Welcome to the world of Encore Ballroom Couture!
We are the leading consignment and consignment rental dress company in the ballroom industry. We offer American Rhythm, International Latin, American Smooth, and International Standard dresses. Our inventory contains dresses made by many different haute couture dress designers, from the United States and European countries, therefore offering our clients an eclectic shopping experience. Please note that all of our dresses are one of a kind, and that we do not custom design or manufacture dresses. We cater to woman of all sizes from zero to plus size, and all heights.
We had the pleasure of selling dresses worn on the US version of Dancing with the Stars and costumes from Britain’s Strictly Dance Fever. We have a special European Collection of International designed and constructed dresses that have been imported especially for our company.
Encore Ballroo
m Couture is a family owned and operated company located in Northern Virginia, within the United States. The Mother and Daughter duo of Brenda and Julie Wilson are very active in the ballroom industry and have been for over 20 years. Julie has been a Professional Ballroom Dancer for over 15 years, competing and performing all over the United States. She is also an award winning choreogra
pher and showdance queen! Brenda and Julie created the concept for this company when it didn’t exist, filling a void in the ballroom industry. They built this company on values, morals, and ethics, and strive everyday to continue those ideals.
We pride ourselves on being an outstanding representative of our industry and the only dance merchandising company in ballroom to be Accredited by the Better Business Bureau. Our company is also proud of being a good corporate citizen, please visit our Encore Cares page for more details.
We are so pleased with our Toppers for Troopers donation program helping service members and their families suffering from hair loss due to injury, illness or treatment. Our GOLD STARS donation program has been a huge hit! We help disadvantaged youth, juniors, and pre-teens to acquire great ballroom dance dresses while affording the donor a tax deductible donation. Their thank you notes have been overwhelming, and it’s great to see big smiles on their faces. Over half a million dollars worth of dresses have been donated year to date to this program!
Our dresses can be seen in/at/on the: OFFICIAL Dancing with the Stars television “Hit” series on ABC, OFFICIAL Dancing with the Stars tour, music videos, high profile events, nationally televised on-camera interviews, on-air dance programing, couture fashion shows, made for tv movies, commercials, major feature films, photoshoots, DanceSport competitions, Showdance performances, diplomatic functions, embassy affairs, cocktail parties, black tie events, red carpet, celebrity stage performances, premiere parties, prom, birthday parties, pageants, and weddings. We will have our costume collection featured in a special exhibit at the Hollywood Museum opening in a few months. Additionally, we have dresses that will be featured in a special exhibit at the Smithsonian National American History Museum in 2026. We also have a collaboration with a Ukrainian designer, whose dress was featured in the recent “Fashioning Power, Fashioning Peace” at the Woodrow Wilson House. We pride ourselves on keeping exclusive privacy of all clients.
We ship all over the United States and overseas, and look forward to working with you soon!
Sell Your Dresses!
For those women with too many dresses in their closet: We offer you a way to rent or sell YOUR dresses! Many of us have acquired a wealth of dresses in our closet. Most of them deserve a chance to shine again. You may register your dresses with us for sale, rent, or both. This affords you an opportunity to recoup some of the financial investment in your wardrobe. Let us turn your dresses into cash!!! It is our pleasure to send you a check once your dress is rented or purchased.
To learn more visit: How to Register Your Dresses
Shop for Dresses!
For those women who are looking for a change: An unlimited array of dresses awaits you on our website. There is a multitude of styles to choose from. All major name brand designers are available to you at a fraction of the original retail price!!! It is one stop shopping at its best. Our inventory is ever changing. These dresses are available for rent and/or purchase, please see each dress description for specific dress details. We can offer you high-end styles and designs at a fraction of the original cost. You will need to check back frequently to scope out our Latest Arrivals.
To learn more visit: Latest Arrivals, Rhythm/Latin, Smooth/Standard, European Collection, Quick Sale, How to Try-On A Dress
The Dress Spa
If your ballroom dresses are feelin’ dirty-we are happy to clean them up! The Dress Spa has been extremely popular! We offer the first ever ballroom dress specific cleaning company. Our Dress Spa works with all dresses “in house” by hand and never uses harsh chemicals, in fact all products used are: hypoallergenic, fragrance-free, Kosher (Certified by the Orthodox Union), vegan, phosphate-free, 100% biodegradable, septic safe, made in the USA, and not tested on animals.
To learn more visit The Dress Spa for more details!
How the Company was Created
Written by: Julie
Over the years of being a Professional Ballroom Instructor I acquired many, many, many dresses! One day I was standing in front of my closets thinking, “What am I going to do with all of these dresses?” Each event I would buy a few new ones, to the point where my closets were busting at the seams! When the winter coats would no longer fit in the closet, Mom declared, “You need to figure this out!” I remember sitting on the bed looking at the closets, trying to come up with a solution. It was so hard to part with my dresses, but knew it was time.
I searched the web for a place that would take my dresses for resale. I placed ads on several sites, but never had much action; feeling that it was a waste of time and effort. Most websites belonged to couture designers and the resale area seemed to be like a black hole. Designers want you to buy their new creations, not resale! So, there they all hang; memories and money, just hanging there. I also thought about all of my friends in the industry and how most of us were in the same boat. Then and there I decided to create the company I was searching for!
Ladies, this company is for us. Go open those closets and box up those dresses! I will post your dresses, as many as you want, for sale or RENT! I will do all of the advertising for you, be your dress broker! At the end of the day for purchase or rent, the dress is yours, we don’t “own” them, you do. It’s exciting to think something you already have hanging in your closet could turn into cash in your wallet!
We established a direct liaison with many of the top couture design companies in our industry which supply dresses to us. Of course we are very proud of our exclusive contract with Randall Designs to be the distributor of the Dancing with the Stars production dresses through them. Looking back, we couldn’t be more thrilled with how our company has grown. We are so thankful and grateful for all of the love and support from our family, friends and ladies that made our dream a reality.
A Big Thank You!
Written By: Brenda
Thank you to all of our clients, supporters, and fabulous friends who have supported us through yet another year! Every single person and what they have done to help our company within the first five years, means the world to us. So far we have met many wonderful people and cannot thank them enough for how welcoming they have been. It has been our pleasure to work with women of all ages, and all sizes. We love being able to help women feel their best, it warms our heart. When a women has that magical moment of feeling amazing it is priceless. You can see it in their eyes and sometimes in their happy tears. As the company has been growing at such a rapid rate and we have been built an amazing support team to make sure all needs are attended to. Their expertise and assistance is invaluable and allows us the time to focus 100 percent on our clients. We believe in completely customizing the woman’s experience she has with our company. This has truly been a wonderful journey and we can’t wait for what lies ahead. The company has come a long way and we look forward to each new day!
EBC in Hollywood!
Written By: Julie
In Spring 2011 we were invited as personal guests of Head Judge Len Goodman to participate in several live tapings of Dancing with the Stars. We attended the show on Monday, May 9 & Tuesday, May 10, 2011. It was thrilling to see the show in person! We felt like stars ourselves when we were shown on camera in the audience several times. It was amazing to see how smooth the production was up close and personal. It was an honor to go behind the scenes and see how much work it is to put the production together. Mom was tickled to give Max a big hug from Encore. We are excited to see the dresses in action knowing that one day they will be available to you through our company!
