We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Meredith Jurica a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Meredith , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you have a hero? What have you learned from them?

My hero is Sarah Blakely. She started her business out of her apartment, which reminds me of how I started Makeup Junkie Bags out of my home. I often follow her business tips and hope to grow and persevere as she has. Sarah was also one of my Sharks on Shark Tank, so getting to meet her in person really enriched my appreciation for what she has done.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

I, Meredith Jurica am the founder and CEO of Makeup Junkie Bags. Before starting my business, I became a Speech Language Pathologist after obtaining my Bachelor and Masters degree in the field. I departed from my job as a Speech Language Pathologist to stay at home with my two young daughters. As an avid lover of makeup, I was tired of makeup bags not meeting my standards, and decided to get crafty in my spare time. It turns out that I was solving a problem many people were having. Starting with one simple sewing machine at my kitchen table, I designed an adorable leak resistant, lay flat, high capacity, medial line zipper, cosmetic and travel bag that houses all of my modern day large cosmetic pallets, full size bottles of shampoo and conditioners/hairsprays, contour kits, professional brushes and much more! Makeup Junkie Bags was now born. My company now has a retail website and wholesales to thousands of retailers nationwide. I was featured on Shark Tank, as well as Good Morning America. All of my bags are “Handmade in Texas,” and carry a lifetime guarantee. Fast forward five years later, I have a design patent and I have continued to expand my line over the years to include handbags, cosmetics and other accessories.

Notable Philanthropy:

– Main gift Sponsor of “In the Pink”, raising almost $50,000 from the bags she donated.

– Sponsorships of most local school districts in progress that include monetary donations and gift donations.

– Athletic sponsorships

– Pageant and Academic sponsorship

– Project Autism

– Project Beloved

– Cleft Strong (Cleft Palate Foundation)

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Social Media is what helped build my brand in the market. All of my products are handmade and have a lifetime warranty, which is really hard to find in this industry. We do not have many claims come through as our products are so well made. I think with the lifetime warranty and low warranty claims, that helps build a strong reputation because our bags withstand a lot and it shows.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Customer Service, attention to detail and quality, including warranties are what helped grow my clientele, along with attending shows. I think it is very important to always have a great attitude, be friendly, have a smile on your face, work with the customer and their needs and wants. I also think when you are giving in your community, that your customers notice that and appreciate that and it comes back in full circle.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.makeupjunkiebags.com
• Instagram: @makeupjunkiebags.com
• Facebook: Makeup Junkie Bags

Image Credits
Photography by Jessie Smith Photography