Life & Work with Tina Wong

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tina Wong.

Hi Tina, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Thank you for having me and giving me the opportunity to share my story. My story with Grace + Ivory begins with my own experience shopping wedding dresses and is what started me down this road. I love wedding dresses but felt that the wedding dress process and experience was not ideal for the bride — customer service was lacking, it was a stressful experience, the timeline was long, etc. I didn’t understand how made-to-measure wasn’t an option (custom men’s suiting is plentiful in options), and the prices didn’t add up to me. When I started chatting with girlfriends, I realized that many of them felt the same way. What should have been a fun experience wasn’t always so, and there were few brands that represented today’s independent modern woman. Timing was serendipitous for me; that same year I happened to move to Beijing with this idea in mind and was able to seek out dressmakers that I trusted to make quality made-to-measure wedding gowns.

Launching my own social business was already on my mind, as I think social enterprises, companies that address social problems through a market-driven approach, should be the future of every business. Giving back to our communities and supporting women’s issues is my passion, and this is what I wanted to infuse with my work. I also wanted to tackle an actual pain point, so when I recognized a gap in the bridal industry, I took the two passions and wed them together (pun intended).

Now, we are the try-at-home destination for brides, where they can order bridal gown samples to their door directly from our website. We’ve cut out the middle-man to offer high quality, made-to-order gowns cutting out a layer markup and extended timelines.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I would say it’s been a lovely, winding, country road with its bumps on the way. As to be expected with any business, it’s definitely not linear and work-life balance has been a struggle. A lot of it is mentality and mindset, as you have a lot of doubts as an entrepreneur and have to be able to pivot and adapt as you learn what your brides need and want to give them the best experience. You struggle with imposter syndrome and I often ask myself, “can I really do this?” Also, learning how to take feedback objectively is important to be able to grow. Of course, you want the help but you have to learn when to be more critical of yourself and understand others’ opinions; it’s not always good feedback or helpful.
The other piece is financial; It’s a big risk to put your life and savings into your business. There’s many routes a new business can take to scale, and we chose to grow slowly and bootstrap. This is at many times challenging, but I believe it is the best way forward for us.

Above all, I think to be an entrepreneur, you have to be pretty optimistic and passionate about your work.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We specialize in made-to-measure wedding gowns for the modern bride that can be tried on at home, how and when you want. We’ve cut out the middle-man and the mark-up for a dress that is unique and high-quality, for a price point that was missing in the bridal industry. All of our gowns are under $2,500, made in 3-5 months, with a portion of each dress sold going towards our continued support of womxn’s programs.

As a social enterprise, we currently support The Chicago Period Project, which helps homeless menstruating persons in need have their period with dignity by providing support and menstrual hygiene products.

Grace + Ivory is also my creative outlet. I’m able to design gowns with a talented production team and work one-on-one with our brides for a dress they feel their best in on their wedding day. I’m most proud of being able to support womxn through my passion that is Grace + Ivory.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
Aside from my calendar app, which I rely on for the work-life balance we talked about earlier, I use a meditation app called Headspace. I also have an app that lets me book exercise classes. Overall, physical and mental health is very important to me.

Pricing:

• All wedding dresses are under $2,500
• Veils and Bridal capes typically range from $195-$395

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://www.graceandivory.com
• Instagram: @grace_and_ivory_
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/graceandivory/
• Other: Tiktok: Graceandivory

Image Credits
Sarah Crost Photography
Mecca R Photography
Ed & Aileen
Lauren Louise
Lela Marshall Photography