Prevue Formal and Bridal

M while driving from the UTC area. I saw 3:30 PM and 4:30 PM appointments available, indicating they were fairly open that afternoon, but explained I wasn't comfortable entering my credit card information online because reviews mention a strict 15-minute late charge policy. I told the associate I would try my best to make the 4:30 PM slot, and that if other brides arrived before me they should take priority. I also said that if it looked like I could arrive within the 4:45 PM grace period, I would enter my information while driving. I was communicating proactively because that day a fiery fatal tractor-trailer crash shut down southbound I-805 near I-8 for roughly 12 hours, creating traffic chaos across San Diego. As traffic worsened on the 52 East, my ETA slipped to about 4:48 PM. At 4:25 PM, I called again to explain that I likely wouldn't arrive before 4:45 PM and wanted to avoid being charged the late fee. I asked what options were available. I was simply trying to communicate proactively and avoid being charged for something outside of my control. I was repeatedly told that because I was not already in their appointment system before 4:30 PM, they could not help me at all. I suggested several reasonable options: (1) marking me as arrived so I could finish driving safely, or (2) simply working with the situation, but every suggestion was rejected. They offered to apply the $50 late fee towards a dress, but couldn't answer what would happen if I didn't find my dress there. The conversation continued in circles. At that point I was about 10 minutes away and would have arrived at 4:48 PM, just three minutes past their grace period. Despite calling ahead, communicating honestly, and making every effort to come to their store, they refused to accommodate me. My friend had come with me to help look for a wedding dress, so the situation unfortunately wasted both of our time. We ended the call around 4:40 PM, and I turned around and drove home. Ironically, at 4:45 PM, the store called back with a workaround: if I made an appointment for the next day, they could simply mark me as "arrived" in their system and take me in immediately. This made it clear they had the capacity to help the entire time, but had chosen to rigidly enforce their process instead of welcoming business. When I pointed this out, I was told they have been in business for 40 years, which makes the lack of flexibility and basic customer consideration all the more surprising. Based on this experience, I'm glad I learned how this business operates before even walking through the door. It doesn't inspire confidence in how customers are treated once they've committed, and it's not the kind of experience that would make me feel comfortable trusting them with something as personal as a wedding dress.