Beat the Holiday Sales Slump: Master Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) to Lock in Gown Purchases Now
The festive season is a magical time—but if you’re running a bridal business, you know it comes with a familiar challenge: the holiday squeeze.
Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, consumer wallets tighten up, and many brides feel compelled to delay big purchases. This often translates to a noticeable drop in commitment and a frustrating dip in sales exactly when you need momentum.
But what if you could eliminate that seasonal slowdown? What if you could make those big-ticket gowns feel affordable now, ensuring your revenue stream stays strong while everyone else is watching their sales floor collect dust? You can!
The Modern Solution: Embrace the BNPL Boom
The solution is mastering the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) trend.
BNPL is the flexible, modern way consumers prefer to manage high-value purchases. By offering accessible payment plans, you remove the biggest barrier to purchase—sticker shock—and convert browsing brides into committed clients instantly.
This isn’t just theory; it’s about implementing specific, legal, and stress-free tools to keep your revenue flowing. Here’s a breakdown of your options.
Option 1: Navigating Third-Party BNPL Partnerships
Direct partnerships with traditional BNPL companies can be tricky for bridal stores due to your long, delayed delivery timelines and those firm “all sales are final” policies. We know, sometimes it feels like a dating app—high standards! While not impossible, you may need to make contract adjustments.
Companies like Affirm, Klarna, Bread Pay (which is already loaded on Clover devices), or Splitit are good starting points for higher-ticket items with delayed delivery. To successfully secure a contract, you might need to add policies such as a short cancellation period, a non-refundable deposit, or guaranteed specific shipping dates.
Key Questions for BNPL Partners:
If you decide to move forward with a partnership, you need to ask these essential questions:
- How long until I am funded? (Crucial for managing your cash flow.)
- What percentage of the sale do they charge? Does this fee increase based on the length of the payment plan?
- Do they ever run specials throughout the year that reduce your transaction percentage?
The “Virtual Card” Alternative
If a formal partnership isn’t the right fit, some services like Affirm allow customers to apply directly. If approved, the customer receives a virtual card they can use to pay for the transaction just like any credit card. This means the only fee you incur is your normal credit card processing rate. Sneaky smart!
A Note on Credit Card Partnerships
Another option is partnering with a credit card company like Synchrony. This allows you to offer a dedicated credit card for your business. However, be aware that the consumer approval rate is much lower, and the application involves a hit to their credit report, unlike most soft-pull BNPL options.
Option 2: The Stress-Free In-House Payment Plan
If the third-party complexity feels overwhelming (hello, paperwork headaches!), offering an in-house payment plan is an excellent alternative. Especially during the holidays, when customers’ money is diverted to other things, this strategy allows you to secure the sale and a down payment during slow months while boosting your cash flow for the coming year.
You can also opt to charge a small percentage fee for the payment plan to increase your overall revenue, or offer a 0% payment plan as a limited-time holiday promotion. Just because it’s in-house doesn’t mean you have to do it for free!
The Golden Rule for In-House Plans
We only recommend this option if you have a system that prioritizes security and automation. You must be able to store customer card information in a PCI-compliant way and, ideally, keep at least one backup card on file. A system that automates those payments keeps you from ever having to make an awkward follow-up call, ensuring you stay the stylish bridal boss and not the debt collector! (Psst… if you’re a Poppy customer, you’ve already won this round—our automated payment plans handle all this, backup cards included, for you!)
Ready for the Next Step? Join Poppy Hour
We’ve just scratched the surface! We’ll be diving deep into every single one of these payment options—the legality, the strategy, and the automation—in our next Poppy Hour strategy session.
This is the hour to future-proof your sales cycle and guarantee your strongest holiday season yet.
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