In lieu of prom season coming around again, I'd like to share the wonderful experience I had at LaMerite. Last year, shopping for a prom dress could not have been more stressful. My mom and I searched all over and went to numerous shops only to find cheaply made dresses for exaggerated prices. This was until we visited LaMerite. My mom had gotten her wedding dress at LaMerite. She always had fond memories of the shop and thus, the idea of looking for a prom dress there appeared. This shop truly is a hidden gem. We were greeted by the owner himself, who showed us around. There was a wide selection of stock for very decent prices. The owner was very patient with us browsing and I never once felt as though I was a burden. I tried on many dresses. The fitting rooms are very roomy. There's a pedestal, mirrors, and different lighting options so you can view the dress at every angle. I was very pleased with my experience at this shop. The whole ordeal has become a fond memory of my prom experience itself, rather than just a purchase. The owner also suggested a nearby business for alterations. The woman we did business with was very kind. Other than basic alterations and hems to fit my dress, I also wanted for the style of the skirt to be adjusted. There was a slit in the front that I didn't care for. It was pleated and very open, just not my style. I had imagined a more discreet style of slit. The lady listened, understood the vision I had, and perfectly executed it. read more

Lamerite - LaMerite dress after alterations - Bridal Near Me - Saint Ann, Missouri

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My grandmother bought her wedding dress suit from this store when she was married. My mother bought the wedding dress for her first marriage at this store. It was at the behest of my mom that I tried to plan this lovely wedding dress shopping experience for myself, my mother, my step-mother, my grandmother, and my cousin at this location. So despite the negative reviews, I dove in. Due to unforeseen circumstances the day ended up including my mother, my father, and my cousin instead. Art and his assistant handled the family drama of the day beautifully, and they found a dress my mother loved which I approved of. Those were the only two positives which came from my experience with this boutique. The state of the physical location is horrible. The bathroom has been broken for over two years now. There is a strong need for updates in decorations and lighting. Their stock never seems to rotate, and everything feels cluttered. The rooms where people try on clothes are absolutely terrible. Making an appointment is impossible, as they operate by the standard of, "We'll be open, just come on in." Not once during any of my visits did I feel as if my business was a priority. This particularly bothered me, as each trip to visit I was driving from Indiana! As soon as anyone else entered the store, they abandoned us and left to help them. We were left alone for nearly half an hour multiple times! Art is skilled at picking out the best color schemes and fantastic clothes for people to wear. However, he isn't consistent when it comes to details. He completely reconfigured our order, which cost us more money, to maximize the appearance of our wedding party in photos. We paid in full, and then he failed to enter the order appropriately, costing us even more money. The day before our wedding we had to run to a suit shop in town and pray they had the same tie. EUREKA! THEY DID! We even had to change the colors of the groomsmen a little bit. Thankfully because of the ties they still matched. Everything at their business is done on paper, and they are extremely disorganized. It looks as if they haven't had a proper cleaning since the 70's. They need a new system! Computers, a secretary, and scheduling! The person they use for alterations is absolutely horrible. She charged $280 to take in the sides of bridesmaid dress. The dress itself only cost $240! In total, we spent over $2700 dollars for a wedding dress, two bridesmaid dresses, one bridesmaid alteration, two suit rentals, two shoe rentals, and two vest / tie sets. The vest and tie sets were the wrong colors, and one of the two sets didn't even include a tie. This place needs a huge revamp, or they need to close. It wasn't worth my time, and it definitely wasn't worth our money. read more

Lamerite - The Entrance to La Merite Bridal - Bridal Near Me - Saint Ann, Missouri

I love all of their dresses! I've referred friends here for quince dresses and they've all loved them. I've also bought a dress from here for a wedding and loved how beautiful and affordable all of the options are! read more

Excelente. Muy recomendable. Affordable. Just perfect service. Very good quality as well

