The Week of April 1st in Review

Posted on April 6, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

 

By Paul Pannone

Wedding industry crooks took cover this week, put on notice as the battle for the Gold heated up. Onlookers watched as Samantha Goldberg pummeled Marni Gold, assuring her it’s nothing personal and that other Wedding Scam Artists can expect more of the same. Since announcing her new show Samantha Goldberg told eWedNewz of plans to expose the antics and false claims made by wedding industry professionals who have allegedly taken money and not given the expected results and value to victims.

Another meeting in New York to discuss the  progress of fighting online pirates raised concerns among media members who felt the war is far from won.

New data release by IBISWorld says wedding spending will increase in the next five years in selected categories; all except the men’s formal wear rental business. As the business shrinks a greater percentage of rental units are taken by the Men’s Wearhouse tuxedo division– while the rest of the tuxedo business wastes time and resources fighting one another.

 

 

eWedNewz

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Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, Data, eWedNewz Exclusive, General News, Hall of Shame, Men's formal wear, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Paul Pannone, Press Release, The Groom, The Internet, The Week in Review, tuxedos, Uncategorized, Wedding planners Tagged: , , , , , ,

New Head of IBMA Accepts ABPIA Offer to Work Together

Posted on April 4, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

eWedNewz has learned that Hedy Lapkin, the new head of IBMA, has reached out to Steve Lang to work together on the issue of Chinese counterfeiting. In less than 48 hours the wedding industry, specifically gown makers and retailers, were updated with some disturbing newZ about the difficult road that lies ahead to fight off the piracy plaguing the business.

 

Slowly but surely,  Steve Lang continues to rally support in the wedding industry.

 

Lang broke away from the IBMA to start the ABPIA last year and has now pulled a power-play by paying his membership dues to the abandoned organization. In a written e-mail Lang gave his personal invitation to Lapkin and told eWedNewz;

“I was contacted by Hedy Lapkin today. She wants to work with us on counterfeiting effort. She will group with me after I return from Asia. She apologized that I did not receive original email from IBMA. [She] said it was oversight, but no matter, we are now  members of IBMA. I take this as a positive sign and I will help them in any way possible to fight pirates,” according to Lang.

Wedding dress retailers picked up on frustration and personal opinions given on my Facebook wall shared after reporting China efforts to disrupt and destroy American business.  Stunned retailers say they look forward to greater unity and coöperation among wedding industry professionals to set aside personal differences and work together against the common enemy.

 

eWedNewz

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Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, Breaking Newz, eWedNewz, eWedNewz Exclusive, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Paul Pannone, retail, The Internet, Uncategorized, Wedding Dresses Tagged: , , , , ,

Samantha Goldberg to Marni Gold; It’s Nothing Personal

Posted on April 1, 2013 Written by 1 Comment

 

By Paul Pannone

In a story that’s shocking the wedding business but not surprising to those familiar with the details, Samantha Goldberg underscored original statements assuring her written criticisms against Marni Gold are Nothing Personal. Goldberg continues to slam Gold in all Social Media circles, slowly joined by others who say they too were burned by Marni Gold in the past.

Samanth Goldberg has relentlessly gone after people and organizations she feels do not have the best interest of the wedding business and its members, including Wedding Wire. In late 2011 Goldberg rocked Wedding Wire’s world and gained the support of wedding vendors who agreed they had been wronged by the review website.

 

Marni Gold told eWedNewz she doesn’t know why she is being tormented by Samantha Goldberg. Samantha Goldberg assures Marni Gold it’s “nothing personal”.

 

In a follow-up statement to the story Goldberg said the following:

“I would like to add, I thank everyone for your support on Twitter, FB and more…My goal is to focus on what is right, truthful and the standards in which our end-user expect. Look around you, it’s the end-user who suffers due to vendors like this who take a REALLY good thing, and turn it into something I have no words for. I have not 1 reason to have a PERSONAL “vendetta” of Mrs Gold..I don’t know her, never met her to even get to know her and honestly, I don’t care to at this point. The key word here is it’s NOT PERSONAL – It’s the actions of the person which I want to stop.

My fear for the “end-user” ( of the various seminar subjects and it’s attendees) which are not directed to Marni personally is that someone always suffers with each idea she has.. Why share information in a misleading fashion if you claim to do good? Why was the non-profit not shared with the public?

I have shared tangible proof.

