The Wedding Shop History

History 1980 a

1980 – Les & Jean Coverdale found the perfect starting place for The Wedding Shop at the bottom of Colchester’s East Street.

History 1980 b

1980 – These three girls made up the first ever Wedding Shop team.

History 1981 a

1981 – Window display celebrating the marriage of Prince Charles & Lady Diana.

History 1981 b

1981 – Michael and Jean Coverdale outside the shop on the shop’s first anniversary.

History 1981 c

1981 – Window display complete with waterfall cake-stand. We added food dye to the water to match the bridesmaids.

History 1982

1982 – How times have changed. It looks like the dress and curtains are made from the same lace!

History 1983

1983 – The shop front gets a makeover which sees the brickwork give way to a more cheerful coat of paint.

History 1985

1985 – The launch of the new Pronovias Collection, brand new to the UK.

History 1989

1989 – Moving to St. John’s Street was a huge step. We were lured by a beautiful oak beamed Grade II listed building with 30ft high ceilings.

History 1996

1996 – This year saw Nicola take over the running of the shop, and it won the Wedding & Home Magazine ‘Wedding Shop of the Year’ award.

History 1998

1998 – The Wedding Shop was bursting at the seams with new collections, so the shop next door became the home for the bridesmaid dresses, and new Mother of the Bride department.

History 1999

1999 – In February 1999 we launched our first website. This two-page beauty served around 50 people per week.

History 2005

2005 – By the mid-noughties, The Wedding Shop improved alteration turnaround times by introducing an in-house seamstress team.

History 2012

2012 – The biggest change yet for The Wedding Shop. 2012 sees all departments come together under one roof to create a bridal department store.

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2021 – The Wedding Shop gets a refurbishment during the 2020 lockdown and returns, brighter and better for 2021 with a new bar for prosecco appointments.