SAN JOSE — Trudys Brides and Special Occasions is putting the finishing touches on a new San Jose store site after spending about 50 years at The Pruneyard shopping center in Campbell.
The bridal shop leased a former Walgreens store totaling about 13,300 square feet at 1615 Meridian Ave. in Willow Glen. In recent days, work was underway inside to prepare the site for the future store.
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“I’m really excited about this location,” said Steven Blechman, the owner of Trudys. “We are going to have full visibility for the first time for our store.”
Blechman is the son of the late founders of Trudys, Roger and Trudy Blechman. He operates it with his wife, Rebekah Blechman.
“Trudys is a regional draw, and they are going to do great at this location,” said Geri Wong, a Newmark commercial real estate broker who represented Trudys in the leasing deal.
Customer treat Trudys as a destination, according to Wong
“We’ve done some research, and Trudys draws from as far away as Monterey and Sacramento,” Wong said. “There are not a lot of places like Trudys that offer full-service, one-stop shopping for brides.”
The bridal shop plans to open at the new location on Sept. 5 or Sept. 6, according to Blechman.
“Trudys is a great tenant,” said Jim Fletcher, a Bay Area commercial real estate broker. “They are first class, and they do tremendous volume.”
One of the challenges for the new Trudys site is parking. However, Wong believes the nature of the other tenants in the retail center could alleviate any parking difficulties.
Trudys is departing a Campbell location that provided the retailer with 10,000 square feet in a two-level store.
“It’s going to be a big change, but we expect to keep drawing people from all over the Bay Area,” Blechman said.
The increased amount of elbow room gives Trudys greater flexibility in its operations, according to Blechman. It will be able to use the new San Jose location to host fashion shows, exclusive preview events, wedding and prom showcases, and in-store designer boutiques.
“We are going to really celebrate the next chapter of our business with this new location,” Blechman said. “Our new landlord is very supportive of what we are trying to do here. There is a really good, strong community feeling with where we are now. That’s all part of the charm of being in Willow Glen.”