FILIPINO brides come in all shapes and sizes, and attitudes and beliefs. But what’s common is their penchant for romance. The love they have for their grooms is matched in intensity only by their feelings for their wedding finery.
So, picking the perfect wedding dress is an important decision. While we have the finest fashion designers, some brides now prefer the no-fuss option of buying from a ready-to-wear store. The Spanish bridalwear brand Rosa Clará has clearly cornered this market after opening its first Manila store at Greenbelt Residences in Makati City in 2011.
“Rosa Clará stores are always in prime locations. In Paris it’s across Palais élysées. In Barcelona [where the first store was opened by founder Rosa Clará Parellas in 1995] we’re at Calle Diagonal. It’s always at superb location,” explained Valerie Villar-Zayco, the managing partner for the Philippines. “So when we were looking for a location six years ago, we really didn’t want to be in a mall, because you don’t really go shopping for a wedding gown in a mall.”
But Filipinos have a very mall culture. At Greenbelt Residences, though, Villar-Zayco felt that she had the perfect mix. “We had the high-end Greenbelt Mall but we were in the residence area where it’s a destination for what you need, which, in this case, is a wedding gown. [But] after a few years, it was starting to get small, because we had so many gowns coming in for brides for ordering, and we had only two fitting rooms. So, many times we had to turn away brides,” she said.
Elena Teindas, Rosa Clará Global Retail and Expansion head, expounded on the brand’s Philippine partnership: “We listen a lot to the franchisee because of the market, their know-how. They know a lot better about their countries than me. I’m happy, because I’m opening the second store, so that means the first store is on a good level. At the beginning it was tough—the mentality of the new country, new brand from Spain, new concept. When I came the first time, the brides went to tailors, designers, dressmakers. Here at Rosa Clará, you have seen exactly what you want, and maybe we can customize with a little bit of beads and laces.”
The partners found a fitting location at the upscale S Maison at Conrad Manila. “So, instead of expanding, it was time to move to another location so we can approach the market, instead of having the market come to us. Metro Manila is huge, people who live in this area don’t necessarily go to Makati and vice versa,” Villar-Zayco said. “In the few weeks that we opened at S Maison, we’d ask brides where they’re getting married—it’s in San Sebastian, in Malate Church. The Makati brides get married in Santuario de San Antonio or in Greenhills or in Alabang.”
Rosa Clará is a ready-to-wear brand specializing in timeless, elegant and classic lines. “Basically, the gowns at the stores are samples. Meaning, the brides try them on and when they like the gowns, we take their measurements and we order it and we process it in Spain. It takes six months, but Filipinos plan weddings 14 or 12 moths before. All alterations are inclusive of the cost,” Villar-Zayco said.
Rosa Clará doesn’t follow the fashion calendar when unveiling collections. “It’s just annual, [instead of four shows a year to follow the season]. In May there’s Barcelona Bridal Week, which Rosa Clará opens, because the brand is that big. It’s when Rosa [the designer] showcases her collection. This May she will showcase her 2018 collection,” Villa-Zayco said.
“We have a lot of Spanish influences in food or style. I think there’s really no need [for us] to adjust [to a Spanish brand]. But in terms of choosing what pieces to bring to the Philippines, we also have to take into account the body type and height of the Filipina, and also the age. Here, most of us get married late 20s or early 30s; it’s where the look changes. The 40-year-old bride will go for the more streamlined and more simple, while the 27-year-old bride will go for ballgowns,” she added.
“One time I took care of two brides myself. One bride had her fiancé and he was choosing the gowns for her to try on. The other bride had her fiancé waiting outside and she didn’t want him to see anything. So, these are two completely different brides with one goal. It all depends on how they were raised, and where they’re from. There’s no particular mold [of the Filipina bride],” said Villar-Zayco, who also brought in Vera Wang Brides to Manila late last year.
“We have brides who come to us a day before their wedding, because their designers either didn’t produce the same dress as the sketch or didn’t finish their dress. So we’ve had brides who come to us in tears; they have nothing to wear! It’s funny, because these brides didn’t come here because they thought it was expensive. Our gowns are beautiful and the quality is superb. So, obviously, people would always think they’re expensive. But relatively speaking with regard to designers, we’re affordable, which is P70,000 to P150,000 for bridal gowns. For cocktails, it’s P30,000 to P60,000,” said Villar-Zayco, who curates the collection in Spain before bringing the gowns to Manila.
What’s in store will be tailored for the bride. The stores only carry one color per style. “Manila society is so small. Everyone is invited to the same weddings, the same balls. We don’t want two people showing up in the same exact dress. And everything is posted online. Brides are encouraged to call, though walk-ins are welcome, but there’s the risk of no bridal consultant or fitting room available,” Villar-Zayco said.
Is there a possibility that Rosa Clará will come to the Philippines for a show or a visit? “Rosa will come here I’m sure, maybe for holidays, because she will love this country. But she has a full agenda, so I don’t know about this year,” Teindas said.