We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nicole Della Torre. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nicole below.

Nicole , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My parents always raised me to be well-rounded. I played a sport (not well, but I did it), focussed on academics, was in honors music, and was very active in community service. One of their biggest lessons was to never pigeon-hole myself into one avenue and to always have a backup plan. So when I lost my job in 2018 (the first time) I turned to my cooking and digital media planning skills to create The Gluten Free Babe LLC. Not only was it initially a way for me to show people that gluten free food doesn’t have to be tasteless, but it was also a way for me to keep my digital media / content creator skills sharp while looking for work. When I lost my job due to the pandemic, I found myself focussing even harder on TGFB as well, similarly to 2018.

Tied into that, my parents instilled in me a passion to continue to learn. For me, that’s continuing to hone in on my cooking skills, as well as my media planning / strategy skills. Social media is ever-changing and there’s always something new to learn.

Nicole , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

(I may write entirely too much here sorry about that-)

I attended Montclair State University originally for music education, but after consideration realized my passion was Psychology. I wound up with a BA in psychology and a minor in music theory. Some of my classes focussed on emotional intelligence – why people make the choices they do. That’s something I still reference now in my 9-5. While at Montclair I was a beauty writer for HerCampus and makeup artist for the school’s fashion magazine. I did makeup throughout college, including beauty directing numerous NYFW and NJFW shows, and worked on editorial shoots for major publications. If there’s one thing about me, I always hustled, and always had a creative outlet.

Out of school I worked for a tech company doing e-commerce and digital marketing but quickly moved on to a position with Wurth USA in the auto industry also as e-comm and digital marketing. My position with Wurth was fantastic – not only did I learn a TON about digital marketing, but I was able to share my skills with districts across the USA, visiting really cool places, and even gave presentations in Germany twice. When I was there we also were a sponsor of a NASCAR team, allowing me to learn social media for that leg of the business as well. I had the pleasure of visiting the team’s facility and going to races to run social. It was a great time and I learned a lot from them.

Pre-pandemic I worked for a medical marketing agency as their Director of Marketing. I learned ALOT in a small time frame – from advertising to strategic planning, I feel like it’s such an important part of my journey because of the work ethic and skills they instilled in me. But unfortunately the pandemic happened.

My journey has led me to PolyGel LLC where I am the Director of Business Development. Not only do I absolutely love the people I work with, but I love what I do. I am using my skillset on a daily basis and continue to learn and grow.

In 2018, I started focussing on The Gluten Free Babe and in January 2019 I formed my LLC. At the end of my college career, I learned (accidentally) that I had a gluten sensitivity, which wound up being Celiac’s disease, which is an autoimmune disease. When I entered the space there wasn’t a whole lot of options – bread was like $12 and tasted like cardboard and the only option I saw often was salad. So I decided to start this journey of altering my family recipes and foods that I loved – but adapted to be gluten free and safe for Celiacs. I also review restaurants. I even had a fully gluten free wedding, which was featured in Simply Gluten Free Magazine. TGFB is really a safe haven for me – it’s a place that I get to be creative with food and photography. With my LLC I am also able to do digital consulting under my brand name, for companies who need help with digital strategy or business development. This is all done outside of my 9-5.

Another leg of my The Gluten Free Babe LLC is “TGFB_IRL” which I am developing as the “real” side of everything I’m doing. There I discuss doing all of this, as well as daily tasks with OCD, as well as navigating life as a plus size girl who not only loves food, but also fashion. I’ve recently started with TikTok, and that’s more of this – it’s daily life, life with OCD and fashion finds. I don’t want my community to just be one thing – it’s food, it’s mental health awareness – it’s self love.

Outside of my 9-5 and The Gluten Free Babe LLC, I continue to be active in community service. I am a founding member and on the Board of Directors for the “For Our Troops” collection which my mom and I started after 9/11, and was recently featured on NJ News. Every year we collect non-perishables, cards, games, etc. and send them in holiday boxes to our troops overseas and stateside. we’ve proudly sent over 1.5K boxes in the last 20 years.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

When I started in business I was taught that as a woman, I needed to be stern and closed off to be taken seriously. I was taught not to share about anything that isn’t work, and only speak when spoken to for my ideas.

This could not be more untrue.

Part of my personal mission in working in a 9-5 is showing that women can be kind and compassionate while still being influential and taken seriously. It took a lot of work to undo what I was taught – but I am proud of the kind, educated and compassionate woman I am and feel that I am respected for that.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is the freedom to create things that not only make me happy, but can help bring joy back to people. Often times people with allergies, we almost mourn a part of us that used to be able to enjoy certain things. I use my creative side to recreate those things and share them. I also love the aspect of photography and editing the photos for social media / my website. My 9-5 can be very numerical and serious, so it’s great to have this outlet (that often results in yummy treats).

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theglutenfreebabe.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theglutenfreebabe/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theglutenfreebabeblog
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-della-torre-aa3133100/

Image Credits
(Black and White image, cupcake photo and knife picture): Thomas Wesbecher