Bankrupted Atlanta bridal shop shuts down, now new owner stepping in to help

ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News first told you about Anya Bridal three months ago. Brides were stunned to find out their gowns were locked inside and there was no way to get them.

More than two dozen dresses are in the bridal shop, waiting for their rightful owners. Channel 2′s Bryan Mims explains how they could soon be reunited.

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Three months ago, Anya Bridal in northwest Atlanta closed its doors without any warning. Signs about the closure are still posted on the front door.

Now, the store’s inventory has a new owner and she’s trying to reunite the dresses she found with their brides.

Rack after rack of unbought white bridal gowns hang in the dark. But what Marie Andujar found in this room came as a jolt.

“I said wow. These belong to somebody. They actually belong to someone. They’re in the process of getting ready to go into someone’s life,” Andujar said.

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In the alteration room, she found nearly 30 dresses. If they’re in the room, getting altered, she says, they’re likely paid for. But they remain in the dark.

“They took my money, and I have no dress,” Nia James said.

In August, Channel 2′s Tom Jones heard from James, who bought a dress from Anya Bridal, only for her wedding consultant to say the store was shuttered.

“I was just hoping it was a mistake and she was gonna reply that the dress was still coming,” James said.

She did manage to get her dress from the designer because Anya Bridal had to order it.

But for others, their gowns were locked up, and they couldn’t reach anyone with the company.

Channel 2 Action News called and emailed Anya Bridal, but has not yet received a response.

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“I’ve worked with thousands of brides over the last almost 30 years, and I know the stress. I’ve lived the stress with many of them,” Andujar explained.

Andujar, who owns a special events venue, acquired all the dresses through a bankruptcy auction.

She wants to bring a happy ending to the brides and bridesmaids whose dresses are in the room.

They don’t have to pay anything more; they only need to provide proof such as an invoice or photo that the dresses belong to them.

“If I could put one dress in the rightful owner’s hands, I think it will make a story that was not so lovely into something that’s kind of sweet,” Andujar said.

As for the other inventory, she plans to take 100 to 200 dresses and mark them all half off for Black Friday.

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