Marni asked for me to share my thoughts…I did. I shared my goal to stop this nonsense so that those in the know or not- Will not have to keep the everlasting wall of being uncertain up-How can one trust any good deed when you have things like this that linger every-time? You have to question if your investment is REALLY going to the cause and or topic of seminar being what it claims..

It never used to be this way…I hope that we as an industry can regroup and retrain so we can continue LOVING what we do instead of not trusting our peers. It happens everyday and M Gold is not the only person who allows for this…

Again, my focus is NOT personal nor is my goal to destroy or defame…It’s to make you aware…Not being aware for those who have been public, they would share the road to recovery/trust is usually a long one and for some resulted leaving our industry which honestly is/was a shame. We have lost some great leaders based on issues such as this…If defame/destroy is the result it’s not due to me alerting those to be aware and more so facts that become public which help me to stop such nonsense and follow the same actions to stick with the facts. I have Facts,” says Goldberg.

Others support Goldberg including Dorinda Duclos of New Jersey. In an Sunday morning exchange on Facebook Duclos says she was victimized by Gold in the past and is ready to give proof if need be. Duclos raises questions about Marni Gold’s most recent project guided by her experience .

“If she’s so high on WUWNJ, why isn’t the charity’s name being used on the Facebook page for this event? It claims to be donated to our non-profit of choice. There’s a lot out there and it makes me sick that she’s still getting away with this crap,” said Duclos.

eWedNewz dug deeper while alerting Duclos the story has many twists and turns with behind-the-scene information of which most people are unaware.

” I am speaking about Marni (Gold) and applauding Samantha for taking a stand. It’s gone on long enough. I have had my own dealings with Marni and really wish this to all come to an end; sooner than later,” said Duclos.

The story became public over the weekend but is known by those who say Marni Gold has a history of failures and dubious allegations. So-far no tangible proof has been presented but, according to Goldberg and now Duclos both say they can substantiate their claims with facts.

Goldberg and Duclos are both members of the Wedding Water Cooler. They’re joined by other members of the group discussing the story who are also throwing daggers at Marni Gold’s method of recruitment and invitation to speak at events. Some say they’re refraining from any involvement until more facts come to light.

So-far an overwhelming majority (54%) side with Samantha Goldberg while a smaller representation of people (8%) side with Marni Gold on the story.

What do you think?

 

 

eWedNewz continues our investigation into this story.

eWedNewz

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Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, Celebrity, eWedNewz, General News, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, The Internet, Uncategorized, wedding industry, Wedding Marketing Scams, Wedding Wire Tagged: , ,

The Week of March 18th in Review

Posted on March 23, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

In an ongoing story coverage eWedNewz watches as David’s Bridal updates their systems, moving towards reaching today’s consumers digitally and away from standard, traditional methods. The move leaves many disgruntled independent, small business owners shaking their heads wondering how in the world they will ever be able to compete.

David’s Bridal issued a Press Release that basically rubbed the nose of competitors into the challenges they face. Sources near the story told eWedNewz it’s just another chance for David’s Bridal to make noise and headlines , part of the new strategy to leverage online free publicity and grab the attention of brides.

28% of current, ongoing poll says small businesses will not be able to prevail against big box operations like David’s Bridal.

Pascual Ortiz, who married his long-time love a little over a year ago, lost his battle to cancer this week. Samantha Goldberg who helped plan the event told eWedNewz,  ”It’s a gift to have met Pascual he had such joy that day.”

 

 eWedNewz

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Filed Under: Advertising and Marketing, Anti Fairy Dust, bridal, Bridal Dresses, Bridal Shops, Business, eWedNewz, General News, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Paul Pannone, The Internet, Uncategorized, Wedding Dresses, wedding industry Tagged: , , , , ,

David’s Bridal Banks on Digital as Print Continues to Suffer

Posted on March 19, 2013 Written by 2 Comments

By Paul Pannone

In an ongoing story a Press release by David’s Bridal gives strong indication they’re shifting more focus and resources to online, digital formats; going where today’s brides are. The move is consistent with eWedNewz reporting citing the outgoing CEO’s lack of prowess in the digital age and greater desire to make the necessary changes to keep David’s Bridal in their leadership role.

 

A Press Release from David’s Bridal includes findings from their 7th annual What’s On Brides’ Minds Survey. David’s Bridal found that the 2013 bride will plan, chronicle and culminate all of her wedding details with the help of social media, ranging from Pinterest to Facebook to Skype, banging the steady beat of declining use of print for wedding planning even louder.

