Recessionista: Steph Storm
TheHouseofBachelorette.com

Old Unfun Job:
Retail Executive (Divisional Merchandise Manager) for large retail companies. Especially unfun during a recession: laying people off and managing sluggish sales.

New Fun Job:
Owner/President of TheHouseofBachelorette.com

Okay, before we talk about anything else — what is The House of Bachelorette?? That sounds…h-awesome.

I get to help Bachelorettes plan what will be one of the best nights of their lives! I am also the buyer, traveling to shows and picking out the coolest feather boas, tiaras, and party supplies. Since I’m the boss, I also got to write my companies values: while we get the job done every day and strive for excellence in everything we do, we also embrace fun, being weird when we want to and laughing. No biatches allowed!

Plus, I have gotten to focus more on my personal life. My husband and I decided to start our family and our son (Beck) was born last December. I get to spend lots of time with him too during my workday, which is a blast.

Baby Beck helping mom at work

Sounds like a blast — how’d you get into the no-biatch club?

I was laid off in 2008. After being the boss and laying off (not by choice) two rounds of employees, I got the call!

Yikes! You must have been relieved, but terrified about what to do for money … how’s that going these days?

Business is amazing! Our growth is unbelievable. Having better product, better customer service and better prices than our competition has driven customers to us by the Limo-load! I have hired employee after employee (they love working here too) to keep up with the growth. Plus, I save money on childcare because my hours are so flexible.

Right, duh…that makes sense. I can imagine that you must have had doubts about going out on your own. What would you tell another lady in the position you were in post-layoff?

“Start your own business, dummy. Stop being such a puss and follow your dreams! Make the life you want and have fun along the way!”

Wait, so would you tell them to quit to start or start to quit?

UGH! That’s hard. If you start your own business, don’t quit your job right away. It takes a while to get to your happy place. But sometimes, just seeing that light at the end of the tunnel can help you get through the crap days.

What’s gotten you through those crap days?

If you want to start your own business, find a mentor — it’s FREE and you can skip a lot of mistakes. Don’t waste your time in unemployment waiting around for someone to find you – go find what you want and make it happen. You may never get another chance to shake up your life like this!