It is getting more and more difficult to remember what 2020 was like before the pandemic as the days go on, but I can remember some things like they happened yesterday. January was the month that I decided to chase down my dreams and begin working on starting Dresses Ever After. I was going full speed ahead and scrambling to get as many dresses by April as I could for prom 2020. I was excited and energetic as I spent lots of late nights searching for dresses, making a plan, working on the website and much more that comes along with starting a business from the ground up. I was starting to spread the word through social media and talking to lots of people. Many amazing people were sharing my posts on social media which has really helped me gain a fanbase from the start. Everything was going great,at least it was for a little bit.
As the virus spread into the United States and closer to Minnesota fear began to set in. Not fear of the virus itself, but fear of losing my dream. We can see now that many small businesses have lost everything because of the pandemic and I worried that mine would be next. This state of not knowing started settling in as schools began to postpone prom. It was a mess to try and contact girls who had rented dresses and make an individual plan with each one based on what their school was doing as well as their own personal opinion. Eventually, all of my rentals for the 2020 prom season, my first prom season, were canceled. Heartache soon replaced fear. It was my first prom season open. I had a good amount of dresses that were going to be worn for the 2020 prom season and suddenly all of that was gone. Rentals, gone. Corsages, gone. Seeing my dresses in prom photos, gone. It felt like all of my hard work was gone. In a way for this prom season it was, but I was still surviving. They say that all good things come to an end and I couldn’t disagree more.
It was difficult in the beginning to see the light. I was mad like most people were as I watched my plans, dreams, prom, graduation, and more stripped away from me so quickly. It took me a few months to learn to be okay with what happened and when I did that, I realized how much good was happening all around me. Yes, my business would be in a very large hole financially for 2020, but it gave me opportunities that I wouldn’t have normally. I was able to sit down and really focus on what I wanted Dresses Ever After to become. I noticed that many stores I get my dresses from had stocked up their inventory for the 2020 prom season that didn’t happen. That means that they had lots of dresses to try and sell before the new 2021 prom dresses came in. I searched many hours of sales, sales, and more sales. I was a recent high school graduate with a tight budget, but I was able to find many amazing dresses.
Since the beginning of summer, the inventory is growing fast. As of right now -Sept. 2020- Dresses Ever After has approximately 70 prom dresses and 20 short homecoming dresses. There is a wider variety of sizes, styles, and colors to help accommodate more amazing girls looking for formal dresses. I started the pandemic with about 20 dresses and grew quickly this summer. I do expect the growth to slow down especially now that I am a college student and athlete, but I have found ways to keep improving. My free time is spent getting prepared for next prom season and I can’t wait for everyone to see all of the amazing dresses. Be sure to follow Dresses Ever After on Facebook and Instagram to see the updates as they are released. Prom 2021 here I come!
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