks and afternoon tea for guests who can get a bit bored waiting around for everything to be tried on in our spacious changing area! They can have some fun while I help the bride showcase the dresses.”
There are plenty of dresses on offer which cater to all budgets, including Richard Designs, Tres Chic, Justin Alexander, and Casablanca – the main designer Milan Bridal works with. Casablanca’s motto is: “A bride should never say ‘I love it, but…’” so any adjustments can be made.
“If you want something a bit more covered for religious reasons, Casablanca does the standard dress and a modest version of it which will have a slightly higher neckline, cap shoulder, or full sleeves for those who want full coverage – they can do literally anything to make the bride fully love her dress. Before you even commit, we’ll send a detailed sketch of what the dress is going to look like so you’re 100% sure.”
A bespoke service is of the utmost importance to Helen and the team, with most designers willing to tweak their dresses and for the finer details, there are seamstresses on hand to make your dream dress a reality.
It isn’t just the bride that Helen looks after, there are dress options for flower girls, bridesmaids, and mother of the bride that all come from a UK company that stocks up to 49 different colours in sizes UK4 to UK32!
The boutique is a one-stop shop for everything you’d need for the big day; there’s also a range of accessories, including veils, shoes, tiaras, and much more: “Even if a bride has bought a dress from somewhere else and still needs accessories, I encourage them to bring in their dress and try everything on together until they’re happy with the whole look.
“I want to be with the bride from the beginning right until the end – I even offer a service where I go to local weddings in the morning and steam the dress or help dress the bride. If this can’t be arranged, before the big day, our seamstresses will sit with whoever will be helping to dress the bride and teach them how to do it over and over until they’re fully confident.”
