African-AmericanBrides.Com Gives Nationwide Exposure To Internet-Savvy Vendors

Washington, DC May 20, 2005 -- African-AmericanBrides.com is on track to create a definitive directory of business owners servicing engaged women-of-color. The website now includes a state-by-state selection of dress designers, hairdressers, musicians, wedding locations, and anything else a bride-to-be would need to plan her big day.

"This is what I've always intended the site to be known for. I want my readers to have all the information they need in one place", says owner Erica Thompson Briggs. She expects the localized listing to double in size before the end of the year.

Briggs has been working as a broadcast journalist in Washington, DC for more than a decade. But she stumbled on a new passion when planning her own wedding and wanting more information specific to ethnic groups. She started a Yahoo group for African-American brides-to-be and found out she had plenty of company. "Can you imagine planning the biggest event of your life, with little or no information on how to do it?"

She pulled off her own nuptials beautifully in April of 2004. But afterward she began African-AmericanBrides.com with the help of the Georgetown-based web design company, Blue Water Media. "I wasn't sure where this new adventure would lead me. But I really felt that women-of-color deserved a website that would be romantic, upscale, beautiful and bright."

Almost a year and two web awards later, African-AmericanBrides.com features photo galleries, lively message boards, and wedding planning tips. Briggs says her background in TV news helps her to excel in her niche. "I love to get in touch with people, do research, and find things that seem as if they don't want to be found."

When asked about the sometimes cutthroat competition in the not-so-gentile wedding industry, Briggs is unfazed. With a wink, she says, "Competition? I love it! In my experience, competition only makes me more determined and even better at what I do."