According to David’s Press release;

“The big news is that everything has gone digital, and the new tools of the trade are a smart phone or a computer instead of a wedding binder.”

eWedNewz reported David’s Bridal was on the auction block last June, under mounting pressure as a giant leader in a declining market. After shedding losing parts of their business while adding designer brand Vera Wang, sources near the story tell eWedNewz the shift to digital is a natural progression and plan execution to stay in the leadership role in a changing market.

Current poll results show 62% of replies feels Leonard Green was smart in dumping their majority stake in David’s Bridal, 12% say they weren’t. Undecided, 23% say it remains to be seen. With the current Press release we will be watching the poll results very carefully.

 

 

eWedNewz

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Filed Under: Advertising and Marketing, Anti Fairy Dust, bridal, Bridal Dresses, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Poll, retail, Social Media, The Groom, The Internet, Uncategorized, Wedding Dresses, wedding industry Tagged: , , , ,

The Little Business That Might

Posted on March 6, 2013 Written by 1 Comment

By Paul Pannone

What started as a story about bypassing retailers and online sales turned into an impromptu campaign for supporting small business. For years the battle between small, independent store owners and big box operators has raged on. But now small businesses are losing the battle against the onslaught of competition and price-cutting from all sides, including online sales.

 

So-far 60% of an eWedNewz poll says big box operators can be beat  if small (minded) business owners can start thinking like real business people.

 

According to dress retailer, Jacqui Wadsworth;

“The plight of the small business is really more complex than fighting against big box stores. Small businesses are fighting on an 8-fold problem. They must compete with big box stores, internet sales sites with legitimate products similar to their own, knock-off sites with products appearing to be similar to their own, and sites with used products with better
name brands from gowns to decorations, compete with their own industry’s manufacturers who are getting online, they must do the best job they can in economic downturn times with less staff, which leaves less time for learning better business practices, and for having an online presence in a social networking world, and they have less cash reserves with which to do all of the above. Small businesses who find their “niche” will do well and those who continue on with old business paradigms will be gone. The amazing fact is that so many people are continuing to jump into the bridal and wedding services industry thinking it’s a cash cow industry.”

Wadsworth is a member of the Wedding Water Cooler discussion group and agrees with other members that competition will continue to grow, despite the shrinking wedding market.  In addition, Wadsworth WWC members lash out at so-called “experts” saying:

“Wedding experts with “twenty” plus years experience now giving seminars on how to double your existing business. I think all those people are people who couldn’t make a go of it in their field, and now just want a payday for poor information based on the mistakes they made that put them out of business. The sad news; desperate people will fall for that crap because they love the business. The even more pitiful fact is whatever put the so-called experts out of business is probably all old news because our industry is changing so quickly. That’s a lose/lose proposition.”

In the poll 25% of respondents so-far say  there is no way small businesses are going to win against big box retailers. Discussions with those who feel that way are insiders with access to major suppliers with insight to the plan of simply doing it better, faster and more conveniently than smaller competition. According to eWedNewz sources pricing will not necessarily be cheaper but will give consumers greater value and reasons to shop with them.

Like the Little Engine That Could, small businesses today face increasingly difficult odds against the growing strength of big box operators.

What do you say?

eWedNewz

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2013

Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, General News, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Poll, retail, The Internet, Uncategorized, wedding industry, Wedding Marketing Scams Tagged: , , ,

Apathy and Indifference Grips the Country; Sounds Like The Wedding Business

Posted on March 4, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

Over the weekend news reports  that proclaim America is yawning at the possible collapse of the nation comes as no surprise to most.  According to ongoing discussions apathy and indifference to the troubles facing the nation is a natural progression to how Americans view the problems after continuous coverage and nothing really extraordinary ever happening.

(yawn) An asteroid falling from the sky; another bomb explosion in the Middle east…. Zzzzzzzzzz. When’s the new I-phone coming out?

 

Members of the Wedding Water Cooler say the view of the world has distorted claiming half the people in America have less in savings in the bank than they spend on the newest I-phone. To prove our point we tweeted the statement while writing this story and got relatively little response back, other than the usual voices who are passionate about how they feel.

A year after eWedNewz reported Dessy selling products online, direct to consumers, the outrage quelled into an apathetic stance– along with many other issues that plague the wedding business.

 

More of the discussions in the cooler point to the people who just muddle through life instead of picking and choosing what really matters. The usual laments revisited several topics including the online sale of products by Dessy to consumers. The original story and follow-up showed overwhelming opposition to the practice.

An update still shows 76% of replies say manufacturers should not sell goods direct to consumers.

