We recently connected with Jasmine Green and have shared our conversation below.

Jasmine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s something crazy on unexpected that’s happened to you or your business

Entrepreneurship is a challenging yet rewarding journey – and the last seven years have certainly been no exception for me. After launching MARZ, I worked my 9-5 job for about three years before something unexpected happened – I was let go! And that wasn’t all, as I faced a health scare at the same time and within three months, 7 out of my 9 models quit. Needless to say, I found myself in an extremely tough spot both mentally and physically.

The toughest moment came when I had to decide between applying for local government assistance and getting a part-time job while continuing to build MARZ or giving up on it completely. Despite feeling defeated and overwhelmed, I decided to focus on my mental health and continued working hard on building MARZ – a decision that was undoubtedly one of the best ones of my life!

While entrepreneurship can be filled with highs and lows, what’s most important is staying resilient throughout this journey. Selflessness, strategic thinking, faith, fun, and having an inviting outlook are just some of the many qualities required if you’re determined to make it in this field.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

My story is a testament to how faith can shape our destiny. I was only 12 years old when I lost my parents and in many ways, it felt like my life had suddenly become upended. But if it hadn’t been for that difficult situation, I wouldn’t be the person I am today – or the business owner that I have become. I have always believed in God’s hand in my life and it was with this faith that I decided to pursue a career in the beauty industry and create an agency bearing my mother’s name – Marzetta.

MARZ is a talent agency located in Baltimore, MD that reimagines beauty through diversity and inclusion for advertising and marketing campaigns. We take pride in our mental health programs and excellence. Even though this dream seemed daunting at first, faith helped me push through any difficulties I faced and put the vision of beauty standards into reality.

This could not have been achieved without strong determination and faith as its foundation. I’m known for taking on challenging projects and transforming them into something extraordinary. As an entrepreneur, founder, model agent, beauty influencer, and diversity and inclusion advocate, I’ve built a career of making an impact on people’s lives by bringing them joy. In my current role at MARZ, I wear many hats throughout the day. From connecting with models to staying up-to-date with trends in the beauty industry to advocating for inclusion, there is always something new and exciting that I’m working on. It’s incredibly fulfilling to have the opportunity to work on such a diverse range of projects each day. As a creative director, I take pride in connecting the gap between mainstream brands and real women with real stories.

My goal is to create an environment where models feel safe, protected, and at home – where they can grow both mentally and physically to achieve the vision of our clients. I take on various responsibilities within the agency. This includes communication with both talent and clients/brands, negotiating contracts for fair payment or ambassadorship, managing schedules for existing models, supervising production staff, recruiting interns and project staff, as well as identifying potential candidates for new business proposals. By working collaboratively to develop ideas that satisfy our client’s needs while promoting inclusivity in the industry, I believe MARZ will be successful in setting the standards of the future.

I am extremely proud of the growth our team has seen in recent years. Starting out with just three creatives and a few models, it is amazing to now see our Google search receiving over 50K views! We have been fortunate enough to expand our team to 11 creatives and 17 models, as well as secure client relationships with top-tier brands such as Down Town Locker Room, Walmart, Keurig, Nike, and New York Fashion Week. Additionally, we have also been featured in articles from reputable publications like Pop Sugar Beauty and Ad Week – an accomplishment I could not be more proud of! It truly is remarkable what our team has been able to achieve and I am confident that we will continue to experience even greater successes moving forward.

I am also on the board of Hearts and Homes for youth where we help teen moms, sex trafficking victims, and juveniles find safe spaces in the foster care system. This is important to me because, while I was never in foster care, I did move between 8 relatives by the age of 18. I have learned what it means to persevere until you reach a goal, and then start fresh again learning, and growing again in that new season.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Apps: Holy Bible, Calm, Faithful, I am, Nike Run, Pinterest, Canva, Acuity, Hootsuite, Mario Kart, All Google Apps, Fast Scanner, Honey Book, Asana, Slack

Books: Stop Asking for Permission by Stephen S. Chandler, The Blessed Life by Robert Morris, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Scazzero, Boundaries by Henry Cloud and John Townsend
Relationship Goals by Michael Todd, The 1-Page Marketing Plan by Allan Dib, Chase The Lion by Batterson, The Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas

Podcast: Therapy for Black Girls, John Maxwell Leadership Podcast, Woman Evolve with Sarah Jakes Roberts, Blessed and Bossed Up with Tatum Temia and Myleik Teel’s Podcast

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The top two struggles I faced when starting my business were finding the necessary capital and finding someone who had taken the same road I wanted to embark on. Unfortunately, black women have some of the lowest rates in receiving capital, so that made it especially hard for me to get my business up and running. It took a lot of time and money – about $40,000.00 within the first two years – which was only made possible through help from family, friends, and working my 9-5 job.

Additionally, I encountered challenges because, at the time of starting my business, there wasn’t really a trend around challenging the beauty narrative; many people would look at me with confusion as to why I was trying to pursue such a niche idea. This is why resources are so important – having access to the right resources makes all the difference in terms of getting a business off the ground and being able to succeed long-term. Many black women do not come from families with financial wealth, so having support in terms of resources is key. With enough capital and proper strategy, we can lift some of that burden and create businesses that span across continents!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.marzenterprise.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marzenterprise/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marzenterprisellc/about
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/marz-enterprise
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarzEnterprise
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbfeFwguIfw8Bz0YP2CWFXg

Image Credits
Morgan White Lena Word Cynthia Sab Charley Raine Maranatha Haile Autumn Jones Ashley Linton Naomi Venerable Jordan Pitts Blessin Giraldo Victoria Folusewa Bianka Manderson Valentina Samuel Famoyegun Zaire Sadiki Diamond Williams Summer Williams Josef Hicks Rachel Boxely Zacharina Dainkeh Jasmine Green Ajee Hassan