Urban, which created the concept in 2009, sold the collection to scores of stores, including Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus, and had plans to operate its own cheap long prom dresses store. But in the end, it closed the wholesale business last year and now sells it only at Anthropologie.As for how many prom dress stores are on tap, Urban's Norris will only say there are no more planned for 2012. She told Women's Wear Daily this month that BHLDN will never get as large as its sister store Anthropologie but may eventually have 50 to 100 stores.

Urban's la femme 17687 strapless highlow prom dress watermelon 2012 cheap People line, which is also a wholesale business, has had better success. Urban opened its first freestanding Free People store in 1984. It operates 62 Free People stores and has plans to roll out as many as 200.

The idea behind the BHLDN shopping experience is to erase the intimidation that can often accompany shopping for a wedding prom dress, said Elizabeth Cooksey, director of stores.In contrast to bridal salons, where a sales clerk sizes up the bride, disappears into a stock room and brings out gowns she thinks the bride will like, BHLDN keeps its wedding dresses on the racks so shoppers can browse on their own.