Maggie Sottero: Our Story

Ever wondered who and what is behind the creation of your dream wedding dress? Hello, there — we’re Maggie Sottero Designs, and we’re so excited to introduce ourselves! We’d like to tell you about our history, share a little about our mission and values as a company, and celebrate that we get to be a small (but super romantic) part of your best day ever. Keep scrolling to learn about all things Maggie!

Before we get into our history though, make sure to find an Authorized Retailer near you so you can see some of our gowns IRL!

Who is Maggie Sottero?

“Maggie Sottero” is the moniker for our family-owned, women-led bridal brand. We have been in business for over 25 years making brides’ dreams a reality — a reflection of our ongoing commitment to style, innovation, and win-win partnerships. Each new season inspires us to reflect on our work, innovate our practices, and set a fresh, forward-thinking aesthetic for our trio of collections: Maggie Sottero, Sottero and Midgley, and Rebecca Ingram. 

We believe a wedding gown is a beautiful reflection of a bride’s love story, style, and personality, so each and every Maggie Sottero dress upholds our commitment to premium construction, impeccable styling, and incomparable fit. This will forever reflect our company’s value of love for ALL. To date, millions of brides have chosen a Maggie Sottero wedding dress for their wedding day!

Here are a few fun facts about the Maggie Sottero brands:

• We’ve been in business since 1997!
• We’re a family-owned business — something we’re especially proud of and are committed to upholding in our mission, values, and partnerships.
• We believe every bride deserves to feel exceptional on their big day, whatever their style, budget, and vision.
• Maggie Sottero is one of the most recognized and sought-after bridal gown manufacturers in the world. We have design studios in Sydney, Australia, and Salt Lake City, Utah. We’re known for our “Maggie Magic” — impeccable tailoring and construction made for our brides to feel like their best selves.
• We are super fans of the brick-and-mortar boutique. We have hundreds of local bridal salons (in over 70 countries!) to provide brides-to-be with a beautiful and personalized experience with their friends and family.

Our History

“In 1997, Maggie Sottero offered a product unlike anything on the market: elegant and affordable wedding dresses with a couture edge,” says Kelly Midgley, CEO at Maggie Sottero Designs. “Today, in an era of ever-increasing wedding costs, Maggie Sottero upholds its commitment to innovative bridalwear at attainable prices. From initial concept to final touches, each gown embodies the pursuit of perfection.”

Since our start in 1997, we’ve had many amazing additions to Maggie. In 2006 we introduced our couture brand, Sottero and Midgley, and followed up with our even more affordable brand, Rebecca Ingram.

We also had the opportunity to start our Curve launch with Liris Crosse, the first plus-size runway winner for Project Runway, and later feature her on the runway.

A quick rundown of our history:

• 1997 – Our co-founder and design innovator Lesley Margaret (“Maggie”) Webster assumed the alias of “Maggie Sottero” and launched our core brand.
• 2006 – We added a second label! 2006 marked the debut of Sottero and Midgley — cutting-edge styles designed for brides with chic, edgy, and discerning tastes.
• 2016 – In honor of Lesley’s grandmother, we launched the Rebecca Ingram label — high-quality designs at affordable price points.
• 2017 – Our Curve line was debuted with Liris Crosse as our model champion. Liris was the first plus-size winner of Project Runway.
• 2018 – Maggie showcased our first plus-size model on the runway.
• 2020 – This year featured the introduction of Personalize It! For Your Love Story, a program that allows brides to truly personalize their gowns to complement their unique love stories.
• 2022 – This year marked our 25-year anniversary of making brides’ dreams a reality.
• 2023 – We proudly introduced sustainability initiatives to reduce our impact on Mother Earth. This unique and impact-driven program is part of our commitment to creating positive solutions for current (and future) generations of brides.

Maggie Sottero’s Lead Designer: Edric Woo

Meet our Lead Designer, Edric Woo! With more than 20 years of experience, Woo is one of the world’s most respected and talented bridal designers in the industry. He’s been sketching ideas and dreaming of a career in couture bridalwear since he was just 14 years old.

Along with Edric, we have a fantastic design team that works hard to create stunning styles for every type of bride. This incredible team of designers is the magic behind the scenes of every dress. We truly couldn’t do it without their unique vision and talent!

