Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/641712
PhotograPhy by geof teague/geofteague.com aisle style With their startup success story Brideside, tWo young chicago entrepreneurs are making Wedding party shopping a breeze. The Players: Sonali Lamba and Nicole Staple. The Backstory: Both bridesmaid veterans, the former Kellogg Business School classmates created Brideside to streamline the dress-finding process by matching each party with a style consultant to coordi- nate looks and offer at-home try-on service. "We felt there needed to be an online channel that eased the process without fully replacing that emotional, boutique experience," notes Staple. Runaway success: Last fall, Brideside closed a $1.5 million round of seed funding, moved into a 4,200-square-foot Fulton Market studio, and launched a line of dresses with designer Kelly Faetanini. "It's been an out-of-body experience," notes Lamba of the dizzyingly fast growth of the company, which has almost quadrupled in size in the last six months. What's next: "We want to be the first online boutique to deliver on life's most meaningful moments," says Staple. "We started with weddings because it was a very clear pain point to solve, but the dreams are definitely much bigger than that." 660 W. Lake St., Fl. 2, 773-234-7187; brideside.com . Sonali Lamba (left) and Nicole Staple, pictured in Brideside's new Fulton Market studio, where they showcase gowns from a growing selection of designers like Joanna August, Wtoo Watters, and The Dessy Group. Style duet 94 michiganavemag.com