Hello everyone, my name's Joy and I'm the Founder of Bone and Grey Bridal. I thought I'd share a bit about our brand backstory in our first ever blog post and how Bone and Grey Bridal came to be!
How Bone and Grey was born
I started this little passion project of mine when I, too, had trouble finding a minimal wedding dress that I loved and one I didn't feel guilty buying for a one-time use. I visited various bridal studios in Canada and Singapore, and felt that the whole customer journey was slow, inefficient, and sometimes awful because of the pushy sales staff who would force me to take a $$$$ gown on the spot. It was actually a blessing whenever I found a studio with staff that didn't make me feel uncomfortable/ guilty and offered great service.
Oftentimes, I found that the studio websites lacked important information such as pricing and the available gowns, which meant I would have to make an appointment in-person and (sometimes) pay a fee just to view gowns I may not buy. There are a lot more intricacies (decision fatigue, ugh!) that I will not rant about but the gist of it is that it could be a lot smoother and fairer for brides with a budget during an already stressful period.
On top of that, while I was visiting my Grandpa back in my hometown in China last year, I got to custom design a gown which was honestly a very eye-opening and wonderful experience that my hands got pretty itchy after that. I take inspiration from gowns I tried on that I loved, what design will stand the test of time, and what's currently trending. Since I'm Canadian-Chinese, I also enjoy combining western styles with Asian influences to create a bridal identity that is unique and representative. More on this later on~
Why it matters (at least for me and maybe for you)
I'm someone who feels strongly about transparency in sharing gown prices upfront, the selection itself, and believes that great design doesn't always need to cost an arm and a leg. This is why I embarked on this journey at the beginning of 2023 (with my own wedding also in the works 
) to start Bone and Grey. We design, source, and produce our gowns from small studios in Singapore and China - to keep batches small and of quality, and to achieve reasonable prices for both our seamstresses and our brides. We also have plans to create a collection of minimal wedding accessories and evening party dresses in the near future!
) to start Bone and Grey. We design, source, and produce our gowns from small studios in Singapore and China - to keep batches small and of quality, and to achieve reasonable prices for both our seamstresses and our brides. We also have plans to create a collection of minimal wedding accessories and evening party dresses in the near future!
The world is moving online and so should the bridal industry. The high cost of bridal gowns, apart from craftsmanship, is usually caused by the high overhead of brick and mortar stores, sales staff, "wedding" mark-up as we all know (and love?), and more. We plan to keep it strictly online via e-commerce with ready-to-wear gowns to keep the costs low and the customer journey smooth. No doubt there would be hesitation and uncertainty of online purchases, especially of high-ticketed items, so we believe our exchange and returns policy should be fair for both the business to survive and for our upcoming brides!
Forever More
Being an e-commerce business, we still want to take part in being sustainable with our business model and I'm a big lover of second-hand/ recycling goods. We may not be able to achieve sustainability so soon but at least we can be sustainable in re-wearing/ re-loving our wedding gowns in this modern world. This is why we came up with Forever More, our bespoke tailoring service for brides who would like to bring their gown in and turn it into an everyday piece. If you purchased a gown from us, you earn credits towards this service. If you didn't, you can still take part in the service if you're looking for a novel way to re-use your gown! It is bespoke so every creation is catered to your needs and how you envision wearing your Forever More piece. I personally would love to turn my gowns into a future mini or midi evening dress for events and occasions (5-year vow renewal perhaps?). Email us if you're keen to get started!
Are you a #BGBride?
First of all, if you've read all the way down to here, thanks so much! If you haven't already, take a look at our #BGBride journey to understand more about how we work! I know that it may not be for everybody but I believe that as long as the fit is great, the style is timeless and elegant, the price is right, and the return and exchange policy is fair, we see it working in the long run for lots of modern brides to-come. I also enjoy taking in feedback to understand how we can improve our gowns and services further so don't hesitate to send in an email to share! Since we're still a young seedling, we're definitely on the lookout for cool partnerships and ways to collaborate so feel free to email us about that as well!
I hope you got a glimpse into my personal ambition and our company mission, and that you'll be a part of our journey - or just spread the love about our shop with your friends and family, every share counts. I will continue to share more about the journey and stories to come, thank you for reading and hope to see you again!
