NOA Bridal customers say they have lost thousands of dollars after North Perth wedding dress shop’s closure

Customers of a Perth bridal shop have been left out of pocket and scrambling to find another wedding dress, after the owner announced the store’s sudden closure. In an email to her brides on Tuesday, NOA Bridal owner Elizabeth Lyndon-James announced she would no longer be able to deliver their wedding dresses because she was “heavily” in debt and would be declaring bankruptcy. “If there were anything left to give, I would,” she wrote. “However, I have now reached a point where there are no further options or resources available.” Bride-to-be Melissa McPhail is one of many women who was contacted directly by Ms Lyndon-James in the months leading up to this week’s announcement, and said she had been told the shop would be closing in June because she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. In an email seen by The West Australian, Ms Lyndon-James said she’d made the decision because her symptoms were “progressing faster than initially expected”. “This has been incredibly hard to process and come to terms with and has taken a toll on not only my health and myself but also my family,” she wrote in April. “Bridal is something that I have absolutely loved and thought I would continue forever, but with losing my mobility and the fact that it will only get worse from here I just can’t continue the running (of) NOA Bridal anymore.” However Ms McPhail said Ms Lyndon-James assured her the dress she purchased and paid for in full in November last year would not be impacted and would be delivered directly to her seamstress for alterations. “I was super, super sympathetic because our sister in law had just been diagnosed with it, so I know the disease,” she said. “She passed us onto (the seamstress) and said they will be your drop point for your wedding dress, they’ll contact you in two weeks.” Ms McPhail said when she received Tuesday’s email, she contacted the Melbourne-based dress designer Marquise directly and found out her dress was ordered but had not been paid for. “I emailed the designer and within 30 seconds the designer was calling me,” Ms McPhail said. “She said that she had my order, but she never received the deposit for it.” Ms McPhail said she quickly repurchased the dress directly through the designer ahead of her March wedding but said she is $10,000 out of pocket after the ordeal. “I’m one of the lucky ones, I’ve still got plenty of time,” Ms McPhail said. Mandy Hopper’s New Year’s Eve nuptials have also been impacted by the closure and she said she “genuinely had no idea” what she was going to do. She said after calling her wedding dress designer Jane Hill, she was advised the business had no record of her order nor payment from NOA Bridal. “I expected the dress was coming next month until yesterday,” she said. “My partner’s just like ‘buy another one, it’s fine, I’ll work more it’s all good’, and I’m like that’s not the point, the point is I’ve just burned $6000.” Following Tuesday’s email, both Ms McPhail and Ms Hopper have connected with a dozen other women online who have shared their stories about the store. Designer Jane Hill would not comment on the situation, but multiple women impacted by the closure who ordered Jane Hill dresses via NOA Bridal, told The West they had been informed the designer had not received any payments from NOA Bridal since February. Bankruptcy Advisory Centre’s Andrew Bell, who confirmed the company had made an application for bankruptcy, said he had been fielding calls from upset brides. “I’ve had a number of ladies who are very distressed that they’re not going to get their dresses,” he told The West Australian. But Mr Bell warned it could take “six to 12 months” to determine whether it was possible for them to get any of their money back. NOA Bridal, which originated in Margaret River in 2021, previously had a glowing record with a 4.6 star rating on Google and several rave reviews about the store online. The Fitzgerald Street store was empty on Wednesday. The West has contacted Ms Lyndon-James for further comment.