For years, Maggie Sottero has flourished under Edric’s expert fashion design and unique eye. Edric’s talent has helped our brands earn multiple design accolades, including the Desert Rose, DEBI, Dallas Rose, and Diva Awards. We’re honored to have him on our team and look forward to many more seasons ahead. 

Maggie Sottero Brands

What makes Maggie Sottero an exceptional brand for brides? We design for true diversity of choice — gorgeous silhouettes to match your vision, body type, budget, and personality. Whatever you picture for your celebration, you can find the perfect wedding gown from one of our three lines:

Maggie Sottero: Our Core Line

• Featuring gowns in the $1500-$3000 price range, Maggie Sottero is our most elegant, romantic, and timeless brand. These collections reflect our commitment to creating covetable designs that highlight a bride’s heart, vision, and personality. 
• The Maggie Sottero bride looks for a style that harmonizes and accentuates her style, body type, and overall vibe. She looks for a gown that is gorgeous yet classic, on-trend yet timeless, and the perfect fit for her love story. She wants the gown to encapsulate everything she’s been dreaming of since she was little — something that fits her personality and vision for their wedding and makes her feel like the best version of herself.
• Maggie’s “Signature Look” is inspired by the range of stories and emotions behind our real brides’ weddings. With a variety of styles, silhouettes, and fabrics to choose from and the ability to personalize the gown, the Maggie “Signature Look” presents itself in many ways. No matter if a bride selects a chic fit-and-flare, dramatic ballgown, or shimmery sheath, each Maggie Sottero gown is designed for a romantic and timeless aesthetic

Our gowns Lennon, Betsy, and Selena by Maggie Sottero are great representations of the styles that make this line so unique. With chic fabrics, impeccable fits, and flattering necklines, you’re bound to fall in love with one of these gowns.

Rebecca Ingram: Beautiful Gowns for Budget-Savvy Brides

• The Rebecca Ingram bride is more drawn to a practical choice than a couture label — but she doesn’t want to sacrifice quality or style. The Rebecca bride focuses more on her celebration than her purchases… She may have other financial priorities or be less inclined to make material investments for their wedding, but still wishes to mark the occasion with a beautiful and high-quality wedding dress. Rebecca Ingram offers up the perfect convergence of style and affordability.
• We love designing flirty, effortless, and gorgeous gowns for any bride’s budget! Our Rebecca Ingram line features timeless yet stylish designs with a price range from $900-$1,400.

Interested in exploring our trends? Hattie, Kiandra, and Maeve by Rebecca Ingram are all about romantic florals, flowy fabrics, and effortless romance. Find an Authorized Retailer near you to try these gowns on in person!

Sottero and Midgley: As Unique As the Bride Who Wears It

• Sottero and Midgley is our couture brand, featuring irresistible styles ranging from $1,500-$4,000.
• Who is the Sottero and Midgley bride? She’s glamorous, trendy, and confident. She has a refined fashion sense and wants to make a one-of-a-kind statement on her big day. It’s all about shopping elevated styles that will evoke a “red-carpet moment” — AKA drama, detail, and luxury. She wants to incorporate the latest fashion trends into her wedding day, and enjoys one-of-a-kind customizations to ensure her chosen style is as unique as she is.
• Cyprus, Nerida, and Bailey by Sottero and Midgley are excellent examples of Sottero and Midgley’s luxe aesthetic. With intricate laces, modern and unique designs, and stunning personalizations, any Sottero and Midgley bride is sure to look ultra-sophisticated on her wedding day.

Maggie Sottero: For Women, By Women

The Maggie Sottero Designs team is proud to be a women-led and women-owned business from the very beginning. This leadership an integral part of our company’s legacy and success!

Here’s a quick overview of female leadership and influence in our brand’s history:

• Kelly Midgley has followed in the footsteps of her mother, Lesley, and assumed her role as our CEO. We also have women in leadership positions all across our departments… Our group of exceptional female employees has made Maggie Sottero Designs the brand it is today!
• Maggie Sottero started out as a small boutique in Sydney, Australia. As the brand grew, our founder, Lesley Margaret (Maggie) Webster took on the same of “Maggie Sottero” in honor of her great-grandmother.
• Because our moms and daughters run the show, we’re passionate about designing for the diversity of women searching for their perfect wedding gown — something romantic, stylish, and truly comfortable to wear.

