Few industries were left untouched by the suddenness and seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic, and the bridal industry was certainly no exception. In the immediate wake of the outbreak, weddings were being canceled and postponed left and right and countless bridal retailers had to close their doors for months at a time. This forced vendors to become creative with how they connected and worked with their couples, many of whom were unsure of whether or not their wedding would happen at all, let alone the way they’d imagined.

When The Bridal Finery in Winter Park, Florida were forced to close their doors on March 21, 2020, they were still uncertain about what the pandemic meant for their brides and the operations of their bridal boutique.

“Designers were reassuring us on preparation, but we certainly felt like no one really had any answers as it was uncharted waters,” explains owner and stylist Tali Gallo.

Now, five months later, Gallo finally feels like the industry has a better grasp of how to help a bride in search of her wedding dress or looking for guidance with a postponement. “We have our cleaning procedures down to a system and we know how to better serve our brides during this time,” she says. “We love creating a magical experience and now we know how to even during a pandemic.”

Thankfully, many bridal stores are resuming their in-store operations, however, there’s no denying that the experience is vastly different than before. We reached out to seven salons across the U.S. to see how they’re meeting the new demands of shopping for a wedding gown in the era of COVID-19.