Similarly, opposition to manufacturers opening stores to compete with accounts was also struck down in a poll:

An update shows 78% oppose this action.

Over time similar polls that asked if it matters where products are made favored buying American if prices were about the same as products made in China or elsewhere. One poll in particular  overwhelmingly favors support to a wedding industry organization if it offered good benefits, was properly run and didn’t break the bank to join. Yet the show of support falls short of financial commitment when it comes time to make good on promises or to reach into the pocket and pull out the money.

The story was picked up by The New York Times. Reporter, Stacey Solie, asked us why more people aren’t talking about this. Stacey’s story gives one account of hundreds-of-thousands of online transactions happening every year affecting the wedding dress business.

“What’s frustrating about that is it’s just another news story that people breeze over. But to our business  it’s the difference between keeping the lights on in lean months,” according to Steve Lang, President and Founder of ABPIA.

Lang and other WWC members say they’re interested in the principle behind why these issues exist. As the CEO of his own company Lang has more latitude to express his feelings freely when compared to other members who work and must rely on their means of support above giving their opinion.

“Thank God I am not interested in winning a popularity contest; I’ll just continue to do what I’m doing and hope that sooner or later people realize this is for the good of their business and in their best interest to support the efforts in whatever way they can,” says Lang.

 

How apathetic are you?

 eWedNewz

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Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, eWedNewz, eWedNewz Exclusive, General News, Ongoing Story Investigation, Paul Pannone, Poll, Research, The Internet, Wedding Dresses, wedding industry, Wedding Water Cooler Tagged: , , , , , , ,

The Week of February 25th in Review

Posted on March 3, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

For the second week in a row Barry Rosenbloom’s statement of paying a lot more for similar space in New York City made top newZ.  Rosenbloom’s family owns Bridal Guide  but little is known about the man, except by those who say they’ve had a difficult time dealing with him through the years. Since the statement Rosenbloom and team Bridal Guide have grown silent, no longer answering our questions about the move or plans at the magazine.

Black Tie Follow Friday returned after several years to entertain and give online onlookers a dose of Rock & Roll, fantasy fun and an early morning  lift to get them started for towards the weekend. Those who participated said they had fun sharing new fashion styles and laughs. Those who missed the fun this week say they’ll be catching up next Friday and in the weeks ahead.

 

 

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Filed Under: bridal, Bridal Dresses, Bridal Guide Magazine, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Publications, The Internet, The Week in Review, wedding industry Tagged: , , , ,

PRESS RELEASE: Black Tie Follow Friday Returns

Posted on February 25, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

For Immediate Release: Black Tie Follow Friday is Back

 

Bigger and better than ever; the popular Black Tie Follow Friday originally on Twitter has been expanded to include other Social Media outlets to provide laughs, jokes, music and an atmosphere that is much needed in these challenging times.

One of the members of the team Alyssa Duclos who remembers the original format recalls getting her schoolwork done early so she could see how the big people play. Today she is a college graduate and member of the #BTFF team providing technical help and behind-the-scene support.

According to Alyssa, ” This is an event not to miss! Join us March 1, 2013 for the launching of Black Tie Follow Friday! What is it you might ask? Well, every Friday, across social media outlets, we all gather for a virtual “Black Tie Affair”. Be sure to wear your best formal wear, gowns for the women, tuxes are a must for the men.”

The other half of the Duclos team, Dorinda, brings her unique style of humor and knowledge of the wedding business to keep the party rolling. “We all deal with life and business on a day-to-day basis.  It’s hectic, sometimes overwhelming.  Black Tie Follow Friday gives you the chance to escape reality, to daydream.  We transport you, virtually, to places where you can relax to the sounds of the day, discover what fashions are making their mark, while making new connections to further your business.  Making our mark across the entire social media network is only the beginning.”

#BTFF Originally founded in 2009 by Paul Pannone, Black Tie Follow Friday has been a huge success, connecting people from the wedding industry and beyond. Join us every Friday on every social media outlet including, but not limited to, Facebook, Twitter, Google+ Be sure to use the hashtag #BlackTieFollowFriday or #BTFF when you share!”

“It’s been a long time since 2009 with a lot of changes. But whatever changes take place everyone loves to have fun, look good and enjoy life. Bringing back Black Tie Follow Friday is both appropriate and needed; I look forward to being a part of this very exciting project. Hopefully #BTFF can help create a few laughs along the way. And the best part? it’s free,” says Paul Pannone.

