Our Incredible Stockist: The White Gallery
The bridal industry is full of people in love with love! The woman I’m going to introduce today is definitely one of them, and her incredible boutique is what happens when the worlds of love and fashion combine.
The White Gallery is an exclusive, destination bridal boutique like no other in Ireland. Brides travel from far and wide to find their dream wedding dress from owner Rachel’s exquisite edit. She has carefully created a boutique that offers an experience for all the brides who don't identify with the mainstream aesthetic and created a fashion orientated bridal boutique offering wedding dresses for the modern, cool, yet sophisticated bride.
Halfpenny London and The White Gallery have a long and wonderful history together, being one of the very first wholesale partnerships we ever explored. It was a real moment for me, and the business in general and I’m thrilled to say the partnership is still going strong! I love this woman and seeing her when she pops over to London is always a huge highlight. Here, Rachel talks about her background in the business, her gorgeous boutique and her favourite Halfpenny London looks.
Love,
Kate xx
Image by Leah Marie Photography
Rachel, tell us a little about yourself
Hey I’m Rachel, married to Stephen who’s also my business partner, we have three beautiful daughters Ezara (15), Farrah-May (13) and Saoirse (11). We have two pets Rosie our cocker spaniel and Lottie our Poochon. Life can be pretty hectic in our house at times with everyone involved with sport and a lot of chauffeur duties to training and games but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I adore chocolate and good French glass of vino and enjoy a good book. I love fashion especially when I find a high street piece that I can style with designer shoes/boots or a nice handbag and then it elevates an outfit!
How did you get into the bridal business?
Baby number three was on the way and I really got itchy feet and wanted a change in career. I’d been a PR Director and was working in the industry for 13 years and had an urge to have a new career that would allow a little more flexibility and have a better work/ life balance. We built our beautiful home and quickly realised that we weren’t using the entire front of our house. So we started brainstorming, I love clothes and styling outfits and having a conversation about wedding style Stephen said what about opening a bridal boutique! So we started researching and realised that there was new, emerging designers on the bridal scene that weren’t in any boutique in Ireland. Exclusive designers has become our thing and we only work with the brands that are exclusive to our boutique in Ireland.
Describe your boutique in one word:
Exclusive.
Where is your boutique and why did you choose that area?
We are a unique bridal shopping experience, our boutique is inside our home so has a welcoming feel but it’s completely separate to our living space and so it feels very intimate. Our boutique is in a quaint village Burren but we are just 10 mins off the motorway and right in the middle of Belfast and Dublin the two largest cities in Ireland.
What can brides to be expect when visiting your boutique?
A truly special, exclusive experience. We have created our haven for brides to express their own personality and try on the most amazing dresses by some of the most sought after designers in the world. It will be enjoyable, the craic will be top priority as we endeavour to put our brides at ease and will be super relaxing as we have a magical time trying on stunning dresses.
Why do you love Halfpenny London?
I love how brides can quite literally create their dream dress with the stunning edit that Kate designs with every collection. Kate has created so many beautiful pieces that brides are spoilt for choice. I particularly love the accessories that Halfpenny London have that can transform a dress, giving bride a look for their ceremony and effortlessly change to something completely different for the evening by adding a sleeve or removing an overskirt. I love Kate’s creativity and her approach to sustainability to use cut off fabrics to create absolutely fabulous pieces. Most of all I love the fact that The White Galley was Halfpenny London’s first ever stockist and we are still happily married to the brand 10 years later. The quality of fabrics and the tailoring and the fact that the Halfpenny’s are literally the nicest people to work with are just another few reasons why I love Halfpenny London!
Which is your favourite piece from the Halfpenny London collection and why?
Dahlia…the square neckline, the sumptuous mikado silk, the drama of the large skirt and yet it looks like a slim fitted silhouette front on. Styled with the Dahlia bow it really is a show stopper!
If you could use one word to describe Halfpenny London, what would it be?
Epic.
Find out more about The White Gallery here and view our full stockists list here.