Today we’d like to introduce you to Bridget Jarecki.
Hi Bridget, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I went to Boston University and earned my degree in magazine journalism. Right after graduation, I moved to New York City to pursue a career in fashion- I genuinely thought I was going to be the next Carrie Bradshaw. My first job was as a receptionist at The Wall Group, a premier agency representing hair, makeup, styling, and fashion talent. Within seven months, I was promoted to assistant to one of the top-performing agents, who taught me the fundamentals of talent representation: thoroughness, attention to detail, thinking three steps ahead, and anticipating questions or issues before they even arise.
I spent six years in New York working at top agencies, including one where my boss was exploring the idea of launching an influencer division. At the time, the plan was to open the department in London, but I convinced her to let me launch the New York arm. While I had enjoyed representing makeup artists and hairstylists, I felt a natural connection to digital talent. With some mentorship, but mostly self-taught, I learned how to negotiate social media campaigns, represent digital talent, and built a roster of NYC- and LA-based influencers who have since become some of the most recognizable names in the space. Looking back, I’m honestly still surprised they trusted me in those early days.
In 2020, I made the decision to go freelance. I was underpaid for the amount of responsibility I carried, and I knew I needed to make a change. When COVID hit, I moved home to Nashville and was hired by an agency that, until then, had only focused on public relations. They brought me on as a freelance Director of Talent to build out their influencer division. It mirrored my earlier experience…starting from scratch…but I grew that department into a thriving and lucrative arm of the agency. After about a year and a half, I realized I had the skills to do this on my own.
I launched Bright Side in 2021. From day one, I’ve been intentional about keeping the roster small and the management experience deeply personal. Representation at Bright Side is rooted in authenticity, transparency, and close partnership. It’s incredibly important to me that every person on our roster feels seen, supported, and prioritized, whether it’s landing a dream brand partnership, securing an invite to a coveted influencer trip, or growing their platform in a meaningful way.
Our industry is all about relationships, so I put a lot of effort into maintaining strong connections. I make regular trips to New York and LA to meet with clients face-to-face. In a world filled with boutique agencies, it takes consistency and intentionality to stand out, and to ensure that when a brand is casting, they think of Bright Side and our roster. Not only do we pride ourselves on representing truly creative digital talent, but also in how we negotiate and carry ourselves – always professional, flexible and accommodating in our negotiations, friendly and quick. It’s incredibly important to be responsive on emails – and thankfully my team and I all love what we do, so we’re always on email, which is perhaps not the best thing for our work/life balance… but our work ethic is derived from a place of passion and deep drive. We often compete with much larger agencies like DBA or Digital Department, and while they do great work, our strength lies in being small, intentional, and truly hands-on.
Today, I have three employees who are exceptional at what they do. We recently underwent a rebrand to reenergize the business after three years. Running a company with a small team can be isolating at times, and it’s easy to fall into comparison traps in such a competitive space. In early 2025, I found myself needing a reset. I wasn’t feeling creatively inspired and began questioning our place as a small team based in Nashville. That’s when we decided to reinvest in our brand identity, our social presence, and our internal culture.
2025 has been our strongest year yet – not necessarily in revenue (our highest-grossing years were 2021 and 2022) – but in terms of team cohesion, brand clarity, and overall momentum. We’ve never been more aligned or excited about the future, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Holistically, yes, I would say it’s been a relatively smooth road. But we’ve fallen victim to a few things that have definitely hindered our success in the space, one of them being comparison. It feels like everyone I began my career with, other colleagues in the fashion and beauty space, has started their own influencer representation agency, so that means we have a lot of competition. Also, the influencer space has become incredibly saturated and so a fashion brand who has a limited budget has access to thousands of influencers who will accept minimal budgets because they want to align with that brand. And that leaves less opportunity for the people on my roster who demand and deserve larger rates. I would say that our biggest struggle was more of a personal one – comparison truly is the thief of joy and I fell victim to that in 2024. Thank God for the rebrand and the hiring of three new employees because truly I’ve never felt so inspired in my life.
This job requires contact hustle, a positive attitude, endless cold-pitching and follow-ups, and the building of personal relationships with talent, marketing and PR agencies, and brands. A good reputation gets you pretty far in this space.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Bright Side Management ?
We are a boutique influencer representation agency based here in Nashville, but with two remote workers that both live in Ohio. We represent a roster of 16 influencer talent that span across multiple niches; music, fashion, beauty, art, food, surfing, health/wellness, and fitness. Our influencer talent are based all over the United States with talent located in New York City and LA, but also in Missouri, Chicago, Santa Cruz, Florida and Philadelphia. We really pride ourselves on the diversity of the roster, which is also beneficial to us because if an industry such as the fashion industry is slow for a month or two, there are other industries, such as the food industry, that are pretty consistent in their budgets and their marketing strategy. We are known for our personalized, hands-on representation style. We are friends with every single talent we represent – we are texting with them all day, brainstorming, and advocating on their behalf for the best rates and terms. Right now, in this moment, I am the most proud of our success in representing an influencer who was severely undervaluing herself. She couldn’t see how much talent she had and how much opportunity there was to make a lot of money. The first deal we brought her was an $8,000 campaign with a meal service company, and she told us that she was moved to tears because that money was going to pay for a big family finance that they had previously been worried about. That was an amazing feeling – to feel that we could actually change someone’s life because we saw their potential and we positioned them in front of the right brand at the right time.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
We use Trello to organize our campaigns – leads, in-negotiation, booked, and billed.
We use Slack to communicate as a team. We use RocketReach to source new contacts in the space. WIIM (Women in Influencer Marketing) is an invaluable resource in connect with other women in this space – asking for advice, sharing industry updates, and visibility into castings and opportunities.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.brightside-mgmt.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside__mgmt/
