For Mossuto’s, new location has been great for business

When a bride comes in for her final fitting, shedding jeans and a T-shirt for a gorgeous gown that has been altered to fit like a glove and pressed to perfection, she transforms, said Mary Taylor, owner of Mossuto’s Bridal.

Taylor has been watching and assisting those bridal transformations most of her life in the bridal store her mother, Elizabeth Williams, opened downtown in 1958 to compliment the tux shop owned by Sammy Mossuto, Taylor’s uncle.

As a child, each time a new shipment of dresses came in, “It was like Christmas,” she said, a feeling she still gets today.

The longtime family business, which Taylor purchased from her mother in 1989, relocated to Spokane Valley this November after losing its lease downtown. Now located in Opportunity Center, at Pines Road and Sprague Avenue, the bridal store is temporarily occupying 2,000 square feet until remodeling is complete on its new space, approximately 4,300 square feet just across the parking lot, which Taylor hopes to occupy next month.

The new location has enabled them to extend their evening hours a couple of nights a week, which wasn’t possible in the downtown location because the street life changed after dark, Taylor said.

“Downtown, it wasn’t safe,” she said of the evening hours. “(Here) they keep it bright. The guys at Napa and Aaron’s keep an eye on us.”

The new location has also received praise from customers who like the convenience and ample parking, she said. “We have actually taken off like a shot out here.”

And for Taylor, pleasing the bridal customers she fondly calls “the girls,” is her highest priority.

“We will bend over backward for the girls,” she said. “Whatever they need is what we do.”

For Suzanne Kinchen, who got married this fall, this star treatment set Mossuto’s apart.

“They were in tune with me and what I wanted. They made me feel special, like I was the only person they were dealing with at the time,” Kinchen said. “It didn’t matter if I wanted to try on 10 different dresses. Nobody acted like, ‘I wish she would make up her mind.’ They were very warm and seemed to genuinely care that I would be pleased with what I bought.”

Kinchen also appreciated the honest feedback. “If something didn’t look good they would say, ‘That isn’t your style,’ which was appreciated,” Kinchen said. “I’m 53 years old. They were very good with helping me pick out something appropriate in my age group.”

She chose a slim A-line Sophia Tolli dress with spun-gold lace and a long train. “It was simple but very elegant at the same time,” she said. “I absolutely loved it and got tons of compliments on it.”

The variety of styles has expanded greatly over the years, said Taylor, recalling the modest high necks, long sleeves and layers upon layers of lace characteristic of gowns when she was a child in her mother’s store.

The dresses of today are more delicate and well-beaded, she said, with styles at Mossuto’s to fit brides of every age, shape, size, budget and taste. They come in luxurious fabrics like taffeta, chiffon, satin, tulle and silk, from size 2 to 28W, from informal dresses to full gowns, and ranging from $299 up to $1,300.

Katie Grainger only tried on four or five dresses before she found the perfect dress at Mossuto’s, a two-toned, halter-style Mori Lee gown with detailed beading, a waist defining diamond shaped bust and a three-tiered hem with a long train.

When she put on the dress, Grainger said, “I felt beautiful.”

Discovering that bridal beauty is what makes owning Mossuto’s fun and exciting, Taylor said.

“Brides are insecure,” she said. “It is a whole different look. They don’t realize their potential until you put them together and they become like a swan. The brides glow.”