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Enterprise

Young woman opens Yorkshire prom shop after own disastrous dress experience

Lia Brehmer and her mother Donna Gadd run two Prom Den shops, serving customers across Yorkshire

Lia Brehmer (far right) at her The Prom Den store in Horsforth with staff left to right Evie Wilkinson, Evie Wilson and Molly Thornton with a prom dress signed by girls who have bought dresses for 2025 proms at schools around Horsforth, Leeds and the rest of Yorkshire(Image: The Prom Den)

A young woman who was left in tears buying her prom dress has launched her own shop in Yorkshire selling gowns for school leavers.

Lia Brehmer’s prom plans were almost ruined when she was made to feel fat when shopping for her own frock, and she only went to the ball after her mother Donna Gadd found a dress with another supplier. Her mother was so incensed that she launched a dress business in Brighouse to make sure no teenagers goes through a similar experience.

Now, seven years on, the firm has proved to be so successful that Ms Brehmer has opened a second Prom Den in Horsforth, to serve clients in Leeds and North Yorkshire.

She said: “I remember the stress of prom night and how tough it can be finding the dress of your dreams which no other girl will be wearing on the night. I was so badly treated when I was preparing for my prom as a 15-year-old. I was a healthy size eight but the woman in the shop made me feel like I was fat and suggested we get a floaty dress to cover up my weight.

"I was in tears and my mum was so angry that we went to another supplier. After that she set up her own prom dress shop so that no other girls went through the same experience."

Most mixed schools in Yorkshire have proms to celebrate the end of the school year after GCSEs, a tradition picked up from the US where the prom has been part of the high school calendar for decades. Ms Brehmer said she didn’t hesitate to join the family business, and loves working with her mother.

The average price of a dress is between £299 and £495 and the pair work closely with schools and social workers to support families and young people by giving away dresses to pupils who, without help, would not be able to experience prom.

Lia Brehmer and her mum Donna Gadd who run The Prom Den brand together - Lia is in charge of the new shop in Horsforth and Donna runs the original store in Brighouse.(Image: The Prom Den)

She said: “I was helping out in the Brighouse shop for years when I was growing up so I had a good mentor in mum. She had a very simple philosophy which was to make every girl feel special and I hope that I am continuing that tradition in the store in Horsforth. I give every girl who comes through the doors the wonderful prom experience that I never had. I won’t sell the same dress twice to the same school so no girl has to worry that their big night will be overshadowed by another pupil in the same outfit.