Our Heart

At the heart of Maggie Sottero Designs is an unwavering commitment to diversity, joy, and inclusivity of our team, boutiques, brides, and partnerships. We stand for LOVE and LOVE for ALL — and as such are committed to creating beautiful and inclusive spaces for every single one of our brides. Through our inclusive sizing, bra cups, and celebration of Real Brides, we are forging a path towards inclusivity for ALL. We believe that regardless of color, identity, body shape or size, wedding vision, budget, or timeline, every bride deserves to feel seen, confident, and celebrated on her wedding day.

Interested in “Our Heart” initiatives? This is how we’re acting on our promises:

Diversity

• We promote the happiest of occasions at Maggie, and we want EVERYONE to have an equal ground to do so.
• We celebrate ALL love. We take happily-ever-after seriously and aim to make a bride’s dream a reality. We celebrate every beautiful love story, no matter a bride’s identity, style, accessibility needs, body type, wedding vision, budget, or timeline.
• We are committed to fostering diversity and inclusivity in our workforce, employing a broad array of models and internal staff. Through year-round marketing initiatives, we consistently spotlight a diverse spectrum of influencers, Real Brides, and retailers to reflect the rich tapestry of our global audience.
• Our Diversity in Bridal webinars promote inclusion within the bridal industry and ensure ALL brides are celebrated.
• We design product features and ordering options that celebrate every bride:
  • Built-in corsetry
  • Figure-smoothing shapewear
  • Bodysuits and jersey lining
  • Larger boning
  • Lined bodices
  • Larger bust-cups
  • Different colored bust-cups
  • Options for raised front and back necklines
  • US sizes 0–28
  • Multiple strap length and width options
  • Diversity in silhouettes and fabrications

Building a Local and Global Community

PC: K Star Photography

Our sense of home is both local and global. Giving back and supporting others has always been at the core of this women-led, multi-generational family business. Community and charity are pillars of our Maggie Promise, and since the beginning, we have promoted a culture of charity to build stronger and healthier communities. Through donations and volunteer efforts, we strive to influence positive change and be a force for good.

Sustainability

We are working to create a more sustainable world in which to celebrate future love stories. Our commitment to Mother Earth is integrated into our business practices from reducing our environmental impact to helping restore vital ecosystems. We stand for love and love for ALL, including Mother Earth.

These are the 3 Pillars of our sustainability commitment:

• Waste Reduction: Maggie Sottero is recycling everything possible, as efficiently as we can, from bulk shipping waste to diverting stock from landfills. We are working towards ZERO waste.
• Resource Consumption: We are supporting renewable power projects, reducing our product impact and investing in the circular supply chain, we are working to become a more regenerative brand
• Protecting Biodiversity: Maggie Sottero is supporting efforts to back healthy ecosystems globally and near our Scope 1 facilities, from our partnership with One Tree Planted to our volunteer work with regional conservation groups like International Bird Rescue.

One Tree Planted

We are proud to report that we’ve had over 7,000 trees planted with One Tree Planted! In honor of every Maggie Sottero bride and every sample purchased, we plant a tree to support biodiversity protection. Here are more key partnerships we’ve implemented to improve waste reduction and resource consumption:

• We’ve had over 2000lbs of plastic shipping waste recycled through our partnership with Rocky Mountain Recycling.
• 100% of excess stock goes into textile recycling programs and donation efforts.
• 700+ gowns have been donated to community organizations and design school students in the U.S. and U.K.

And that’s just the beginning! Our team is committed to a future of love, innovation, and diversity — a business philosophy designed to reflect the same joy a bride feels on her wedding day. We’re so honored to be part of your most important celebrations, and we can’t wait to see what’s next. As always, best wishes from Maggie Sottero Designs! 

Curious to see more of our initiatives? Read all about them on our “Our Heart” page!

More Blogs Like This:

Positive Impacts: Maggie Sottero’s Sustainability, Diversity, and Community Initiatives

Wedding Dress Customization & Personalizations with Maggie Sottero

Women’s History Month: Why We’re Proud to Be a Women Led & Women Owned Business