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

Mimi, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard

Bridal Closet was born out of the realization that the wedding industry in the U.S. often pressures brides into spending thousands on a gown they’ll wear once—and that just didn’t sit right with me. I saw a clear gap in the market: there were no real options for stylish, quality, in-person wedding dress rentals. Most brides either had to buy a dress outright or gamble on a questionable online purchase. Bridal Closet set out to challenge that.

Our mission is simple but powerful: to make bridal gowns more accessible, practical, and sustainable—without compromising on style or experience. We serve smart, modern brides who value both budget and aesthetics, and who would rather put their money into their marriage than blow it all on one day.

What we do differently? Almost everything.

We are one of the few boutiques in the country offering bridal gown rentals with in-person try-ons—and we do it in a warm, boutique setting, not a warehouse or online-only model. Our store is appointment-based, intimate, and no-pressure. Brides can try on gorgeous, boutique-quality dresses and rent them for a fraction of the price, while still enjoying expert fittings and minor alterations to ensure the perfect fit.

While the rest of the industry leans into upselling and overconsumption, we lean into practicality, transparency, and empowerment.

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 back background and context?

My background might surprise some people. I come from the world of healthcare administration and nonprofit operations, where I spent years working behind the scenes to keep systems running smoothly and effectively. I’ve always been deeply mission-driven and systems-oriented, which—believe it or not—has translated beautifully into entrepreneurship.

My journey into the wedding industry began in 2012 when I started working as a wedding planner on the side. I loved helping couples bring their vision to life, and over the years I helped plan weddings of all shapes and sizes. Later, through a partnership, I was introduced to the bridal fashion side of the industry—and I immediately fell in love. In 2023, I launched Bridal Closet, the first rental bridal boutique in Maryland, and one of very few in the entire country.

Bridal Closet exists to redefine what it means to be a smart, stylish bride. We provide designer-quality wedding dresses that brides can rent for a fraction of the cost, all in a beautiful, boutique setting. Our dresses are available off-the-rack, for rent or purchase, and we will soon also be offering a limited online rental collection for brides across the U.S.

What sets us apart is that we are not just an e-commerce rental platform—we are a real, in-person boutique experience that happens to specialize in rentals. Brides can try on dresses, get expert help with fit and alterations, and walk away with something that feels truly special—without the financial strain.

We’re solving a huge problem in the industry: the lack of affordable, accessible, and sustainable bridalwear, especially for brides who don’t want to sacrifice style for price. I’m most proud that we’ve been able to create a space where brides feel empowered to make smart, practical choices without the guilt or stigma that sometimes surrounds non-traditional options like renting.

If there’s one thing I want potential clients to know about Bridal Closet, it’s that you don’t have to spend thousands to look like a million bucks. We’re here to make the wedding dress experience less stressful, more accessible, and just as magical.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

Yes—my side hustle absolutely turned into my full-time career, but it didn’t happen overnight. I first started dabbling in wedding planning in 2012, simply out of curiosity and passion for the industry. At the time, I had a full-time career in healthcare administration and nonprofit operations, but I found myself drawn to weddings and the creativity, emotion, and logistics they required. In the beginning, I planned weddings for very low cost—or even free—just to learn the ropes and gain experience.

As I gained confidence and built a reputation, referrals started to roll in, and soon I was booked almost every weekend. I even brought on help to support the growth of this side business. Wedding planning gave me invaluable experience with brides, timelines, and the pressure points of the wedding industry.

Eventually, I made a connection that would change everything—I came across a business listing for a woman working in bridal fashion, who was looking for a new partner because her business partner at the time was planning to sell her share. In 2017, I bought into that bridal business as a 50/50 partner, and over the next few years, we worked hard to nearly double its size and revenue.

In 2023, after years of juggling both careers, I finally made the leap and left my full-time job to launch and run Bridal Closet full time. It was a major decision, but it felt like the right time to bring my vision to life—a bridal boutique that made stylish, affordable, and sustainable wedding dress rentals accessible to more brides.

Some of the key milestones along the way included:

-Booking out my wedding planning calendar through word-of-mouth alone
-Becoming a co-owner of an established bridal business
-Successfully growing that business and learning the ins and outs of bridal retail
-Opening Bridal Closet in 2023 as one of the first rental bridal boutiques in Maryland

Today, Bridal Closet serves local and national brides through our storefront and growing e-commerce rental platform. What started as a side hustle built on passion and curiosity has turned into a full-fledged mission to make bridalwear more affordable, sustainable, and stress-free.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

One of the most defining tests of resilience in my journey came during the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many in the wedding industry, our bridal shop was forced to shut down for several months. Weddings were canceled or indefinitely postponed, and the future of the entire industry felt uncertain.

In the midst of all that fear and instability, we didn’t give up. My team and I bunkered down and focused on survival—we applied for government assistance through PPP and EIDL loans and grants, restructured our operations, and stayed agile to adapt to constantly changing circumstances. It wasn’t easy, but we were committed to keeping the business afloat.

At the same time, I had to make a difficult personal decision to wind down my wedding planning side business, which I had spent years building. I knew I had to put all of my energy into saving the bridal store, even if that meant letting go of something I loved.

That season taught me so much about what it means to endure—not just to survive a crisis, but to come through it with even more clarity, determination, and purpose. That experience ultimately gave me the courage to step into full-time entrepreneurship and launch Bridal Closet.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bridalcloset.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bridalclosetmd
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BridalClosetMD
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@bridalclosetmd