When I got my wedding dress and bridesmaids dresses here in 2006, I had no issues. Since my closest friend ordered her wedding dress here last summer, she's had nothing but problems. She ordered it on 8/16/21 and was told it would arrive by the end of the year (the paperwork says the average is 14 weeks for delivery). Then that it would arrive by February 4. Then February 25. Then March 11. Then it was overnighted on March 14, but somehow didn't arrive until March 16 (the owner refused to provide the tracking number through all of this). The dress was two and a half months late! The bride left for her destination wedding on March 20, leaving her only days to get alterations done that normally take weeks. We wanted Art (the owner) to at least pay for the alterations, but he said it wasn't his problem and offered no recompense other than pressing her gown for free (which I think was already part of the deal). Alterations were another issue. The shop he sent us to for alterations on the bridesmaids' dresses when they came in (Alterations & Tailoring For Your Elegance) was overpriced, and when we told them we were going to take the dresses and go elsewhere, the women were very rude and condescending. Thankfully, I found another shop (Irina's Tailor Shop & Alterations) that was fairly priced, completed the bridesmaids' dresses in a timely manner, and the dresses fit well. They were even able to complete the bridal gown alterations within just two days so we could get it back to La Merite to press it before the bride left town the very next day. The reception is in June and we will wear our dresses again, but none of us will be taking our dresses back to La Merite for cleaning and pressing. read more

Coming from the Fiancé of a future bride, at all costs find another store to purchase from. Judging hy the horror stories she and her bridal party came home with, the owner is incredibly rude and unprofessional (instances include insulting customers appearance, insulting customers based on their age, being entirely unhelpful as he assumed the only dresses they could afford would be off the budget rack and refusing to find anything not on it, and chasing them out after the 10th dress). Buyers be warned, their are many more helpful shops that will not make you miserable about the dress purchasing process. read more

Have you ever been to a wedding shop where the owner will not allow you to order your actual size? Well this is one. We went in to purchase bridesmaids dresses and a wedding dress for an upcoming wedding. I was size for a size 10, let's remember a size 10, and one of his workers verbally said that he (the owner) ordered it in 14 because he felt like my measurements matched what the company suggested. But I wear a 10. And agreed to a 12. Please tell me how did I manage to get a size 14 in the dress? It fell off me like a hoola hoop. Now mind you, I have shopped here for my wedding 3 years ago, I have had other brides come there for their wedding because I am a planner, and we have spent thousands of dollars with this man and his company. For him to tell me he will not pay for my dress as well as the other girls dresses to get fixed. He over talked me the entire time I was on the phone yelling "That's your opinion about the size". Now please tell me, how is my size my opinion when the dress clearly says a 14 inside and all of my other bridesmaids dresses even from a wedding 3 months ago is a 10? Now I warn you, unless you are looking to feel intimidated, be gipped out of your money, and not be taken care of the owner then this is your place. I normally leave amazing reviews for this place....but this time I'm out of a extra $120.00 to get my entire dress made into a new. Let's not forget the bride is clearly a size 14/16 in girls and a size 0 in women. And he order her entirely too big. Now she has to pay almost 300.00 for alterations. He said it's our fault because we are this size. And he also said that the junior bridesmaids "looks like she is a size 18". Mind you we are talking about a 12 year old. Who is maybe if maybe a size 12. DO NOT SHOP HERE IF YOU WANT TO LOSE MONEY! P.S. I had to hang up on hi because he just would not allow me to talk and told me my opinion does not matter it's what he puts on paper is what matters. What a joke! read more

I dont know what is wrong with this guy and very surprised this place is still in business. I have to wonder if it is a front for an illegal business for him to keep it open. 7 years ago I went here for bridesmaid dresses and he was constantly yelling "No pictures". Well what he cant see doesn't hurt him. My sister went there recently and first he was late opening the store and then he didn't have dresses in the store and while she looked through the catalogue she was writing styles she liked down and he yelled at her that she couldn't do that. She was like ok then we are done, I have girls all over the country. It makes me wonder if the designers he is suppose to carry know he doesn't keep dresses in the store. I can just do this online myself what he is doing in his store. read more

