Home › Business › Business
Shoppers line up to find prom dress
Download this story as a podcast!
Jason Redmond / Star staff Ventura 4/20/08: Owner and designer Sean Jonathan looks a photos that customer Marie Dillenbeck of Palmdale brought in from her son's wedding as she shops for another dress at the California and Main dress shop in Ventura on Sunday. Dillenbeck wore a dress from California and Main to the wedding.
Sean Jonathan presides at the crowded shop as customers choose among and then get fitted in prom dresses.
STORY TOOLS 
More from BusinessProm season is fast approaching and every weekend women are lining up outside the California & Main dress shop in downtown Ventura.
On a recent Saturday, more than two dozen people waited out on the sidewalk. So many people have been showing up that a bouncer wearing a headset sits outside the front door to keep things orderly.
"I would imagine we're going to wait hours," said Theresa Schoppe, who trekked to the store with her daughter, Megan Schoppe, 17.
"She went and got a book to read," Theresa Schoppe said of her daughter, who wants a "really bright" or pastel-colored halter dress for the prom at Oaks Christian School in Westlake Village.
The dresses, which sell for several hundred dollars each, draw customers from hundreds of miles away. They include beauty contestants, brides and high school teenagers — all looking for the perfect dress to wear to a formal event.
The niche purveyor of must-have items has what every small business owner dreams of — insatiable demand that cannot be doused by a weak economy.
Megan Schoppe arrived at the store before her mother did.
"I've been here since 10:45," she said as she reached the front of the line about 12:30 p.m.
"We're really excited to be next because it's hot," her mother said.
What would possess people to stand for hours in the heat to buy a dress from a store when they could shop without waiting in an air-conditioned mall?
Two things, the women say: customer service and a guarantee that no one else will be wearing the same dress.
California & Main emphasizes service, giving each girl as much time as she needs to find just the right dress.
Thus, the long lines.
Owner Michelle Mandulay launched the store 20 years ago, but turned it over to her husband, Sean Jonathan, a few years ago after she had a baby.
On this particular day, at least two dozen people were swarming about the shop. But customers aren't permitted to touch the dresses, Megan Schoppe pointed out.
Each girl is given special attention by her own "personal shopper" who pulls dresses from rows of racks, which run across the ceiling and down to the showroom floor.
Joking about the store's chipped-paint appearance, Jonathan said, "My girls say it's a vintage store."
About five to eight personal shoppers are on hand each day. Jonathan said he won't hire anyone as a personal shopper who hasn't purchased a dress from him before.
"I only hire employees who've been through the same experience of finding that magical dress," he said.
Their personal shopper "was like a mind reader," said Sherry Casady, who drove nearly 100 miles from Santa Maria to pick up her daughter's dress.
Megan Casady, 17, had heard about the store from her friends and pestered her mother for three years to take her. The whole experience, standing in line, trying on dress after dress, and then being attended to by Jonathan, left Megan Casady marveling.
She described her $400 dress as "black and wine-colored, and corseted with beads."
"I will say," said her mother, "Sean (Jonathan) gave us the most amazing shopping day of our lives and we love the fact that no one from her school will have the same dress."
Although the store's name is on the awning, Jonathan points out that there is no sign.
"It gives me a very selective clientele," he said.
Posted by Ms_California on April 25, 2008 at 7:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Wow must be nice to be able to spend that amount of money on a prom dress for a teenager! My daughter mean the world to me and I hope to make her prom night memorable but in these times there is no way I would spend that amount of money on a dress other than a wedding gown.
Posted by caskier on April 25, 2008 at 7:46 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Ms_California - My daughter wanted to go to this shop because of the promise that no one else would be wearing the same dress. I pointed out to her that throughout high school she has never encountered this problem. Why? Because we shop in downtown LA in the garment district. Well worth the trip, we usually spend about $70 for a dress and less than $20 for shoes. She looks as good as or better than everyone else, has a unique dress, and spends a lot less.
Posted by Hueneme_girl29 on April 25, 2008 at 8:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I'm not sure how many of you listen to 95.1 - but they do a great thing each year called "Prom dress relief" and girls can go down to the station and pick out any dress that they want that has been donated - for free. They do not have to say a word, dont have to give their name or anything, so as to not be embarassed. I just donated a brides maid dress (really pretty, not one of THOSE brides maids dresses!) and it would be a perfect prom dress for someone. That is always a possiblity - you can remain anonymous and get a great dress for free!
