Meredith Edwards, a senior marketing and entrepreneurship major, plans to create a way for fashion bloggers and other popular personalities to sell merchandise directly to their fans.
Edwards recently won $5,000 for her idea in the Belmont Center for Entrepreneurship’s annual Business Plan Competition on Tuesday.
The proposed business, called Dressed By, would allow bloggers, YouTubers, and other online personalities to create their own digital shops without having to jump through the hoops of starting their own businesses.
The idea struck Edwards — a blogger and YouTuber herself — when she started an online storefront. Not only was the process complex, but she realized there are plenty of other online personalities who want to create a business and don’t have the resources.
“A lot of fashion bloggers out there want to have their own stores, and they have the followers there ready to make a purchase from them,” Edwards said. “But most of them don’t know how to start their own business, they don’t have the money to start it, they don’t have the time.”
The concept thrives on personality-driven marketing and avoids going through retailers as to best connect individuals and their audiences.
Getting involved with the Center for Entrepreneurship’s programs and events, including the Business Plan Competition, is one of the things Edwards appreciates most about being a student at Belmont, she said.
“I cannot speak highly enough of the Center for Entrepreneurship,” Edwards said. “The professors are great, the programming is awesome, as well as having access to resources around Nashville.”
In starting a business, Edwards finds that ambition is the first step to making your ideas a reality.
“If you’re interested in starting something, just go for it.”
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This article written by Justin Wagner. Photo courtesy of Meredith Edwards.