PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 26, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Urban Outfitters, Inc. (Nasdaq:URBN), a leading lifestyle specialty retail company operating under the Anthropologie, Free People, Leifsdottir, Terrain and Urban Outfitters brands today announced wedding brand BHLDN will debut on Valentine's Day.
For the day that celebrates a woman's personal taste and style, BHLDN provides a confident and guiding voice to help create an extraordinary experience for brides to share with their family and friends. BHLDN's first collection is scheduled for February 14, 2011 through its online boutique, . It will bring together a curated collection of heirloom quality wedding gowns, bridesmaid frocks, party dresses, assorted jewelry, headpieces, footwear, and lingerie.
Inspired by the very brides BHLDN will serve; the Anthropologie creative team began dreaming up a wedding brand after hearing tales of its customers' nuptials. "We know our customer, and we know she's looking for a brand that reflects her unique perspective. She may have interests common to her friends, but she's looking to create a moment that's all her own… it's not so much about our point of view as it is about capturing hers," explains Managing Director, Kristin Norris.
BHLDN's online boutique is at the heart of this offer. Each gown is introduced with soulful photography, while a short video captures the ebb and flow of silk habotai, pleated tulle, and veiled organza. MyBHLDN offers a personalized area where brides can create mood boards to share with friends and family (or the broader BHLDN coterie), while how-to's advise on the perfect bow and what to look for in a wedding photographer.
The collection will feature own-brand designs, as well as established and up-and-coming guest designers – its point of edit being a twist on tradition. Gowns pay respect to the old, new, borrowed and blue, but each with a wink and a nod. Fleur Wood, Tracy Reese, and Catherine Deane contribute exclusive designs to the tailored and voluminous, soft and draped, embroidered and embellished assortment, complete with refinements like built-in boning and corsets. Retail prices for the brand range from $1,000 to $4,000 for gowns, and $200 to $600 for event dresses.
The accessories assortment is vintage-inspired, but decidedly modern. Artisans, ateliers, and milliners including James Coviello, Jennifer Behr, and Yestadt Millinery craft feathers, tulle, and jewels into luxe headpieces. And jewelry designers like Erickson Beamon, Katie Diamond, and Petra Domling offer baubles, from delicate to bold.
Following in the tradition of Anthropologie, BHLDN puts emphasis on not just apparel, but the imagination and detail of every element that makes up a wedding. Decorations will round out the collection later in the year, encompassing varied interests and themes. BHLDN will carry everything from cake toppers and lanterns, to lovely DIY-type items that are already made, as well as more aspirational items like candelabras and mouth-blown glassware.
A wedding may be the biggest and most important party a woman will ever throw or attend, and BHLDN plans to be there for all of the special moments throughout its customers' lives.
The first store is expected to open its doors in the second half of the year. BHLDN will become the sixth brand to join the URBN family.
This news release is being made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Certain matters contained in this release may constitute forward-looking statements. Any one, or all, of the following factors could cause actual financial results to differ materially from those financial results mentioned in the forward-looking statements: the difficulty in predicting and responding to shifts in fashion trends, changes in the level of competitive pricing and promotional activity and other industry factors, overall economic and market conditions and the resultant impact on consumer spending patterns, including any effects of terrorist acts or war, availability of suitable retail space for expansion, timing of store openings, seasonal fluctuations in gross sales, the departure of one or more key senior managers, import risks, including potential disruptions and changes in duties, tariffs and quotas and other risks identified in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update forward-looking statements even if experience or future changes make it clear that actual results may differ materially from any projected results expressed or implied therein.
CONTACT: Oona McCullough Director of Investor Relations (215) 454-4806