Building a relationship of trust is vital for any business. In the first place, it may seem that the most important relationship is with the client. While the relationship with the client is crucial, a relationship that can suddenly go unnoticed and that is essential for a business to work is with the suppliers.

As we’ve mentioned in other articles, without serious and committed suppliers, there would be no inventory to sell. This is why, once you’ve found a good supplier, it’s very important to create a trusting relationship with her.

To be competitive in retail, a successful relationship with suppliers is necessary. Of course, the relationship should mutually benefit, because together you can make each other’s business grow stronger and thrive.

Here are some valuable tips that will help you build a relationship of trust with your suppliers.

❒ Keep good communication with your suppliers

Communication is essential. If you like a product or service, let them know. Also let them know if you don’t feel completely satisfied with the quality of another. This will help providers understand what they are doing well and what they should improve, which will be beneficial for your store.

Also, carefully check the orders you receive and if something is not right, tell them as soon as possible; this way you will avoid misunderstandings later.

❒ Get to know them better

If you can, visit their facilities and learn about their procedures. This will help you know what their strengths and limitations are, which is very useful to establish the expectations of the business relationship.

❒ Comply with dates and times

If you and your suppliers have an established schedule, respect it. Also, don’t cancel or change the meeting dates. Just like you, they are working, and those changes can affect them. Time is worth gold for everyone, so meeting dates and schedules efficiently will make both parties feel much happier and satisfied.

❒ Submit your orders on time

Plan your boutique’s needs ahead of time. This will avoid running out of stock, will help your suppliers to meet their delivery times, and will allow volume purchases.

Knowing your suppliers’ inventory and production schedule is essential to do this, so make sure you know them from the beginning of your business relationship.

❒ Pay your suppliers on time

And of course, pay your suppliers on time. This promotes respect and trust, plus they will feel happy working with you and will want to continue doing it in the best way. Also, you will increase their goodwill and it’ll be easier to encourage future discounts or synergies that benefit both.

A business relationship based on trust, loyalty, and transparency leads to the success of companies and to enjoy a competitive advantage in the market.

Bridesmaids play a significant role in the wedding. They are the women the bride trusts the most, with whom she has shared some of her best moments and those who have always been there for her, in both good and bad times. For any bride, her wedding is one of the most important days in her life, so having these special women close is very meaningful.

The choice of bridesmaid dresses can be simple if you consider a few essential points. At GLS, we want to share with you some tips that will make the decision-making process easier.

The first thing to consider is the place where the event will take place. Of course, it’s not the same to choose a dress for a beach wedding than for one in the city; for a day or night party; and for hot or cold seasons.

For daytime weddings, simpler dresses and soft colors are usually worn. On the beach and hot places, you should think a lot about the fabric is light and airy, and even take into consideration the neckline and length of the dress.

Evening weddings tend to be more elegant, with dresses in more intense colors and details such as beads and crystals. If it’s going to be a winter wedding, consider looking for thicker fabrics.

Once knowing the place, time, and season, you should be aware of the style of the wedding, which is determined by the couple. Maybe it’s going to be a winter wedding in the city, but with a very relaxed vibe; or perhaps it’ll be an event on the beach, but extremely elegant. So this is also important for choosing the bridesmaid dresses.

Some brides prefer that all their bridesmaids wear exactly the same dress. But others only want their ladies to wear the same color and fabric, and that each one of them brings their personal style to the dress. If this is the case, then by knowing the two previous points, each bridesmaid can choose the style that pleases her most. Maybe the halter neckline is more comfortable for one of them, or another loves the two-piece dresses trend. Options are endless!

The reason why there are different shapes and necklines in dresses is to accent the best of each body.

For example, for thinner bodies, A-line and mermaid shape dresses are very flattering; while more curvy silhouettes look wonderful in empire waist and two-piece dresses.

Girls with small busts can enhance their upper body with sweetheart and asymmetric necklines. Ladies with larger bust sizes will feel very comfortable with a strapless or high neckline.

Do you own or manage a dress boutique? Congratulations! We are sure that you will do everything in your power to make it a thriving business.

Of course, the most important element for a dress boutique to work are its suppliers. Without them, there would be no inventory to sell. Also, and equally importantly, the success of your business can largely depend on the quality of your suppliers.

Are you worried about how to find the right suppliers for your boutique? Here, we will share with you some useful tips that will help you find the best suppliers for your dress boutique.

➤ Search online

Let’s go to the basics: an online search -you can find practically anything and everything on Google.

And while the big search engine will find almost any piece of information you ask, it can’t guarantee the quality and professionalism of the options offered. For that, it’s necessary that you make initial contact with the company and begin communication to get to know how serious it is, the experience it has in the industry and the quality of the products it offers.

➤ Communication is key

Communication with suppliers is vital to ensure a healthy and fruitful relationship.

It’s useless to have a supplier with beautiful dresses, if communication is poor, because that will lead to operational difficulties, such as untimely delivery, lack of collaboration for business growth, unreliable customer service, and ultimately, and unsustainable relationship or even business failure.

