Rosa Clara: The bridal gown store that smashed a myth and became a smash hit
There is a pamahiin in some Filipino families (including in mine, once upon a time) that a bride should not try on her finished wedding gown before the wedding day for fear that the wedding might not push through.
Thus, when banker Valerie Villar Zayco was approached 15 years ago to launch Rosa Clara, a Spanish bridal gown line that offered both RTW and custom-made wedding gowns, she decided to push the envelope.
“Fifteen years ago, we were thinking, ‘Are Filipinos ready for RTW wedding gowns? But then I had this feeling for wedding gowns because I saw my peers buying their gowns abroad. They would go to Los Angeles, they would go to Hong Kong to buy wedding gowns. And I thought, maybe it’s time that we have it here in the Philippines,” Valerie, co-founder and managing partner of Rosa Clara Manila, shares.
Rosa Clara is a real woman, a stunning designer who founded her namesake brand of wedding dresses in 1995 in Barcelona. This began the first chapter of an exciting story in which she changed the rules of bridal fashion. Rosa Clara dressed up the brides of both Rafa Nadal and Lionel Messi, to name a few.
Rosa Clara is now all over the world, but Rosa Clara Manila in Greenbelt is its only store in East Asia, according to Valerie. When it first opened 15 years ago, it was the only English-speaking branch, she adds.
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And judging by its success, Filipinos and Filipinas have challenged the myth that fitting one’s wedding dress is bad luck.
On the contrary, Valerie believes one should fit one’s wedding dress for the perfect fit and to get the full picture of how one should look on what is arguably the most important day in a woman’s life. Why take a chance?
“I realized there were so many brides who wanted that concept. It’s kind of like a sense of women empowerment. Like the young brides were saying, ‘I want to choose my dress. I want to see how it looks like already, instead of guessing how it will turn out’.”
“The Filipina 15 years ago was already very modern. Because during our parents’ time, you couldn’t wear RTW. They believed it was bad luck. So in the beginning, we had some moms who raised that superstition and so we said, ‘Okay, we won’t make her wear the entire thing’.”
But more importantly, Valerie realized that there were brides who had bad experiences with custom-made gowns. “Because their dress was not done. Or it did not come out to their liking.”
To see is to believe
In the beginning, Rosa Clara’s first few brides were women whose weddings were in two weeks.
Rosa Clara isn’t, however, completely RTW.
“It’s not like you pick your dress out of the hanger, and that’s it. But it’s not like that. It’s still sort of a blend. We basically have about a hundred gowns in the store. You try on the one you like. When you like it, we take your measurements. We order the closest size from Spain. And then it’s sent here. It takes about six, seven months also.”
“And then when the dress arrives, we do whatever little alterations left, like the hemline. We have in-house tailors who are trained,” this happily married former expat wife explains the process. “And the funniest thing is, people are always shocked with our price range. Relatively, they are not as expensive as some people would assume. You want to look beautiful. But you don’t have to sell your left arm for it. Right?”
There are also brides who live overseas and order from Rosa Clara Manila eight months before their wedding. They arrive in Manila eight days before the wedding, and have the dress altered then.
But! There are brides who can’t wait eight months, eight weeks, or eight days. These brides buy the sample dresses, and then Rosa Clara tailors do the alterations.
“But can you believe, on our first year, we had a bride come to us a week before her wedding. She was saying, ‘I don’t know if my gown is going to come out on time. But I’m going to give my designer a chance.’ She was kind of distraught. Then we were not expecting her to show up at 7 p.m., two hours before the store closed, the night before her wedding. She was crying. Her dress was not done. Our tailors had to alter one of the dresses that she liked. They were up till 2 a.m. And we delivered the dress the next day at 10 a.m., as requested,” Valerie, who is now Manila-based with her husband and son, looks back.
“We saved her wedding,” Valerie smiles. “The bride was so grateful. And the gown looked good. Perfect.”
Valerie says both the bride and the wedding dress are transformed when the dress is tried on. And the expression on the face of the bride is priceless.
“It’s such an amazing experience.The brides cry, just trying on the dress. And the moms always cry.”
“It’s such a nice emotional moment. We’re very lucky to be in a happy business. And the brides come back later, happily married,” she notes—even if they did fit their wedding dress.
Happiness can be worn, its memories embroidered in hearts and minds for a lifetime!
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