The entire theme is centered around fun with an irreverent approach to a good time and break away from the daily grind. Black Tie Follow Friday is a great way to kick off the weekend and carry you through to Monday morning.

For more information contact:

Dorinda Duclos  973-633-0874 or email dorindad@yahoo.com

Alyssa Duclos 862-226-9186  Alyssa@ThanksForNoticingMe.com

 

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Filed Under: Black Tie Follow Friday, Paul Pannone, Press Release, The Internet, Uncategorized Tagged: , , , , , ,

Bridal Guide Boss Claims paying “A Lot More” for “Similar” Space a few blocks away

Posted on February 24, 2013 Written by 2 Comments

 

By Paul Pannone

A developing eWedNewz story stemming from a simple story release could cause some seismic changes at Bridal Guide as eWedNewz uncovers new information that could force other advertisers to re-think their association with the magazine. eWedNewz fans out our investigation into the matter.

 

In a Twitter exchange Bridal Guide travel expert, Jeff Hendlin alluded to the fictitiousness of eWedNewz reporting. Yet Hendlin posted this picture of the office he is leaving behind for the “much better” space a few blocks away. Hendlin captioned the image with, “gonna miss my office”.

 A reply to the story from Bridal Guide that protested too much said:

“Bridal Guide celebrates its 25th Anniversary this year. While some major bridal titles have been shuttered and others have been forced to make drastic staff reductions and changes, Bridal Guide has never dramatically reduced staffing and has no plans to reduce staff in the future. Most of our top management, editorial, and sales staff have been highly successful in their roles for decades and have been promoted from within the company. We’re proud to boast of the most knowledgeable and expert staff of any national bridal publication.

Contrary to your assertion, Bridal Guide isn’t shrinking. In fact, our focus is expanding and our bank of expert consultants in all wedding-related categories grows each year. Visitors to our new office will observe that it is an upgrade from the space that we’ve occupied on 7th Avenue for nearly eight years. The office configuration is less than traditional — with significant open space to facilitate greater communication between staff. The new office is intended to reflect Bridal Guide’s evolution to much more than a print product. As many of our advertisers already know, Bridal Guide embraces changes that include amazing advancements in our web site  traffic, our social media following, and digital publishing. In a very real sense, we’ve expanded our capabilities to establish Bridal Guide as much more than a magazine. We’ve evolved to become a communication resource that offers an efficient combination of media to produce positive results for our advertisers and an inviting environment for our audience.

Print always will be a core component in Bridal Guide’s marketing platform. We continue to stand head and shoulders above our primary competitor in this arena. As documented by the most recent ABC statements, Bridal Guide’s newsstand sales remain healthy while newsstand sales at Brides have plummeted to an all-time low of 38,000 copies per issue — lower than that every other nationally distributed bridal publication. As documented by the most recent MRI Syndicated  Research report, Bridal Guide reaches significantly more engaged readers than Brides, as well. I’m happy to provide ABC Fast Facts and MRI data to verify the veracity of these claims to you or to anyone who would like to review them. Our role in the print category continues to expand.

Tremendous changes are happening in the bridal industry — changes that are impacting the way in which we all do business. In spite of  these changes — or perhaps as a result of them — Bridal Guide offers tremendous opportunities to bridal market vendors. We attribute this to the fact that our staff includes some of the most seasoned professionals in the world. Again, neither our staff size nor our aspirations are shrinking. You were misinformed. We’re doing a lot  better than “holding our own.” Given our history, we expect another 25 years of growth and success, according to Bridal Guide.

In January Bridal Guide called out its competitors with similar information claiming to be sustaining it’s newsstand sale success. But in a developing story, eWedNewz finds dramatic information into the leadership of the company that could quickly shift support away from the magazine.

Over the weekend an exchange with Barry Rosenbloom, owner of the magazine, purports paying “a lot more” for “similar” space when faced with the eWedNewz question of whether the new offices are bigger than the ones departed on 7th avenue. Given the nature of Rosenbloom’s track record, it’s amazing– even laughable– that he would spend a nickel more for anything.

 

eWedNewz plans to dig in deeper and take Rosie up on his offer to come and view the new space, once they’re settled in.

 

 

eWedNewz

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2013

Filed Under: Advertising and Marketing, bridal, Bridal Guide Magazine, Bridal Magazines, BRIDES Magazine, eWedNewz, eWedNewz Exclusive, General News, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Poll, Publications, The Internet, Uncategorized, wedding industry, Wedding Water Cooler, wedding websites Tagged: , , , , ,
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