Costco Couture: Planning a Wedding on a Budget? Costco Offers Bargain Bridal Gowns

March 16, 2011— -- When their wedding day comes, some women will be wearing something borrowed, something blue and something from their favorite big box store.

From the very expensive to the very cheap, for every bride-to-be, the challenge is finding the perfect dress.

"The dress is really the number one obsession of the bride," said Carley Roney, editor-in-chief, TheKnot.com

Now there's a new option for the "one-stop-shopping" kind of bride at Costco.

The same place you get your food -- and bargain big-box products -- just got into the bridal game.

Long-time bridal designer Kirstie Kelly is teaming up with the big-box store on "Costcouture," a line of six wedding dresses.

"It's really about creating this concept for the brides so that she understands and knows that she's getting a high quality gown. It is a couture-styled gown. The only difference is the price," Kelley said.

The average couple in the U.S. will spend nearly $27,000 on their wedding day.

On average, women try on about 30 wedding dresses at several different stores before they finally decide on the dress.

"They really want it to be very special and they want to know that they have found the perfect one," Roney said.

The line is launching in select west coast stores, where pop-up bridal salons are going up for four-day trunk shows.

Kelley said she didn't think twice about bringing her line to Costco.

"Our bride is a very savvy bride. And the way the economy is going today, everybody is very careful with their dollars," she said.

While the conventional wedding shopping may include a day of pampering and a glass of champagne, Kelley said dress shopping at Costco doesn't cheapen the experience.

"From our perspective you're walking into a salon, we have beautiful flowers, we have a beautiful dressing room area, the bridal consultants, we have in our showroom," she said.

There's a dress for everyone, depending on your budget.

"For this collection, it's ranging between $699 and $1,399. Now that is at a minimum 40 percent off of what it would normally sell for at retail," said Kelley. "You're able to buy it at this incredible cost point because it is Costco. But the quality of the gown is no different than you would find in any bridal salon across America.