Community Corner

Route 37 Fatal Crash's Impact Felt at Dress Shop Return Counter

Upscale prom dress store comes under criticism for service to girlfriend of high school crash victim

Jackie Genovese, girlfriend of a who died in a car accident , hoped to return the dress for the high school prom she planned to attend with her boyfriend and instead apply the funds to help his family with funeral expenses.

What happened as a result has put the dress shop Genovese bought the gown at under scrutiny.

, which has dress stores in Freehold and Manalapan, has been in the spotlight as part of the reality show “Jersey Couture” on the Oxygen Network. Now the boutique is the target of a Facebook campaign calling for customers to boycott the establishment.

Find out what's happening in Manchesterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Nanci Whelan created the page “Boycott Diane & Co. Freehold NJ” after the shop offered her daughter’s friend, Jackie Genovese, credit rather than cash for a returned prom dress. Genovese was planning on attending prom with her boyfriend, James Volpe, who was killed in a car accident last week.

“[Diane & Co. owner Diane Scali] makes a lot of money off our girls,” Whelan said. “She handled this situation very poorly. I understand this is a policy but in these circumstances, the policy can go by the wayside.”

Find out what's happening in Manchesterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Scali’s daughter, Christina Scali, said the store made an exception on their no returns policy for Genovese when she and her father came in to return the first dress they had purchased in January. Christine Scali said Diane & Co. received a call from Genovese’s mother the week before the accident wanting to return the second dress for a refund.

After the accident, the store received another call from Genovese’s stepfather requesting to return the dress for a refund, which they refused; when the Scalis was later informed of Volpe’s death, the store offered to take the dress back in exchange for credit, Christina Scali said.

“My mother is a giver. If they had come to the store and took her aside and explained the situation, she would have counted out the money right there,” Christina Scali said, noting that the family felt under attack during the telephone conversations.

Less than 24 hours after “Boycott Diane & Co. Freehold NJ” was established, the page received over 2,900 “likes.”


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here