Posted by aroma on April 25, 2008 at 8:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Ok I want to clear the air first...I'm not trying to bash the store or just be mean...but they did over write the story. I've been there twice. My first time there was great, the people there were very nice and they helped me find the perfect dress for my sweet 15 party. The second time I went looking for a prom dress and it wasn't too great. I still wasn't sure what I was looking for and made the mistake of going to this store first. When they say "customers aren't permitted to touch the dresses"...they mean it! Because the store is so small, they cram the dresses into the racks, so you can't even see them nor can you just go over and pull it out and look at it. I guess what I'm trying you say is if you are planning to go to California and Main you better know what you are looking for and you better be planning to buy something right then and there, or else you'll get the cold shoulder and the snotty attitude. Yet again this was a couple of years ago when the wife was still there; maybe her husband really does have great customer service no matter what. My advise would be shop around somewhere else first and get some ideas of what it is you want, then go downtown...but be ready to spend some money there, because it'll cost you.
Posted by mtorres on April 25, 2008 at 9:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I been there done that. Now My beautiful $300 dresses are hanging in my closet after being worn one night.I hope these girls have a great time and get to wear these expensive evening gowns again & again. Have fun girls!
Posted by Hueneme_girl29 on April 25, 2008 at 10:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Mtorres-
YOu should donate them instead of having them hang in your closet! Some poor girl out there would be so thankful to have one of your $300 dresses to wear on prom night! You should go down to the radio station in Ventura and drop them off, you never know, you could really make someones dream come true that cant afford to get a $300 dress........just something to think about. They are not making anyone happy just hanging in your closet, mine as well put them to use!
Posted by Tabitha_D on April 25, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
i bought my prom dress there, yrs ago that is, and yes it was $300, and yes it was more than worth it. for my 4 yrs at high school all i had dreamt of was saving and having my sernior prom dress bought there. and i accomplished that goal. Not only do you get a beautiful dress for your "hundreds of dollars", you get the gaurentee that nobody is going to be wearing that same dress, and quite honestly that is a big thing, i had older sisters that had that problem because they bought theirs at the mall, and they were very upset about it. Also you get the dress tailored to you. they hem the length, shorten the straps or whatever it is you need to make the dress you picked fit you even more perfectly. I still love going by this store and seeing the dresses in the window.
and to the comments of "know what you want"...i had no idea what i wanted other than a dress from there that was perfect, what that was i didn't know, but i knew when i saw it. i still have my dress as well, and its still as beautiful as ever. but to each there own. i'm sure they haven't always had the best people working there at all times. i'm sorry you didn't get that experience for your prom. i hope these girls that are lined up now get everything they're looking for and have a great night.
Posted by st_barbie on April 25, 2008 at 11:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I went to this store 5 years ago when I was looking for a non-formal wedding dress. First of all I am plus sized and have tattoos. This combo must of translated to the workers that I have no money or taste.
I got yelled at for touching the gowns as well. One of the attendants got my size then proceeded to bring me dresses I dont think my grandmother would wear.
Long story short, I didn't buy a dress from them and would never recommend them to anyone.
Posted by That_is_sad on April 25, 2008 at 12:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I worked there for a little while (for a woman owner) and it was the worst job I ever had. 10am -6pm no lunch break and if you needed to go to the bathroom (which is in the looney bin hotel next door) you got grief from the lady who owned the place. Customers were not treated with repspect at all. The seamstress was in a 7x7 foot room with no windows next door at the hotel. I hope ownership has shaped up otherwise the tax man and Fire marshal should look into this establishment.
Posted by JeannetteMedrano on April 25, 2008 at 12:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)
caskier~~Exactly!!