I went to Lamerite Bridal Shop the other day with my mom just looking to see if they had something on sale for my niece's wedding. When we walked in, a gentleman, which I would not call a gentleman, asked us what we were looking for. We told him we wanted to look at what they had on sale and he pointed us in the direction of the sale items. He then came up to us and proceeded to tell me, "Well, these dresses will not fit you since you have this" and patted my stomach. He was so rude and insensitive, and should have never touched me without permission. I have never been so offended in my life. I will never step foot in that store again nor will I ever recommend them to anyone. It's not even worth the one star. read more

If you are a bride who is interested in having as low a stress as possible for your wedding. Including having your dream dress made specifically for you and having it catered to you. Do not go to this shop. Art the man who runs it will be very very nice to and extremely helping until he gets all of your payments and you are done paying for your dress. Not only did i have issues with his customer service. My tiara was 1) not the tiara i ordered, and two was not broken and bent. When i asked if it could be returned so close to the wedding date Art said he would call the company and ask for a replacement. He never called the company. The tiara sat in plain view for at least a week. When i asked for my money back because i found the tiara unsavory he refused to return my money. I had to send my mom in to get my money back. (Which she was indeed able to do). I finally got my dress one week before the wedding. Which it took almost 9 months to get to me after it had been ordered. I was fitted for it and it was altered and looked amazing. When i finally went to go sign and take my dress for my wedding. My mom who was extremely untrusting of Art decided to open my dress the dress. As my mother was opening my dress Art disappeared into his office. The reason for his duck and cover move was because my dress was filthy and extremely wrinkled. It had other scraps of dresses stuck to it. This was after i had just had my last fitting and it was perfect. My mom confronted Art about what was wrong he proceeded to tell not only her but me as well that he had pressed the dress and that he felt that nothing was wrong, and that not only had he pressed the dress that his elderly father who also worked in this family run dress shop had pressed it as well. The one saving grace was Arts assistant who took my dress and cleaned. (this all occurred the friday before my wedding. My wedding was on a sunday). I returned for my dress a couple of hours later and it looked extremely presentable b. The lady who had fixed my dress worked extremely hard and was even wiling to spend even more time on it and even refused to leave the store until i felt my dress was presentable. I really liked the assistant who wanted to remain anonymous when i wrote about this shop. She was extremely helpful and very kind and reassured me that she was going to report the store owner. The day of my wedding finally arrived and when i went to put on my dress. I realized that the front of my dress was steamed way to much and the fabric had gathered . Also the whole entire zipper on the back of my dress came off. My mom had to safety pin the whole dress to my corset and then fashion pin the whole dress closed. It held the whole night. and the bridesmaids were able to pin the dress in a way that made the front look presentable and have a completely different design. Not only was my dress massacred the bridesmaids were treated horribly and that they too had slits in the pockets in their dresses and had a hard time getting a straight answer from the guy. Art Was absolutely horrible to everyone once he was able to get all the money he was owed and if there was any flaw with anything he wouldn't accept responsibility he would just say "In my professional opinion it looks completely fine" If you are looking for a dress shop to cater to you and you are looking for someone to help you make the best decisions for you and help you make your big day amazing then do not go to La Merite Bridal Shop. They will ruin your big day. DO NOT GO HERE!!!!!! read more

This dress shop is TERRIBLE and I definitely DO NOT recommend using them. My Mom ordered her dress back in May an we are now 3 days from my wedding and she still has not gotten her dress! The owner has told her that they don't know where the dress is and that it could be caught up in "customs" from china and may not arrive in time. As a solution, he offered us the stained, torn, and used sample dress at FULL PRICE and won't fix it! Are you kidding me? NOT ACCEPTABLE! We went in today to request a refund as I said the wedding is in 3 days so we found my mom a different dress. He refused to refund the deposit saying he hasnt done anything wrong and the dress "could still come in before the wedding." He claims that because I think it is unacceptable to not have a dress 3 days before the wedding that is my "opinion" and most people do not have a problem with that.... Right I'm sure most brides do everything at the last minute! The owner is incredibly rude, unorganized and is a poor poor businessman and has absolutely no concern about the stress of me or my mother not having a dress. According to him, he has done everything right! What a joke! Thank God I didn't get my wedding dress from him! Take your business elsewhere if you want to avoid headaches like this before your big day. He needs to be SHUT DOWN! read more

