We had the pleasure of meeting Randy Fenoli at a trunk show at Amanda-Lina’s Sposa Boutique in Toronto. You know that charming, warm personality you see on Say Yes to the Dress? Well, it’s no act. His friendly demeanour was clear from the very first “Hello, Beautiful”.
TB: We notice a lot of dimension in your dresses. Was this something you focused on?
RF: If you look at my collection, there’s a little bit of everything. I have a sleek dress, I have bohemian, I have romantic for a garden wedding, I’ve got Cinderella, I’ve got sexy, I’ve got your Kim Karsdashian with a little va va voom. I really wanted to cover every bride in my collection and wanted her to know that if she wanted affordable luxury, she could come to Randy Fenoli Bridal and find the dress that is right for her.
TB: Are brides going sexier these days?
RF: Every bride wants to look sexy. But what does sexy mean? Audrey Hepburn was sexy. Grace Kelly was sexy.
TB: Where are the trends going?
RF: I think they are leaning a little bit more toward the bohemian look. But it really depends what area you’re in, what country you’re in, and even within that country, what state you’re in. A Californian bride or a New York bride will be different from your Southern belle. I think it’s regional, but I do think that the boho look will be coming back really soon.
TB: When you go to a wedding, are you tainted by your wedding knowledge, or do you enjoy every minute?
RF: I actually don’t go to a lot of weddings, because now that I’m on TV, I don’t want to take away from the bride’s moment. I really can’t go to weddings. I can get them dressed and send them down the aisle, but other than that… I have been to the most grand weddings on the planet. I’ve been to weddings at Disney World where the park is closed down, you get on the trolley, they take you to the wedding, they trumpet the horns, they put you on the carousel and so on… But what really inspires me when I go to a wedding is seeing a couple who is so in love and so true to who they are. That excites me.
TB: Where do you get the names of the dresses?
RF: Some of them are my dearest friends. Like, Michelle is my dearest friend. Rebecca is my dearest friend. Collins came from my friend who actually does female impersonations and his stage name is Coti Collins. He said, ‘That is my favourite dress’ so I named it Collins. My mother, her name is Jeanette, and I didn’t think that would be a pretty name for a dress (laughing), but her middle name is Elizabeth so I called the dress Elizabeth. There’s Celine, for Celine Dion. Grace, for Grace Kelly. Some just had a feeling, some had a purpose. I just named them whatever I felt. These are my babies.
Originally published in Today’s Bride magazine, Fall/Winter 2018.
