Seven hundred prom dresses is a lot of inventory for a family-owned shop on the south end of the Grand Strand. Fancy Frocks keeps more than that in stock through the season, in sizes 00 through 28, and the owners call it one of South Carolina's largest prom retailers. Paula founded the business in January 2010, and today it runs from Inlet Square Drive in Murrells Inlet, just off the US-17 Bypass. Bridal, tuxedos and mothers' gowns share the building with the prom racks.
Shoppers come from well past Horry County. The store names the Grand Strand, Wilmington, Florence and Charleston as its draw, and it describes the salon as award winning. For local families the bigger selling point is simpler. Prom here is walk-in, with no appointment needed.
The school-by-school rule
The policy that sets this shop apart sits in its prom FAQ. Every prom dress sold is logged against the buyer's school.
To help you stand out and keep it fair, we register every single dress. We won't sell the same dress in the same color to another student from your school.
For a St. James or Socastee junior, that means the dress bought in February is not going to show up on a classmate in April, at least not from this store. It also rewards shopping early. Styles get claimed school by school as the season runs, and the first shoppers from each campus have the whole floor to choose from. The store's own advice is to start twelve to sixteen weeks before the dance, which leaves time for special orders and alterations.
How the fitting rooms run on a busy Saturday
Saturdays in season get busy enough that Fancy Frocks uses a set routine to keep the line moving. A shopper can phone the store first to ask about the wait.
Once inside on a busy Saturday (a guide)
First
A greeter asks you to fill out a prom form
Then
You browse the floor and choose six dresses
Next
Runners carry them back and you are assigned a dressing room
If none works
The six return to the floor, the room goes to the next girl, and you pick another six
The system keeps any one group from tying up a room for an hour, and it means a mother and daughter can work through a lot of the 700 in a single afternoon.
Three more policies shape the visit.
Holds
The store does not hold dresses, but staff can note the styles you tried, and if one sells to someone else there is a chance it can be special ordered.
Seamstress
Not in house. Buyers get a list of local seamstresses the shop recommends.
Sales
All final, so fit and color need to be settled in the dressing room.
Sizing deserves a minute of attention when a dress has to be special ordered. The store warns that formal wear sizes do not match street sizes, and that floor samples stretch from being tried on all day, so the sample that fits is not always the size to order. Staff take measurements and set them beside the designer's size chart, the same way the shop handles bridesmaid orders. The prom FAQ also suggests bringing the heels and undergarments planned for the night, plus one friend or relative for a second opinion.
Prices and tuxedos, posted up front
Fancy Frocks publishes its prom range rather than leaving families to guess. Dresses run $398 to $1,000, with budget-friendly options and occasional sales below that. Prom dresses are purchase only. Tuxedos are another matter.
The tuxedo side
Jim's Formal Wear lines
Suits and tuxedos
$160 to $230, rented or bought
The tie
Staff can match a date's tie to the color of the gown while both are in the store
Homecoming follows the same walk-in approach in the fall, and pageant and social occasion dresses share the floor. Mothers' gowns are also walk-in. Bridal is the one side that books appointments, and the store usually sees only two or three brides at a time.
The closest large school is St. James High, with Socastee and Carolina Forest a little farther north in Horry County. Waccamaw High in Pawleys Island and Georgetown High bring families up US-17 from Georgetown County. With shoppers driving in from across coastal South Carolina and southeastern North Carolina, the school registry carries more weight than it would at a shop that only served one town.
Fancy Frocks prom questions from Murrells Inlet shoppers
Can I hold a dress while I think it over?
No. The store does not offer holds, but it can record the styles you tried and may be able to special order one that sells.
How much do prom dresses cost at Fancy Frocks?
Prom dresses run $398 to $1,000, with budget-friendly options and occasional sales. Suits and tuxedos run $160 to $230.