My experience here has been nothing but an absolute nightmare. When I first bought the dress I was really impressed by the caring demeanor of Debra, one of the salesladies, however, the owner Art's attitude left much to be desired. I had a baby 10 months ago and I have a lot of extra skin that makes me look big around the middle, but there's absolutely nothing I can do about that. He kept insinuating that I should lose weight before my wedding and kept asking me if I was "really happy with [my] figure." I kind of rolled my eyes and went on from there. When I went to get the dress altered (the third time I had ever tried it on) the zipper broke. The seamstress offered to replace it for $55. I went to La Merite and spoke with Art as I felt this was a defective product and the cost of replacing the zipper should be his responsibility. He and one of his salespeople kept talking about how "all the zippers on these gowns are so cheap, they're made in China and they don't put strong enough zippers in them for the weight of the fabric," which I feel is basically admitting that they're selling an inferior product. He also kept mentioning my weight and insisting I probably gained weight and that's why the zipper broke. (I had actually lost 5 lbs in the time between buying the dress and having it altered.) He refused to do anything other than talk to the seamstress for me to see if she'd reduce her price. I wouldn't allow him to, as it wasn't the seamstress's responsibility that the cheap zipper on the dress broke, it was the fault of his inferior product. I then had the dress sent back to them for cleaning and pressing (I had prepaid for it when purchasing the dress, or I would have sent it elsewhere) and when I went to pick it up on the arranged date, it was completely wrinkled and had not been pressed. When I FINALLY picked up the dress, I got it home and found that my PERMANENT French bustle I had had installed (I am having an outdoor wedding and do not want to have a train) had been untied and not put back in. This bustle cost me over $100 to have done and has something like 20 points in it, it's not a regular bustle that you'd just do up quickly after a ceremony. It's really obviously not meant to be undone. We have no idea how to fix it and will have to take it back to the seamstress (and probably pay more money) so she can retie the whole thing. This shop has wasted so much of my time and money through their utter incompetence and lack of caring. I will never be back for any reason, and I don't recommend that anyone use them. The hassle and cost of fixing their mistakes is just too much for anyone, especially a stressed-out bride! read more

Went there as a last resort to get a formal gown for my sons wedding. I explained exactly what I wanted and they found it for me in about 5 minutes. They are very polite, friendly, helpful and listen to what you tell them. they do not try and get you to buy something you don't want or like. My gown is beautiful and totally me. read more

DO NOT GO HERE. I had an absolutely awful experience that I wish to spare any future bride from going through. I ordered my bridesmaid dresses here. There was a woman working here who was very helpful and kind, but Art, the owner, is a devious, malicious conman. He took the measurements of my bridesmaids himself, then ordered the wrong sizes and style of dresses. They were late coming in, and instead of admitting his mistake and apologizing, he became belligerent and accused me of ordering the wrong dresses when I had the paperwork that proved otherwise. When I demanded a refund or that he at least pay for the extensive alterations that would need to take place (ON THE WRONG STYLES OF DRESSES IN THE WRONG SIZES), he refused and HUNG UP ON ME. I ended up having one of my pluckier bridesmaids go in to the store and make these demands for me. He ended up paying for part of the alterations, but I don't think it was him trying to make things right so much as his seamstress seeing how horrifically he treated us. I called him several times after this to try to get an apology or refund, and was typically hung up on or laughed at. I can't comprehend how he is still in business -- I think brides must go to him and get swindled and not check reviews before-hand. That is what happened to me. If you are a bride and you are even considering this place, I beg you not to! Save yourself the head and heartache that is Art, the owner of this store. read more

DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM THIS SHOP (doesn't deserve to be called a business). If I could have given this shop negative 5 stars I would have. This will be long so please read and be advised that the owner and his store manager Diane are ripping individuals off. My mother and I have already reported him to the Better Business Bureau and we plan on contacting the news to expose him as well. My mother ordered her mother of the bride dress on April 24th for my upcoming wedding on 9.2.18. The owner guaranteed her it would arrive in 12-14 weeks. This was lie. The owner has a clause in the contract that states they have up to and including the event date to ship your gown. Simply put, they have until the day of your wedding to receive the dress in store. What person in their right mind would wait to receive a special garment for a special day until the day of? No one! But he has a clause and because most people do not read contracts thoroughly, they get screwed by this con artist and his bed wench Diane. The owner lied to my mom on 3 occasions and told her (after the 12-14 week window had passed of course) that the dress would be in. Each date he gave the dress never appeared. He gave several excuses and none made any sense. The final date he gave my mom was Tuesday, 8.21.18. My mother still had not received her dress by this week. Thus, she decided to go and purchase a dress from David's Bridal. Per the representatives there, they have had to put out many fires due to La Merite's carelessness. They have countless stories of dress orders he has ruined for many clients. My mom ordered a dress from David's and it will be here next week. Meanwhile, my mother spoke to the owner, she informed him she could no longer wait and purchased another dress and asked for a refund. Up until this point, the owner had been respectful, however, he turned on her and told her "that was her problem" and he yelled at my mother for several minutes. He then told her that her dress would be in on Tuesday and that he would not grant a refund. With a police escort, my mother arrived to the shop on Tuesday morning. Diane the bed wench, pretended that he was in a meeting but per the other reviews, you will find that he runs and hides instead of confronting customers he has severely disappointed. They had a dress there. The dress she ordered was blush (light pink) the dress they gave her was dark pink. My mother is out of over $200 + due to this failure of company. I spoke with Diane the bed wench yesterday who lied twice. First she stated that the dress came from a new vendor and they had never worked with them before THEN she backed tracked and said the vendor had never done this before IN HER 7 YEARS OF WORKING THERE. So is it a new vendor or an old one? Either way, the entire experience was awful but I know my mom will look beautiful on my wedding day thanks to David's Bridal. BUYER BEWARE. They order from China and have no clue when your dress will be in. The reason why this shop remains open is because they have a clause in a contract that guarantees them they will not have to refund. DON'T PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM THIS HELL HOLE! read more

At first the service was great! Art, the owner seemed to really want my sister's special day to be perfect. He was there to assist her every wedding need. Then... when he received the last payment on the dresses, his attitude completely changed. He was no longer gracious, no longer helpful, and no longer around to be in fact. He let all of his workers handle everything. And would not come when requested by his customers. The tiara my sister ordered was bent and crooked. Not to mention is was the wrong style completely. The owner did not care. He said he was going to send it back but didn't. He was upset when we asked for our money back or to possibly exchange the value of the tiara for one of the dresses a bridesmaid had not paid for. This was another issue he tried to pass on to his employees. When my sister's wedding dress was finally finished being altered she went to pick it up from the shop and it was dirty. Like someone had thrown it on the floor in a corner (no exaggeration). It was wrinkled and he didn't seem to care. All the while I am seeing my sisters eyes swell up with tears she so desperately tried to hold back. That was the last straw for me. I am a very quiet and easy going person. But my sister's wedding is in 2 days and she does not need the added stress of a money hungry, bitter salesman who doesn't value his customers and who speaks to them in front of his workers and other clientele in a negative and demeaning tone. If you want your wedding day to be special, I advise you to not visit this establishment. read more

DO NOT GO HERE!! I'm a bridesmaid in my sister's wedding. I'm the only one who lives here in St. Louis so I went to go solo to try on the bridemaid dress she picked out. La Merite was the only shop open on Sundays with this particular dress, so when I had extra time I decided to swing by. I actually called first to make sure they had the dress and they were polite enough on the phone. But when I got there, the employees were as rude and disrespectful as could be. They for some reason got it in their heads that I was from out of town, which I repeatedly told them was not the case. The man working there practically threw a size 10 dress at me and walked away. I had to run after him to ask if there were other sizes to try on so I could find a smaller size to see which size fit me best. His response was "you're from out of town right? you're not going to buy the dress from here." Once I explained again that I live in town, he reluctantly gave me a smaller size. As I was leaving, I ran into a woman sales associate, and she also looked at me and said, "you're not going to buy the dress from here, are you?" The fact is I could have easily bought the dress from them, but the way they treated me, ignored me, refused to listen to me, and made assumptions about me made me run out the door. These people are rude. They probably assume people won't buy from them because all their potential customers get disgusted and walk away. I can't even imagine how horrible they must make brides feel on a day that is supposed to be special. read more

