A bride’s wedding was almost ruined after bridesmaids’ dresses purchased from overseas could not be shipped to the island before the big day.

But Malaikah Abdul-Jabbar’s wedding went off without a hitch on Saturday after a local courier company stepped up to ensure that the dresses made it to the church on time.

Malaikah and her fiancé, Shukri Muhammad, were married in a ceremony at the Grotto Bay resort. The couple made headlines in February after Shukri proposed at The Speciality cinema in Hamilton.

Arrangements for the big day went ahead smoothly — until the bride’s mother, Maaida Coleman, decided to buy bridesmaid dresses online from a retailer in the United States.

Ms Coleman had the dresses shipped to her sister in Delaware last week. But she was then told by US courier companies that it would take up to ten days to ship the package to Bermuda — too late for the nuptials.

A desperate Ms Coleman revealed her plight on social media — and that’s when local courier ZipX came to the rescue.

After contacting ZipX managing director Kevin Smith, the dresses were collected from Ms Coleman’s sister’s home by a ZipX employee last Sunday and shipped out to Bermuda the following day.

Ms Coleman told The Royal Gazette yesterday: “The day was perfect, and I can’t thank Kevin and his team enough. They went above and beyond the call of duty.

“The package was put on a plane on Monday and by Tuesday Kevin had it in his possession and was in my driveway waiting for me to arrive home after my wedding errands.

“I had no clue he was waiting for me until he called. Once I arrived, he handed it to me. I was emotional because there I was thinking, ‘Well, if FedEx and DHL told me they can’t deliver it on time, there’s no way ZipX could pull this one through’. But they did. They excelled themselves.

“I asked Kevin what the charge was but he told me there was none — he was making the delivery free to Malaikah as a wedding gift to her and her husband-to-be. He said he loved helping people out and didn't mind going out of his way to do it.”

In a social media post, Ms Coleman added: “I had less than a week to get these dresses here.

“I called Kevin, e-mailed him and whatsapped him before 5pm and after 5pm. He responded each time and said he was willing to do whatever it took to get these dresses to me.

“Today, Kevin was in my driveway, waiting with the dresses. He handed them to me — one of the kindest and gentlest men I've ever met — then said ‘no charge — it's her wedding gift’.

“He then drove away as calmly and collected as he arrived. I stood there stunned, ready to cry again.”

Last night Mr Smith played down his good deed.

He said: “After speaking with Maaida and obtaining the information required, we contacted our ZipX Delaware manager and arranged for the collection of the dresses from her sister. We were able to ship them, have it processed and delivered on Tuesday.

“Hearing how ZipX can make a difference in someone's day, by ensuring they can celebrate a precious moment with their loved ones, is the motivation that drives me to keep going the extra mile for our customers.

“Knowing that we were able to make a difference on the bride and groom's day is extremely satisfying, and to see the impact it can have on our community is also very humbling.”