Meet the Woman Who Opened Minnesota’s First Black-Owned Bridal Store

A lack of diversity in the bridal industry can leave a lot of brides-to-be disappointed when shopping for their wedding dress.

Lorraine Love, owner of La Noire Bridal (The Black Bridal) in Saint Paul made history by opening the first Black-owned bridal store in Minnesota. According to Kare11, the shop opened for business in May, bringing diversity to the bridal industry and pushing Love’s mission to provide brides with an experience where they feel seen and heard.

“The bridal industry, I know it lacks diversity and representation of different cultures and backgrounds,” Love said.

“I get tons of customers that walk into this bridal shop and share their experience that wasn’t so comfortable, wasn’t so welcoming,” she added. Love said that seeking out Black designers and designers that cater to diverse groups of people is an important element to providing the best service to her clients.

“A lot of my designers, their customizations are unlimited,” Love informed.

“I think the wedding industry caters to making women feel like they need to fit a certain mold, and it can be really uncomfortable,” said Mayor Maria Regan Gonzalez of Richfield, one of Love’s bridal clients.

“My mother-in-law was with me. She came from Miami. She doesn’t speak English and felt very comfortable right away,” said Gonzalez.

“My girlfriends came. They allowed us to put our music on. They had amazing food and drinks for us.” Gonzalez expressed her excitement for her La Noire Bridal dress. “I’m really excited about my dress because I think it’s actually really reflective of my Mexican culture and background,” Gonzalez said of the dress, chosen by Love, which closely matched her skin tone.