On December 31, 2001, planning a wedding in the Pittsburgh area
suddenly became much easier. The reason? Pittsburgh's first
mini-mall for brides, the Big Day One Stop Wedding & Event Center,
opened in the Strip District.
The opening of the Center marked the fulfillment
of a dream for founder, Sal Richetti. Mr. Richetti
had already started three wedding service
businesses, Big Day Entertainment,
Big Day Photography, and Big Day Videography,
a scheduling agency for local D.J.'s, Bands and
other Entertainers.
Although he maintained business offices in
various locations throughout the area, Sal came
to the realization that today's bride was simply
too busy to run all over town shopping for wedding services. What
brides really needed, he reasoned, was one place where they could
meet and shop with a wide range of fine wedding professionals.
Indeed, convenience was the key element that was missing in the
local wedding business.
Armed with this conviction, Mr. Richetti began searching for the best
place to bring many fine wedding businesses together under one
roof, eventually settling on a centrally-located site in Pittsburgh's
dynamic Strip District. However, months of architectural and
construction work would be needed to convert the shell of an
abandoned warehouse into an attractive bridal destination,
complete with on-site parking.
The owners of Carlisle's referred Mr.Richetti to an outstanding
men's formal wear company, and soon American Commodore
Tuxedo was also in the fold. Many other fine wedding professionals
followed, with the resulting mix of businesses assuring that Mr.
Richetti's idea of a convenient one-stop shop for brides would
become a reality.
Meanwhile, other wedding businesses were
responding to Sal's vision. Steven Vance, a
wonderfully talented strolling violinist signed
on to the idea, as did Robert Fenoglietto,
whose businesses specialized in exquisite
wedding cakes and exotic honeymoon travel.
Outside, it was a cold and wintry
December day, but inside the Big
Day Wedding & Event Center on
December 27, 2001, nothing but
warm smiles and well-wishes were
to be found. The Grand Opening
brought three area television stations,
Pittsburgh's Mayor, Tom Murphy, and
other government officials, neighbors
from the Strip District, and all of the
participating business owners to the
corner of 26th and Penn Avenue to
celebrate Sal's dream, now become
a reality.
Most importantly, the Grand Opening brought brides-to-be shopping
for wedding merchandise and services in an atmosphere unlike that
of any other place in western Pennsylvania. And day-after-day, area
brides visiting the Center comment, "What a great idea! Why did it
take so long for someone to think of a place like this?" That is a
reward in itself for Sal Richetti and all of the wedding professionals
at the Big Day One Stop Wedding & Event Center.
About The Big Day Wedding & Event Center
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Another boost came when America's oldest
bridal salon, Carlisle's of Pittsburgh, elected
to pull-up century-old roots on the North Side
and move its gown showrooms across the
Allegheny River to the Big Day Center in "the
Strip."
Pittsburgh's One Stop Wedding Mall
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