Hey, I say, if you have the cash and don't mind paying for something your daughter will wear once...I say go for it! I on the other hand am glad it makes no difference to my daughter if we go to LA or the mall. And yes, we can afford to spend that much. But for my daughter, it's not about the dress, it's about the time she is spending with her friends, the fun and the memories she will have. She does wear her dresses more than once. Now, my niece, total different story. I just saw about 4 dress from the dress store in her closet and asked why she isn't wearing one for prom...she said,no way I already wore them! I even told her she better donate them to 95.1. She had a whole new, very open dress made up for prom last week and my sister is in no positin to pay that much, but does anyway! But, I think this time she had her BF of three or four weeks pay for prom attire and then some....he has no CLUE!! Anyhow....To all, have a safe and wonderful time at prom and make it memorable~~
Posted by yehikac on April 25, 2008 at 1:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)
My sister went there for her prom dress and when she showed up to prom another girl was wearing the exact same dress.....and we have the pictures to prove it..
Posted by eguzie on April 25, 2008 at 3:14 p.m. (Suggest removal)
OMG this store is horrible, i was prom shopping the last year... the sales associates treat customers with no respect, you get yelled at for touching the dresses, its horrible. They are quick to judge people, if you look like you have no money they wont help you. I do not reccomend this store to anyone. Go to LA ... your can get the same dresses for half the price, and better service. California and Main sucks. The End
Posted by sue805 on April 25, 2008 at 3:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
i was there with Grandaughter to get dress about 7 yrs ago. Was intense. GD is a plus so wasn't a lot to choose from ... She ended up with a nice dress that they put little tab on the back where the zipper would not close and then laced it up. I guess she was happy with it. It has been in her closet of herold room at home for yrs doing nothing. I am going to call my daughter and tell her to donate it and any others in that closet. Make some girl happy. Thanks for mentioning the donation thing..
Posted by sharonrose on April 25, 2008 at 5:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)
We live in San Francisco and were visiting relatives in Hollywood Beach last month. My sisters took us to this fabulous store. My daughter found a beautiful dress that needed alterations, which normally take a couple of weeks. Because we were leaving the next day, Sean expedited the alterations and we were able to pick up the dress the next day. He's a perfectionist and didn't want to just ship the dress to us without Ashley trying it on again. She's already worn it twice -- to her prom AND she sang in a Cancer Benefit Show and wore the dress again while belting out "When You're Good to Mama" from "Chicago" -- the dress was perfect and looked gorgeous on stage. All the beads glittered like diamonds. It's well worth the money to find the perfect dress that makes you look great. I'm sure she'll have other occasions to wear it. The dress is silk and has hand-sewn beading from top to bottom -- its worth the cost. That's also a reason not to let the girls just paw through the dresses and try them on on their own. Have you ever seen a Nordstrom's or Macy's dressing room during prom season! What a mess. --Sharon
Posted by ccdbum on April 25, 2008 at 10:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
This article makes it sound like California and Main is Neiman Marcus and they are serving you champagne, which could not be further from the truth. The place is small, crammed full of dresses and the employees are rude. You don't tell them what you want, they bring you dresses to try on and won't bring you anything else until you do whether you like it or not. And, there are no prices on the dresses. I swear they size you up, look at your daughter and decide either how much she loves the dress or how desperate you are and then charge you whatever they think they can get from you. After two horrible years of this, I discovered the garment district in LA-- three times as many dresses at 1/3 the price. http://lafashion.veplan.net/page.aspx...
Posted by knicknacke on April 26, 2008 at 8:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The day we went in for an alterations appt. a beauty queen was there the same time and Sean was fawning all over her, nice as could be to her, giving her all the time she needed and so were all the employees. When it was time to have my daughter try on the dress to see how it fit, the alterations were awful and he barely gave us the time of day, saying oh thats what the material does and rushing us out of there ..I went there because we wanted a custom fitted dress that made my daughters figure look great instead we got something that looked frumpy on her.....My daughter left crying and I regretting that we ever went there.... Sean totally gives you attitude if you question anything..Their customer service is only good to a point and then they get downright rude if you question how the dress fits. Yes, I have also seen the same dress show up at an event that some one else had on because the dresses are worn again or borrowed so yes, they don't sell the same dress to the same event but it does not guarantee that it wont be on someone else...The guy has a great business going there but I really do think that the customer service should be friendlier.
(Requires free registration.)
Article discussions on this site are to support community debates of issues related to our stories and editorials.
Discussions should not stray from the subject of the story or editorial.
We do not allow the following:
We reserve the right to delete threads and/or ban users for these or other reasons we deem necessary.
Opinions are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.