On the east side of Colorado Springs, prom shopping for a couple can happen in one building. Bridal Elegance sells the gowns from its suite on North Academy Boulevard, and Gentlemen's Choice Tuxedos, the family's menswear business, works out of the neighboring suite at the same address. The same family has owned and operated Bridal Elegance since 1983, and the tuxedo shop followed a few years later.
The store's about page leans on that local ownership. It contrasts its approach with big chains and corporations, promises individualized help for each client, and describes the business as one of the top-rated bridal stores in the city.
The prom racks
The online prom collection filters by five designers:
- Clarisse
- La Femme
- Alyce Paris
- Nox Anabel
- BE Prom Collection, the store's own prom line
The size filter on that page is unusually wide, so shoppers who usually struggle to find long gowns in their size have real options here.
Prom page sizes
000 to 32
- 000
- 00
- 0
- 2
- 4
- 6
- 8
- 10
- 12
- 14
- 16
- 18
- 20
- 22
- 24
- 26
- 28
- 30
- 32
From 000 all the way to 32, plus a separate 12W to 24W range.
Colors run from black and silver to the brights that turn up every spring, along with gold, multi-color prints and white.
Homecoming has its own page, built around Nox Anabel in sizes 00 to 16, which makes the store a fall stop as well as a spring one. The website notes that inventory changes regularly and asks shoppers to phone about a specific style before coming in for it, which is good advice for anyone set on a dress from the online gallery.
Tuxedos and the family business
Gentlemen's Choice Tuxedos covers the other side of the prom photo. Because the two businesses share an address, a couple can sort out a gown and a tux on the same afternoon without crossing town.
Next suite over
Gentlemen's Choice Tuxedos
Occasions
Suits and tuxedos "from weddings to proms"
Options
Rent or purchase
Ownership
Family-owned, like Bridal Elegance
Academy Boulevard is the long north-south road through the east side of the city, which keeps the store within reach of District 11 families at Doherty, Mitchell and Palmer high schools and of District 49 families at Sand Creek High School. For families across El Paso County, Colorado, it is an independent, locally owned storefront rather than a mall chain.
The store also ties some of its sales to causes. Through October, under the banner "The Power of Yes," it donates a portion of every gown purchase to breast cancer awareness efforts. Bridal remains the bigger department, with bridesmaid, flower girl and mothers' collections alongside the wedding gowns, so spring weekends can be busy with brides too.
Featuring the largest selection of Colorado Springs wedding dresses and prom gowns around, Bridal Elegance is the perfect choice for your event.
That pitch sits on the store's about page, and for prom shoppers the 000 to 32 size run is the clearest proof of it.
Asked at the North Academy counter
How wide is the prom size range at Bridal Elegance?
The prom page filters from size 000 to 32, plus 12W through 24W. Stock in any one size varies through the season, so it helps to phone ahead about a particular style.
Where does a prom date rent a tux?
At Gentlemen's Choice Tuxedos, the family's tux shop next door at the same address, which rents and sells suits and tuxedos for proms.