Brides Say Yes to Budgeting for Their Dress With Afterpay, Driving Wedding Dress Sales Up 270%
Afterpay consumer shopping insights unveil this year’s wedding boom trends.
Brides have turned to Afterpay for this year’s wedding boom as an estimated 2.5 million couples are expected to tie the knot by the end of 2022. Budget conscious brides using Afterpay, a “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) platform, have said yes to budgeting for their dress, driving sales of wedding dresses up 270% year-over-year online at Afterpay and on the Shopping App. Using consumer shopping insights, Afterpay aggregated data from its network of nearly 144,000 merchants and brands and discovered that brides are opting for simpler gowns and offering bridesmaids more choice this season.
The Minimalist Bride
The striking yet simple crepe-style wedding gown is among this year’s wedding boom’s dress with brides purchasing the style 43% more since January 2022 from Afterpay brands like BHLDN. While sales of lace dresses remained stable as the popularity of traditional wedding gowns remained relatively flat among brides-to-be in 2022.
The Mix and Match Bridal Party
With sales of bridesmaid dresses up 431% year-over-year, we’re seeing more freedom of choice by bridal parties to add their own personal styles to their best friend’s special days. Modern day brides using Afterpay, influenced by the runway and social media, are offering their friends bolder choices for the occasion with velvet styles, thigh-high slits, and plunging necklines. Meanwhile, sales of the infamous bridesmaid slip dress dipped by 8% year-over-year. Afterpay shoppers also continued to seek out classic summer, cocktail and formal styles in midi and maxi dresses from brands like Reformation. The recent Afterpay Spring Summer Trend Report revealed midi-style dress sales were up by +45% YoY while classic summer maxi styles were up an estimated +56% YoY.
The Budget Conscious Wedding Guest
Guests have also become mindful of their wedding budgets by managing their spend on attire and gifts using Afterpay’s easy-to-use payment tracking tool. A growing number of Millennials and Gen Z shoppers will continue to choose BNPL to help them spend responsibly while paying over time. Afterpay’s network of more than 144,000 global retailers, offers customers the ability to purchase wedding related items including gifts, clothing, and accessories over time in four equal installments.
For inquiries into Afterpay’s consumer shopping data, reach out to media@afterpay.com
Methodology:
Data analyzed is based on Afterpay US sales from Jan 1, 2021 – May 20, 2022