ABOVE: Some dishware and kitchen towels available at Sterling Drug in Fairmont. The store is a popular place for couples to add items for their wedding registry from.

FAIRMONT– Many couples who are about to start their life together often need a good deal of materials to get started– cookware, bedding, garden tools– and creating a wedding registry is the best way to ensure that they receive gifts that they truly want and need on their big day. Sterling Drug in Fairmont is the best route for local couples to go in terms of convenience and trendiness.

Store Manger Trudie Wood said that the bridal registry is actually unique to Fairmont’s Sterling Drug location. She said that the pharmacy/gift store has been offering it for at least 10 years.

“It was started because we wanted to build a connection with another population in the community. We wanted to reach out to brides because we noticed that people were coming in here to buy wedding or shower gifts and we wanted to build that relationship,” Wood said.

Sterling Drug in Fairmont prides itself on being a gift store.

“We have gifts for all ages and we have gifts for brides and weddings and we like to celebrate that,” Wood said.

She said usually a couple will come in together to get its registry started. Wood said this typically happens at least a month before a wedding or shower, but often times sooner. She said some brides come in right away after they get engaged.

“Then they go shopping and fill a cart, or multiple carts, with anything and everything they think they might be interested in. We encourage them to pick anything that catches their eye,” Wood said.

Couples are encouraged to select a variety of items, at a variety of price points, because their guests and people who want to celebrate them have different price points and ideas of what they would like to get for the couple.

“After they go shopping, we gather their information and take photos of it and create a shopping list with all of the items they’ve chosen. Then when their gusts come in we share that list with them and help them shop off of that list,” Wood said.

Information on where the couple is registered at is usually printed on a wedding or shower invitation so Wood said that people who come in to go shopping tend to mention it to a store clerk, who can then direct them to the desired items.

As far as what items couples add to their registry, Wood said that some of the more popular ones are kitchen items, home decor, games and puzzles and outdoor items.

“There’s usually a variety of items on the list,” Wood said.

Every couple that registers with the store also receives a Sterling Drug gift card.

Speaking to the benefit of having local brides use Sterling Drug for their registry, Wood said, “if their events are local, many of their guests will be local. We are a great resource for them to support and celebrate the bride without having to travel out of town to shop.”

She also noted that some people prefer not to shop online and wait for packages to arrive. Sterling Drug can also wrap the gift on site so it’s ready for the event.

* This article ran in the Sentinel’s 2024 Bridal Guide on Feb. 27.