Young Entrepreneur Starts Business to Empower Women
Full Herizon of Hillsborough County
In April 2022, Madison Barse graduated from Florida State University and began running her online earring shop full time, in Riverview. She has always been inspired by women chasing their dreams and wanted women to feel more confident and comfortable while doing that.
She created a company where she showcases what women actually look like, including cute earring attachment cards with designs of women. The cards include women with acne, freckles, and even feeding tubes. Barse surveyed more than 500 women and found out that the number one issue they were facing when it comes to wearing earrings is how heavy they are. She created Full Herizon, which sells lightweight earrings at local shops and via her online website.
Barse found the Florida SBDC at University of South Florida through her sister who attended a conference and met business consultant Christine Jaros. Barse was paired with Jaros because of her knowledge in the fashion industry, e-commerce, and marketing.
“I was personally starting out in the fashion industry, where I had no previous experience whatsoever from getting products to SKU numbers, to really distributing myself,” Barse said. “Christine has been such a tremendous help in helping me see problems that I didn’t even know were occurring and how to get my products in more stores to see more faces.”
Throughout her time working with Jaros, Barse has learned how to create pitch emails, articulate her products, and expand her business into wholesale. She even competed in a Women’s Business Enterprise National Council pitch competition and earned a third place finish and $4,000.
As Barse continues to create a strong foundation for her jewelry business, she plans to continue using the Florida SBDC at USF as a resource.
“The SBDC is seriously so amazing. I wish I knew about it earlier,” she said. “It is the hidden gem of Tampa and beyond in the nation. They have everything for a small business. If you just have an idea, they will help walk you through all of that to see how you can really turn an idea into something truly amazing.”
