Wedding season has a new disruptor: semaglutide, the active ingredient in weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.
According to a survey by wedding planning platform Zola, 10% of engaged couples now use GLP-1 medications, and 42% feel pressured to “look a certain way” for their big day.
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Bridal designers are feeling the impact most keenly.
Traditional wedding gowns are complex and expensive, and dramatic weight loss in the months before the wedding is creating logistical nightmares.
Designers Adapt to Changing Bodies
Rebecca Schoneveld, a bridal designer who runs a size-inclusive business, says that in the past, brides often hoped to lose weight but rarely did.
Now, with GLP-1s, weight loss has become dramatic and unpredictable.
Kelly Cook, CEO of David’s Bridal, noticed a “significant shift” late last year.
Brides were coming in earlier, asking anxious questions about weight loss and alterations, but delaying purchases.
In response, David’s Bridal launched a fit guarantee, promising the dress will fit up to the wedding day, even if it means swapping for another gown.
For smaller designers, such guarantees are financially impossible. Many are instead updating contracts to require brides to pay for the dress regardless of fit.
Jarithza Carlson, production director at Anne Barge, says new contracts warn brides that if they lose more than three dress sizes, they may need to purchase another gown.
The Costly Art of Re-tailoring
Alterations specialist Melissa Lynn Oddo says taking in a dress several sizes too big can cost up to $1,500, essentially creating a custom piece.
