Prom shopping is usually a solo sport. You pull ten dresses off a rack, haul them into a fitting room, and hope one works. Gabrielle runs the other way. Every visit is a booked appointment with a stylist, and the teen side of the business, G-Lizzy, was built so a junior or senior could shop in the same rooms as her mom.
The shop has a long history on this side of City Avenue. Gabrielle opened in 2007, the brainchild of Susan Hass Cooper and her mother-in-law, the late Marilyn Cooper, whom the store calls an iconic figure in the Philly fashion scene. In 2012 they added G-Lizzy so that girls, tweens and teens could shop alongside their moms. By its own account it is the area's only store dedicated to special occasion, with dresses in sizes and colors suited to women of every age. Susan Cooper still leads the team.
What a prom visit looks like here
Gabrielle keeps a prom page on its own site, and it pitches elegant prom dresses together with custom styling. The custom part is the real hook.
A senior with a dress that is almost right gets a real alternative to settling.
The store's FAQ and policies lay the process out in four steps.
Book ahead
Gabrielle works primarily by appointment so each shopper gets a personalized session; walk-ins are fit in only when a fitting room and a stylist are free
At the visit
Try the in-stock dresses first; a floor sample that fits well may only need slight alterations
At least six months before the event
Order early, since delivery depends on the designer and any customization
Alterations in-house
Three independent seamstresses work out of the shop on set days each week, so fittings happen in the same building
Take that six-month guidance seriously. Spring proms at Lower Merion High School and Harriton High School, the two public high schools in the Lower Merion School District, mean a custom or special-order dress should be picked by fall. Families from Radnor High School shop here too, and so do Philadelphia families from schools such as Central High School on the other side of City Avenue.
The bigger picture for families
Prom is one part of a store that also dresses mothers of the bride and groom, wedding guests and bar and bat mitzvah guests. For a family, that means one stylist can know the whole household: the senior's prom gown this spring, a cousin's wedding next year. The shop also runs designer trunk shows, and its recent calendar brought in labels such as Lucian Matis and Fouy Chov, so new arrivals tend to show up in waves.
Gabrielle sits in Bala Cynwyd, the corner of Lower Merion Township that meets Philadelphia at City Avenue, which is why it draws from both the Main Line and the city. Parking is right in front of the store, so nobody circles the block with a garment bag. For other options around Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, the state page on this site lists more prom shops.
The store sums up its own pitch in one line on its homepage:
Gabrielle is more than a boutique. It’s a place where style meets confidence.
What Bala Cynwyd prom shoppers ask Gabrielle
Does Gabrielle take walk-in prom shoppers?
Only when a fitting room and a stylist happen to be open. The shop works primarily by appointment, so book online or by phone.
Can Gabrielle customize a prom dress?
Yes. The store works with its designers to change details like the neckline, sleeves and silhouette, and its seamstresses handle final alterations on site.