Bridal Salon Gives Back to Army Wives, Army Women

Nicole Johnson, owner of Nicole Michaels Bridal and Formal, is doing her part to help the families of those who serve in the military. 

Johnson opened her store two years ago. She was previously a wedding planner, and helping brides choose their wedding dresses was part of her job. She was not happy with the level of service that her brides were getting. Her husband encouraged her to go after her longtime dream of owning her own bridal boutique.

Johnson said her previous experience with brides helps her tremendously in her boutique. "I look at the whole picture when we are talking about a dress. I ask them, 'Where is your venue? What kind of look are you going for? Let's look at everything.'" 

The name Nicole Michaels comes from the first names of Johnson and her husband, Michael. He and the rest of Johnson's family–including her mother, daughter and sons–often help out around the store. 

Johnson first started helping out military wives and brides who serve when a woman who was in the Air Force came into the shop. Johnson was touched by the woman's story. She often had to leave her daughter for long periods of time when she went away for duty. She told Johnson that she was leaving for Afghanistan and Johnson heavily discounted her dress.

From that point, Johnson decided that she was going to apply a 10% discount across the board for all military wives. Johnson even likes to make it a surprise and does not tell her brides about the discount until the very end.

Johnson also recently helped a military bride who had very few resources. Her fiancé was in basic training; she was in school and working at Wendy's just to get by. She saw a dress at Nicole Michaels and fell in love with it. The woman's father pulled Nicole aside and asked if there was anything that he could do to help around the store in exchange for the dress.

Johnson absolutely wanted to help, so she and the woman's father surprised the woman with the dress. Johnson said the woman was in tears. "She was so happy and appreciative. It was nice that we could help her out."

Nicole Michaels offers a lot of off-the-rack sales for military wives specifically, because of their hectic schedules. "A lot of times they are in a hurry to get married before their fiancés get deployed," said Johnson. "We are just happy we can offer it to them as an option and get the dress on them in time. Even if it's a quickie wedding, it doesn't have to look like it."

Nicole was involved with ROTC while she was in high school, so the idea to help out those who serve only came naturally. She often hears stories and watches the news, and thinks of this as her own small way of helping.

Nicole Michaels has also donated communion dresses to local churches and often helps out Care House by donating prom dresses for the young girls there.

The store also carries a large selection of plus-size dresses. "They are not just bigger dresses, they are made to fit plus-size women," said Johnson.

Every dress in the store is under $1,500. 

Alterations are also available in store.

Be sure to visit their website for more information. You can also visit the Nicole Michaels Facebook  page to stay current on their latest styles.