What It's About
After being dubbed the "Professional Bridesmaid" by her friends, a 26-year-old copywriter finds a way to capitalize on her years of experience decked out in high heels.
Business Model
Skills Required
Complexity
Profit Potential
Words of Wisdom
Jen selected a range of pricing options to serve a variety of clients. The most expensive of these options was $1,500 and included planning help, consultations, and even the occasional therapy session. For an additional $500, she would actually attend the wedding and walk down the aisle—although the bride also had to pick up the cost of the dress.
Creating a tiered pricing system gives customers more options and opens your business up to more people.
Fun Fact
Startup costs for Bridesmaid For Hire were less than $1,500 and the project now earns a whopping $20,000 a month! Around 35% of that income comes from a training program Jen has created for first-time bridesmaids and maids of honor, and the rest comes from specially tailored wedding packages.
Jen works with 5-6 brides a month. Some are in-person wedding services and some are just the wedding coaching packages.
Notes from Chris
Episode 83
If you've ever been involved in a wedding, you know how much goes into the planning and execution of the whole experience. From the bridal shower to the reception and everything in between, it takes a lot of time and money to create the illusion of the perfect day. Weddings are a colossal, billion-dollar business in the U.S. alone, and as with any large industry, there are plenty of ways to capitalize on "I do." One day, after receiving two bridesmaid invites in one day, her friend joked that she was kind of a professional bridesmaid. While they laughed about it, this got Jen to thinking—what if she could use her recently acquired knowledge to help others make their wedding days perfect? In a fit of inspiration, she posted an ad on Craigslist and received 200 responses in only a few days. If you have a crazy idea, you should follow-up on it to see where it leads. That’s exactly what Jen has done, and she now has a six-figure business. MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Bridesmaid For Hire: Learn more about Jen and her bridesmaids for hire
- Always a Bridesmaid (for Hire): Jen's new memoir featuring her "many journeys down the aisle"
- The Craigslist Wedding Photographer: A California government employee becomes a part-time wedding photographer by posting an ad on Craigslist
- Chicago Psychotherapist Becomes Ceremonial Wedding Officiant: After being featured on TLC, a Chicago psychotherapist and marriage counselor becomes a ceremonial wedding officiant
Resources
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