I would take shopping alone over shopping in a group any day!!
My first experience was in a boutique (by appointment only) and my group was my daughter, mom, sister, and best friend. I felt there was way too much fuss made over me and felt a bit ridiculous.
The following week I went to the local dress shops and tried on a few here and there...and always had the salesperson take a picture so I could send it to my mom for her opinion. I did take my daughter with me another day and she was pretty excited and gave me an honest review.
Nothing really popped out at me though...except for this dress that I kept seeing online. So I called all over the province and it turns out they had one sample dress in this style in a city 1.5 hours away from me. That Friday night after work, my FI and I hopped in the car and drove to the city...and with 10 minutes to spare before the store closed...I went in (alone) and tried on the dress...and decided that it was the one for me!!