WhatchamaCallit started small. Bill Danches opened it in 1984 in a tiny space next to a Kroger in far North Dallas, and for about a dozen years it hopped from one storefront to the next around Preston and Campbell. D Magazine reported in 2008 that each move roughly tripled the inventory. In 2006 the business landed at Preston and Belt Line, in about 20,000 square feet with 36 dressing rooms, and the Dallas store has stayed on that corner since.
What the Dallas press saw, 2008 to 2013
That 2008 profile caught the store under its founder. Writer Amanda Tackett called it "prom headquarters, the center of the Prom Universe." Danches, a Miami native who had sold a retail chain in Florida before coming to Dallas, ran the floor partly from the PA system. In peak season the stock topped 80,000 dresses, and the store sold more than 600 a day in the busiest weeks. Danches summed up his approach for the magazine in seven words.
I try hard to make everyone happy.
A new name shows up in the press a few years later. In 2012 the Dallas Morning News named Gary Graham as store manager, and in 2013 NBC 5 introduced him as owner of the Dallas location. Both stories were about counterfeit prom gowns bought from websites. Graham kept a display of fakes to show shoppers the difference, including, by NBC 5's account, a knockoff Sherri Hill beside the real one. "Fake feathers versus real feathers; the stones aren't even correct," he said.
1984
Bill Danches opens beside a Kroger in far North Dallas
2006
Settles at Preston and Belt Line after a dozen years of moves
2008
D Magazine calls it the center of the Prom Universe
2013
NBC 5 names Gary Graham owner of the Dallas location
Walk in any day the doors are open
Prom shopping at the Dallas store runs on walk-ins. The footer of the store's website reads "No Appts Needed For Prom!" under both locations, and a designer roundup on the store's blog puts the policy in one line near its end.
We only take walk-ins, so come visit us whenever you're ready to start your prom journey.
Another post on the same blog stretches the welcome to homecoming, evening and pageant dresses. Doors open at 10 and close at 7 from Monday through Saturday, and Sunday runs noon to 6. A school night works as well as a weekend.
Walking in is not the same as waiting. The prom page warns that "popular sizes and colors sell quickly." When D Magazine checked in during the 2021 season, manager Alexa Graham said some designers had stopped keeping stock for reorders, and her advice was blunt: "If they want to find the dress that they love and not have to settle for their second choice, I would tell them to shop now."
The biggest claims in Texas prom, and the labels behind them
WhatchamaCallit does not undersell itself. The website's Dallas page describes the business as "the largest prom dress store in Texas and the southwestern United States," with "over 20,000 dresses in stock." A banner across the top of the website adds "LARGEST Sherri Hill and Jovani retailer in Texas!"
Those two names lead, but the prom filter lists twelve labels. Next to Sherri Hill and Jovani are Amarra, Portia & Scarlett, Alyce Paris, La Femme, Primavera Couture, Tarik Ediz, Ashley Lauren, Jasz Couture, Jessica Angel and Chandalier. Almost every style online shows a price you can check from the couch. Jessica Angel is the exception, so ask a stylist about that line once you are in the store.
The size filter runs from 000 to 32 and then adds women's sizes 12W through 24W. A section of the site called Curvy Corner holds thousands of styles, and Sherri Hill and Jovani are the largest groups in it.
Prom sizes in the online filter
00 to 32
- 00
- 0
- 2
- 4
- 6
- 8
- 10
- 12
- 14
- 16
- 18
- 20
- 22
- 24
- 26
- 28
- 30
- 32
Sizes 000 to 32, plus women's 12W to 24W. The dashed line marks a typical store's run.
Getting there from Hillcrest, Pearce or Plano West
The Dallas store is in Far North Dallas near Belt Line, on the Addison edge, where the city's north end runs into Richardson and the south side of Plano. Hillcrest and W.T. White students come up Preston or the tollway. Pearce High School is off to the east in Richardson, and Plano West and Carrollton's Newman Smith are close enough for a weeknight visit. We cover more prom shops across north Texas on our Texas page.
Tarrant County families have a second option. The Fort Worth store keeps matching hours and the same no-appointment rule for prom, and its page here breaks down prices label by label.
Questions people ask about the Dallas store
Is the Dallas store the original WhatchamaCallit?
Yes. Bill Danches founded the company in far North Dallas in 1984, and it has been at Preston and Belt Line since 2006. The Fort Worth location came later.
Who owns WhatchamaCallit now?
NBC 5 named Gary Graham as owner of the Dallas location in 2013, a year after the Dallas Morning News named him as its manager. The store's website does not name its owners.
How far up do prom sizes go at the Dallas store?
To 32 in the regular filter, with women's 12W to 24W on top. Filtering the online prom catalog by your size before a visit shows which styles exist in it.
Can a dress be exchanged if it doesn't work out?
No. The returns policy says the store does "not accept returns, issue exchanges, or offer store credits," and all sales are final. Settle size and color during the try-on.