On International Day of the Girl, The Wedding Gallery and social enterprise Brides Do Good have announced their partnership and plan to raise awareness and funding to drive positive changes to the lives of vulnerable young girls.

The Wedding Gallery is the world’s first upscale wedding department store, and Brides Do Good was founded by Chantal Khoueiry in 2016. It offers brides the chance to purchase pre-loved and sample wedding dresses from world-famous designs at 70% of the original price – raising funds to eradicate child marriage for charities Plan International and Too Young to Wed.

The Wedding Gallery opens later this month and will house gowns from Brides Do Good’s incredible collection, including gowns from designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Elie Saab, Ian Stuart, Reem Acra, Galia Lahav and Vera Wang.

Retail prices start at £500 and up to two thirds of the proceeds from each sale will go to Brides Do Good’s partner charities. Just £1,000 will enable four girls to complete a year of secondary school.

Co-Curator of The Wedding Gallery, Lotte Martin said: “The Wedding Gallery will revolutionise the way weddings are planned and we can’t think of a better CSR partner to join us on this journey than Brides Do Good. We have huge admiration and respect for the work Chantal and her colleagues have done to end child marriage and are extremely proud to be supporting such a worthwhile cause.”

Chantal Khoueiry added: “The partnership between Brides do Good and The Wedding Gallery is powerful. We are two pioneering retail concepts in the bridal industry coming together to create positive change whilst making dreams come true. The funds raised through this partnership will be donated to our charity partners and will directly touch the millions of vulnerable young girls. Through education and empowerment our ultimate goal is to eradicate child marriage worldwide. We believe that every girl has the right to choose her future; her career, her husband, her dream dress at her wedding.”

Wedding dresses are typically a considerable proportion of a bride’s budget, and that money can go a long way to helping vulnerable girls. For example:

• $10 will enable five girls to take part in community training programmes focused on preventing gender-based violence
• $25 will provide one girl with material support for her education for a year, including tuition, uniforms and transportation
• $300 will pay for one girl to complete a year of secondary school

Find out more about Brides Do Good here.