I read all of the reviews for LaMerite before I chose to do business with them and admittedly was nervous. I'll also admit that the owner Art can come off as rude and cantankerous at times. HOWEVER, he knows what he's doing. IF you get past the abrasiveness, you should really listen to his suggestions on dresses and tuxes. He knows the business and he knows what he's talking about. We did our entire bridal party here. Our bridesmaids dresses were ordered and yes, from China, but they came in as expected.. even a week earlier. The tuxes were from two different manufacturers... there was a problem that one of them arrived in the wrong color... Art called me straight away on that Monday and said hey, I went through the order thoroughly, this mistake was found. Don't you worry, I'm already fixing it. ALL tuxes were there in the proper sizes and colors in plenty of time. I didn't have much interaction with Dianne herself, but I did run into her at dinner one evening .. we happened to be in the same place ... she remembered my name and asked how things were going. Very pleasant and friendly inside the shop and outside. I'd like to say THANK YOU to Art and Dianne for making our special day so beautiful. read more

I know there are some poor reviews for this shop here, and I was a little cautious when I saw the reviews after I'd purchased my dress here. However, I have nothing but good things to say about La Merite. A dear friend of mine also purchased her dress here, and her mother did before her! My sales associate, Debra, was superb and extremely sweet. She helped me shop for what I wanted and picked out several dresses for me to try on that aligned with styles I was after, as well as encouraged me to try on one or two outside my criteria, just so I could be sure. :) She also remembered me on return visits! The shop also gives discounts for bridesmaids dresses and preservation services if you purchase your dress there. I paid off the dress early and took it home for a bit to try it on with all the pieces. Had my dress fittings through their recommended alterations place across the street, and those came out beautifully. After it was altered, Art picked it up and pressed and steamed everything. The dress was ready on time and looked amazing. He showed me the dress when I picked it up and made sure it was well-supported and hung so it wouldn't wrinkle. My wedding day was perfect, and he even asked for me to send a picture after the day so he could add it to their collection. I will be going shortly to have my dress preserved through this shop, as well. La Merite is a small, independent shop, but I got the caring, customer-oriented experience that is rare to find in this industry. Definitely recommended! read more

I originally visited this shop with one of my bridesmaids to find a dress for her and the rest of my bridesmaids for my beach wedding (which was 7/13/12). She decided to browse the bridal dresses as well picked out a dress that she insisted I try on. It was the first dress I tried in my search and it ended up being the perfect dress for me. During that first visit we had an odd encounter with the owner, he barged into the fitting room (in the middle of my bridesmaid trying on her dresses) so he could "bring clarity to our shopping process" since we had too many dresses in the fitting room according to him. We were actually doing just fine on our own and were left in awe by his unwelcome opinions and "help". I should have known then that this was not the place for me to purchase my dress, it was such a unique dress and I was so sure it was the one for me, that I returned a few weeks later with my mother and the rest of my bridesmaids. We once again had a run in with the owner in the dressing room, this time much worse. I was ready to purchase the dress before he came into the picture, but his rude, insensitive manner during the fitting process left me in tears. We walked out of the shop and refused to go through with the dress purchase there, despite one of the sales ladies efforts to smooth things over. She acted as though this sort of thing happened all the time - and was very sweet but I could not stand the thought of having to face that man again each time I came in for a fitting or to pick up the dress. I searched all over town to find another shop to order the dress for me, and I am SOOO glad I did after reading all of the other reviews. Shopping for a wedding dress should be such a happy thing, and he ruined it for me and my wedding party read more