Today we’d like to introduce you to Rosemary Brensen

Hi Rosemary, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?

When I was 21 I became a partner at Portland Garment Factory (PGF). At the time a tiny sewing studio manufacturing clothing for other brands. After graduating from design school in San Francisco and working for a designer there I was well versed in local manufacturing. Our trajectory at PGF was one of a rocket ship- 23xing the business in just 7 years. After 7 years we had 15 employees, 5000 sq ft factory and were making things for amazing indie designers all the way up to Michael Jordan himself.
It was the dream. Until my dreams changed. I wanted to become a mom and realized that my dream life no longer involved long work days, travel, 5 am emails and the emotional rollercoaster of being in a business partnership. I wanted autonomy, ease and freedom in my motherhood. I pictured myself barefoot nursing in the grass in the middle of a Tuesday. And I was not going to get that life at PGF.
So I sold my 1/2 to my business partner and we parted ways, as I was 6 months pregnant.

After leaving PGF, many former clients and friends reached out to see if I could give them advice on a specific issue they were having in their business, or to look at their financials for them to see what was going wrong, or to help them make a hard decision. I would do this for free over coffee. Then it hit me. THIS is my superpower. Not necessarily fashion. I had my qualms about the fashion industry anyways after being immersed in it for 10 years and was relieved to dream of a trajectory that was not focused on creating new things in this world filled with overconsumption.

So that is where business coaching and consulting was born for me! Growth strategy was my superpower at PGF and it continues to be so today. I love the puzzle of finding sustainable ways to scale that don’t burn out the entrepreneur or the bank.

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?

Learning to sell myself and my services was really new for me. At PGF we had such insane word of mouth and reputation that we only took a small fraction of the people who came our way.

But learning to build that momentum and sales channel was new! Especially as women in this society, sales is considered kind of a dirty word. You immediately might think of a used car salesman or a snake oil salesman. Someone who is trying to get you to do something against your best interest.

I really had to unlearn this early on. (And this is a huge part of what I teach my clients, too.)

I learned that if I am standing in my integrity, and have something to offer that can literally change people’s lives (which I do), then it is unethical to hoard this knowledge and not help other women entrepreneurs who are struggling.

This shifted a lot for me. Now I stand in my power and do sales my own way that feels really authentic and true to myself. (And I happen to have a 95% close rate!)

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Department of Community?

Department of Community was created because Entrepreneurship is the loneliest job you can choose. Women are meant to be in community together. We don’t do well struggling in a silo. We naturally go to each other for solutions to our problems.

So I built Department of Community to be that for women in business. A place to go to learn the tools to grow your business AND your life in a sustainable, easeful way. No grinding or hustling or patriarchal bullshit we are taught in business.

I help women entrepreneurs build the life of their dreams through growing their businesses. Through visioning practices to decide ‘what do I really want in life’ to pricing and packages shifts to building a team – we cover it all. From your financial statements to your feelings, no stone goes unturned and we build your “pinch me” life!

Your business can absolutely let you live the life you want. We just need to decide what that life looks like and then be brave enough to make the bold changes necessary to get there.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?

As a financial expert now who analyzes peoples Profit & Loss statements now on the regular, I didn’t always have this confidence. I used to tell myself that I was “bad at math” until I slapped myself and realized that millions of dollars had gone through my hands into the hands of my team and I could finally drop that story. Its crazy how those stories from childhood can follow us into adulthood and cripple us.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.departmentofcommunity.com
• Instagram: @department_of_community