From working as a sales consultant and landing a spot on the “Two Million Dollar Club†at Kleinfeld Bridal boutique, to launching the only bridal shop in Detroit, and landing her own TV show, Keasha Rigsby is blazing trails in the wedding industry.
Rigsby’s passion for helping brides choose a wedding dress for their big day began while she was shopping with her cousin for a bridal gown. “During my cousin’s bridal appointment at Kleinfeld, she told the owner what a great sales person I was and ‘that I could sell you back the underwear you were wearing’ and he gave me a job the next day,†said Rigsby. I was the first black sales consultant in the bridal department. The rest is history. I worked there for nine years. After the first three years, they started the show Say Yes to the Dress on TLC and I was featured prominently in five seasons of the show.â€
As a working mother of three boys with a fan base around the world, Keasha’s Perfect Dress TV show aired on TVOne last spring and it’s available now on Hulu. On the heels of opening her very own boutique “Beautiful Bridal with Keasha Rigsby in Detroit, BlackEnterprise.com caught up with the powerhouse to learn more about her journey.
BlackEnterprise.com:Â Tell us a bit about your background.Â
Rigsby:Â I started design in college but stopped to work so I could help put my younger siblings through college. I worked at Saks Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
What attracts you to the bridal wear business?Â
I have three sons, so when I’m with a bride, I like to pretend that she’s my daughter! I like to lose myself in her joy and wedding bliss. I should also mention that two of my boys have a chronic illness, so being with the brides also levitates me away from those hardships into a beautiful, romantic world of pure perfection. I think that’s why I love it.
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How did you know you were ready to leave the prestigious Kleinfeld boutique and start your own bridal company?
It was always my dream to one day own my own bridal boutique. I knew I was ready to leave Kleinfeld’s when I had the opportunity to star in my own TV show Keasha’s Perfect Dress. I had been at Kleinfeld for almost a decade and I was ready to explore any new opportunities that lay ahead. I’m proud of the show–it is beautifully produced and it led me to open my own boutique in Detroit. The Lord has a way of opening doors. It’s through the show that I met Vallery Hyduk who is my business partner with Beautiful Bridal With Keasha Rigsby here in Detroit. Vallery was the supervising producer of Keasha’s Perfect Dress and she co-owned the production company. Fast forward three years and we’re open!
Describe your clientele?
I love all my brides and I want to dress everyone of them. Our clientele are Detroiters and brides from the surrounding suburbs; Ohio brides that road trip in and even brides from around the country that are starting to fly in for the Keasha Experience.
Describe your biggest challenge? How did you overcome it?
My biggest challenge is what I deal with every day with my children’s illness. I haven’t overcome it. It’s ongoing and I just take one day at a time and pray.
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Does your business fill a specific need in your community?
There is no bridal boutique in Detroit. I’m told Beautiful Bridal with Keasha Rigsby is the first bridal boutique ever in the history of the city, so I’d call that a void. We want brides shopping downtown in Detroit! Detroit is one of America’s first great cities and it’s on the come-up and we want brides to be proud to shop downtown again.
How did you land your own TV show?
I had the idea and I ran it by an agent. He hooked me up with Peace Point Entertainment Group and they loved it. They flew me in for a meeting in Toronto with the broadcaster Slice Network and they greenlighted the show the same day. I didn’t know this, but the executive producer told me that was a miraculous achievement! We were in production within a few months.
Any career advice you heard as a young adult, but glad you didn’t follow?
A lot of people have a lot of advice and opinions, wanted and otherwise…
For example, some people thought opening a business in Detroit was not a wise decision. If I had listened to them, I wouldn’t be here in this stunning 1889 historic mansion with a grand staircase and baby grand piano. I wouldn’t have the opportunities that the city and Mayor Mike Duggan have graced me with. The support from the city and from its wonderful people has been so overwhelming that I can’t imagine having a better experience anywhere else.
So, I just advise people to follow your heart, your gut, your own mind and what you feel God is telling you… and put a filter on the advice that other people are telling you.