Jen Glantz is always a Bridesmaid... For Hire
After standing beside so many brides throughout their wedding planning process over the past couple of years, Jen Glantz witnessed firsthand the stress that brides, and bridesmaids, experience and decided that there was a need in the wedding industry that wasn’t being fulfilled yet. That’s why she decided to write the Craigslist ad offering her services as a professional bridesmaid. After receiving an overwhelming response, she decided to turn it into an actual business in 2014, Bridesmaid for Hire, and wrote about the real-life adventures she found herself front and center at in the new book, Always a Bridesmaid (For Hire), available now.
Is there one “rookie mistake” that new entrepreneurs keep on making? What is it? Did it happen to you?
Thinking they can do everything themselves. When you launch a business, you hover over every single detail of it and find it hard to delegate tasks to others because of a fear you have that they'll never work as hard as you would for your business. But you find yourself overworked and trying to do things that you are not an expert at. I made this mistake then and now.
What is failure? Do you think it’s a crucial step to success?
Failure is another word for an attempt. It's not an end all moment it is a moment when you should pat yourself on the back and say "Nice job, let's keep moving forward." Failure is what breeds success. You just have to promise to not give up so easily.
What is your proudest accomplishment in 2016? What’s the biggest goal for 2017?
My proudest accomplishment of 2016 was writing my first book, Always a Bridesmaid for Hire. In 2017, my biggest goal is to expand my customer base and target not only brides but also the wedding party and mother of the brides.
How as being an entrepreneur affected your life? How did it change the way you think about life?
It's forced me to live life bolder - say what I want to say in the moment and reach for goals and dreams that are far-fetched. When you create a business you suddenly grow a new set of guts, making you switch the "what ifs" into "why nots".