Make sure that communication is transparent and efficient from the get go, and if it isn’t, it’s time to say: next!

➤ Shipping times

Be strict with shipping times.

If the supplier is not meeting shipping times, let her know that the business relationship can end -you simply can’t run out of stock due to poor organization of your suppliers!

Customer satisfaction is key and a fundamental part of that is to have their choices in stock.

➤ Quality

In today’s day and age of online and other impulsive buying behaviors, customer returns are peaking. Thus, it is critical that you place a top priority on quality. The elements that make a quality dress includes materials, decorations, design, construction and fit. Selling a quality dress will keep customer returns low, and thereby enhance your boutique’s brand.

➤ Price, Margin and Price Protection

In addition to quality, price is also important. At the end of the day, you’re running your business to make money.  Don’t just go for the lowest priced product, but find a product that will leave your business with a reasonable margin. Also, in today’s competitive market, you will find cutthroat competitors that will slash prices with the primary purpose of outlasting their competition. Thus, it’s important to find a supplier that not only sets MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price) Guidelines, but also takes measures to prevent violations against its MSRP Guidelines. The MSRP Guidelines are important to protect you and your supplier’s business health, brand and goodwill.

➤ Business Growth Collaboration

In today’s digital age, the opportunity for business growth collaboration is bigger than ever. Make sure you find a supplier that understands how to grow your business, wants to help you grow your business, and knows how to grow your business. Growing a dress boutique in a traditional business and marketing approach is here to stay as many consumers prefer to see and try on more detailed and expensive styles at a brick and mortar store. Growing a dress boutique in a digital business and marketing approach is growing rapidly, as much of today’s generation like to purchase simpler and less expensive styles online. Thus, it’s important that you find a supplier that knows how to grow your business with both traditional and digital methods. A smart supplier will work with you to grow your business, because by doing so, it will also grow their business.

➤ Talk with other retailers

An excellent way to find out how professional and serious a supplier is by talking with other retail stores that sell their products.

Do the research and talk with as many as you can. It’s better if they are far from your area, as they will not feel that you are their competitor.

➤ Take your time

Choosing suppliers for your dress boutique is a big and important decision, so take your time and be patient. All the time you spend will be well invested because with the right suppliers, your business will not only have a better chance at success, but it will have a reliable partner and asset.

One of the most important moments for any girl is just around the corner: prom night! And, of course, you’ll want to look wonderful and for that, the essential element in your look is the dress.

There’s a wide variety of prom dress styles, so for some girls, the choice can be stressful, but don’t worry! We’ve created a basic guide on the different prom dress styles and the attributes that each one of them highlights the most. This way it’ll be much easier to choose the dress that will make you shine all night.

❣️ First of all, let’s talk about shapes…

1. Mermaid

The mermaid shape is beautiful, fun and elegant. It accents the waistline and hips, so it’s ideal for girls that are not that curvy and want to highlight these parts of their bodies.

2. A-line 

A-line dresses are full of princess-style charm. They are also very flattering for slender girls as they help add dimension around the hips and give volume to the lower part of the body.

3. Empire waist

An empire waist dress is always in style. It’s an elegant option for any body size and shape that gives a delicate accent to the bust.

4. Straight

A simple straight dress can be the most elegant of all. If you don’t like to be surrounded by much fabric and just want to go all the way simple, a straight line dress will be ideal for you.

5. Two-piece

Two-piece dresses are on fire! They are fun and an instant eye-catcher. They can be very flattering for short and petite girls, but also for tall misses.

❣️ Now, let’s go with necklines…

1. V-neck

The V-neck is one of the most popular necklines in dresses. It’s flattering for all types of body shapes.

2. Sweetheart

A sweetheart neckline will always draw attention to the chest area. It’s sexy but sweet at the same time. It helps enhance the bust, so it’s a good option for girls that have a smaller bust size.

3. Strapless

An all-time favorite… There’s a reason why strapless is one of the most popular necklines: it is elegant, fun, chic, and looks great on all girls! You can’t go wrong with a strapless dress.

4. Off the shoulder

Under the same premise of strapless, this style shows off both shoulders and the neck area, but it does have straps that go just beneath them creating a beautiful neckline.

5. High neck

High neck style is great for girls with a large bust as it disguises it. It’s timeless, elegant, and comfortable.

6. One shoulder or asymmetric

This neckline always gives a modern and fun touch. It helps add dimension to the shape of the body, so it’s especially good for skinny girls.

What about fabrics and details? 💞

Of course, the fabric choice has a lot to do with the preference of each girl. However, it is important to mention that heavy fabrics give more volume to the body than those that are vaporous.

As for details, don’t be shy, if you like sparkle, go all the way with beads and all kinds of crystals that give a super chic and elegant look to prom dresses.

If you’re more of a simple-style gal, then opt for a plain dress that will make you shine in a sleek way.

Are you ready for one of the best nights of your life? Enjoy your prom to the fullest with the ideal dress for you!