VIRGINIA BEACH — A Virginia Beach bridal shop is offering its services to brides scrambling to find a new wedding dress after a local business owner suddenly shut the doors to her bridal shop without informing customers.
House of Maya owner Maya Holihan closed the bridal shop on Aug. 25, surrendering control of the business to Old Point Town Bank. The move came months after lawsuits totaling more than $87,000 were filed against Holihan by a bank and her former landlord, according to court documents.
After Southside Daily uncovered the business closure on Wednesday, 32-year-old Alexandra Fleear decided to take action.
Fleear owns Ava Clara Couture Bridal, a gown shop that’s been operating at 401 N. Great Neck Road for eight years. Fleear got into the wedding industry after working at Pure English Couture Bridal, which was part of Holihan’s group of Hampton Roads bridal stores.
Fleear said that thinking of any bride worried about what she’ll wear as she walks down the aisle drove her to extend a helping hand to Holihan’s former clients.
“The wedding dress is something sacred,” Fleear said. “It’s something that the gal has probably dreamed of for a very long time, so for that to be an issue is very heartbreaking.”
Extending Hours
In an effort to accommodate brides who need help in a hurry, Fleear is going to extend her weekend hours of operation. She’ll open the shop an hour earlier — 9 a.m. — on Saturdays and begin opening on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Fleear’s normal shop hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; however, she said she’ll do what she can to schedule appointments for brides even if they can’t come in during normal hours of operation.
When a bride schedules her appointment at Ava Clara Couture Bridal, Fleear said she will immediately begin working with designers to see what they have in stock that’s close to the bride’s size and needs before the bride comes into the shop.
And for those brides facing a financial loss because of potentially missing dresses, Fleear is lowering the prices of her sample gowns. For some dresses that typically go for $1,000 as samples, Fleear will lower the price to the $300 to $500 range. Some gowns will even be priced at $99.
“I’m also taking in respect that they’ve lost a lot of money, and am working on making sure they’re not being gouged and are getting a really good deal,” she said, adding that she knows several local seamstresses who can do alterations.
Send news tips to adrienne.m@wydaily.com.
