Today Ben shares with us his stories from the National Bridal Market and trip to Vienna. To see Part I, click here.

Following on just one week after Harrogate was the Chicago National Bridal Market. If you think the Harrogate show is big, you should see the Chicago Bridal Market! I really feel sorry for the feet of all the visitors!! The show itself was incredible, beyond our wildest dreams. We didn’t stop for the full three and a half days of the show, and we opened so many new accounts we actually ran out of new customer account forms!

Richard Designs stand, Chicago

The US buyers particularly liked the new collection, stating that it was so different from anything else available, they also liked the flexibility in the pearl and crystal colours that we offer, something that seems like such a simple thing to us. We found veil C325C and headpiece TR1361A to be very popular with the American market.

Victorian Inspired Headdress TR1361A

Wedding Veil Diamante Edge C325C

Finally the last show of the year was in Vienna, where we exhibited in the British Embassy, which is an amazing building! We had the opportunity to meet both shops and agents from Austria, but also buyers from 17 other countries in Europe. It was a very eye-opening event, we learnt a lot about buying in different cultures throughout Europe. We took with us a small sample of the new collection that we released at Harrogate and this proved to be a hit, particularly The Classics.

Classics Side Tiara B025L

In short it has been a very busy period for Richard Designs, a refresh of the Boutique Collection stand, the release of the new belts and shrugs, the best American show ever and our first exhibition in Europe. But for now it is time for me to get back out on the road to see you all! In my next blog I will be giving you all an insight into the most popular pieces on the road from the new collection. Until then, thanks for reading!

Ben Allen

Senior Sales Executive

Trade shows aren’t the only place you can see our collection of bridal accessories. If you would like an appointment with Ben in your shop where he can show you the new samples with no obligation to buy, just give Jennifer a call on 01353 661600 or email sales@richarddesigns.co.uk

Our Senior Sales Executive Ben travels all round the world to show off our beautiful bridal and occasion-wear accessories. The last few months have been a particularly busy time for him in terms of travel, and today he sums up for us his views of recent exhibitions. Enjoy!

Hi there,

Its been a few months since my last guest blog, but my goodness they have been busy! It has been show after show, starting with MODA in August we then had BBEH and the Chicago National Bridal Market in September and finally a trip to Vienna for an event organised by the UKTI! I have even managed a few weeks out on the road in between!

I just wanted to take a few minutes to tell you all about them, starting with MODA all the way back in August:

MODA saw a new stand layout centred on ladies day at the races, and the displays looked fabulous. Our design team as usual had done a brilliant job in both producing new styles, but also colour matching hats and fascinators to several outfits on the stand.

With several high profile weddings happening over the summer, disc style fascinators were very much in people’s minds, with FQ198 being the most popular headpiece by a mile.

Boutique Collection Zara Inspired Fascinator FQ198

Soon after MODA followed BBEH, at the beginning of September, where Richard Designs launched its new collection of belts and Blue Ribbon shrugs. This was once again a brilliant show for us, with the Victorian themed stand being the talk of the exhibition!

Both the shrugs and the belts were extremely well received, with Belt 003 and Shrug SH5-3 the bestselling styles. The belts are an excellent way of bringing to life a plain dress or lifting those old sale dresses you are trying to move. With the prices starting low, they seem like too good an opportunity to overlook.

Richard Designs Wedding Belt 003

Blue Ribbon Shrug SH5-3

Lastly and by no means least we won the RBA award for top accessories supplier for the fourth time in five years, this was such an honour for us and can I just take the time to thank all the RBA members that voted for us.

I’ll be back next week with a recap on the Chicago Bridal Market and the exhibition in Vienna, but until then, have a great week!

Ben is currently on the road showing the Victorian-Inspired collection. If you would like to see him and the collection, make an no-obligation appointment by calling Jen on 01353 661600 or emailing sales@richarddesigns.co.uk

To see Ben’s other blogs, click here.