Young alumna buys chich boutique

Paige Albert can still remember growing up in Andale and falling in love with fashion and love stories while drawing sketches of what her future wedding gown would look like.

This was her dream, her little world.

Now 25, Albert, c’19, owns Something White Bridal Boutique, a premier bridal shop in Kansas City’s Crossroads District that features gowns created by designers from around the world.

“It’s so funny to look back and see how full circle everything’s come,” Albert says.

Albert became the shop’s owner at 23, in January 2018, with a year of college remaining. She found her calling in the bridal industry after her freshman year at KU, when she job-shadowed her cousin, who worked as a sales rep for a bridal designer. Albert then worked at a bridal shop in Lenexa for nine months before hiring on with Something White Bridal Boutique in 2016 as a bridal consultant. Within six months, the owner approached her about buying the business.

Two years ago, Albert’s longtime dream became reality. She credits her parents—both hard-working entrepreneurs—as her inspiration.

“I feel they were both doing their dream jobs,” says Albert, whose boutique in February won the Kansas City Wedding Vendor Choice Award as 2020 Bridal Boutique of the Year. “Owning my business, I get to provide so much for the girls who work here, and help them provide for their families, and making a difference in the community in every way we can.”

She calls Something White Bridal—offering elegant, simple and modern bridal styles—“the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“I’m really thankful I found something I love,” Albert says. “Every day, I wake up so excited that this is mine and I get to make it mine.

“I don’t know what else I’d be doing. I know I’m not curing cancer, but making somebody smile is so important.”

Albert says her six employees, including her sister Carly, a KU student, are “family.”

“Our brides are family, too. We try to be part of their story before they ever come in. After their wedding day, we stay in contact with brides. It’s fun to see their families grow.”

In a boutique where personalized attention is the No. 1 goal, Albert is always thrilled when a bride-to-be finds her perfect wedding gown.

“I’m very emotional so I tear up almost every time,” Albert says. “You can tell when somebody finds their wedding dress and their face lights up. Nine times out of 10, I know a bride’s found her dress before she knows it. Just seeing mom’s reaction … and everybody’s so excited for her. I can’t even describe it.”

Thanks to her consistently high level of customer service, Something White Bridal last year was inducted into The Knot Best of Weddings Hall of Fame.

“I think I’ll do this forever,” Albert says. “If I have a daughter, I’d love to be able to give it to her, or a grandchild. I think that would be really awesome.”

—Garfield, c’88, is a Lawrence freelance writer and frequent Kansas Alumni contributor.