I recently went one-on-one with celebrity bridal fashion designer and entrepreneur Hayley Paige. Hayley became a fan-favorite designer on TLC’s Say Yes to the Dress and is the founder and president of A Girl You Might Know Foundation.
Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?
Hayley: My career didn’t unfold in a straight line, and I am sure plenty of people can relate to that. Some of my chapters were full of creative momentum and visibility; others were quieter, more humbling, and ultimately more formative than I could have imagined at the time.
I began my academic journey at Cornell University, studying pre-med, which surprises people. But I’ve always been deeply curious about how things function: structurally, materially, emotionally. That curiosity eventually led me to fiber science and apparel design, where analytical thinking and storytelling could coexist. That pivot was my first real lesson in trusting internal intuition over external expectation.
I entered the bridal industry very young, and my career grew quickly and very publicly. It was an extraordinary opportunity, but it also meant learning how to lead, build a business, and protect creative integrity all at once. Like many young founders, I was learning in real time, which is exhilarating, but also leaves room for blind spots.
The most defining challenge came later, when I discovered that a contract I had signed early on transferred the rights to my own name and brand. It was both professionally disorienting and deeply personal. That experience forced me to confront questions about authorship, identity, and what ownership truly means in creative work.
What that chapter ultimately gave me was clarity. It reinforced that creativity lives inside you and stays with you, regardless of the circumstances. It also reshaped how I think about mentorship and advocacy for other creatives, particularly young founders navigating similar terrain. I learned that setbacks are often the moments that demand the most honest rebuilding…and that clarity tends to follow.
In many ways, I design with more purpose and gratitude than ever before. The work feels more special, the decisions more grounded, and the perspective wider. Those chapters — both the whimsical and the wicked — are what shaped not just my career, but how I show up as a designer today.
Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?
Hayley: From a young age, I was drawn to the emotional symbolism of weddings. The idea that fashion could help someone articulate who they are during a defining moment. If you’d asked me as a child what I wanted to be, the answer was immediate: a wedding dress designer. That instinct never really left; it just took some time to find viability in my skill.
As for developing strong business ideas, I’ve learned to look beyond trends and toward experience. The most durable ideas often come from noticing humanity or experiential gaps…particularly where people feel unseen, underserved, or constrained by convention. That’s where ideas have real strength and passion behind them.
I also encourage people to pay attention to their own curiosities. Repeated fascinations are rarely accidental. When personal obsession intersects with problem-solving and cultural relevance, the result tends to be both authentic and sustainable.
And finally, allow ideas to evolve. The most successful businesses aren’t born fully formed; rather, they’re shaped through listening, iteration, and lived experience. Growth comes not from forcing an idea to be perfect, but from letting it become more precise over time.
Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?
Hayley: For me, validation came less from immediate success and more from emotional resonance. Early on, I paid close attention to how people responded to the work through movement, texture, and storytelling that landed in the room. When clients and industry peers weren’t just impressed, but moved, that signaled something worth continuing. Emotional connection is often the earliest form of consideration.
That said, I don’t believe validation comes without friction. Failure and setbacks aren’t detours; they’re simply part of the process. Fortunes shift, markets change, and visibility comes and goes. What compounds is character: your ability to listen, adapt, and refine your point of view. In my experience, it’s not so much what happens to you that determines longevity, but what kind of person you become.
When it comes to testing an idea, scale isn’t the starting point. Some of the most useful insight comes from small, intentional experiments like limited releases, pilot projects, and direct community feedback. I pay close attention to behavior and commentary. Genuine enthusiasm shows up through repeat engagement, organic participation in your brand, and people continually showing up. What a blessing.
Finally, I always encourage founders to pressure-test ideas with longer-range questions: Does this hold my interest beyond the launch moment? Does it solve something real? Can it evolve as I evolve? If an idea can survive both excitement and adversity, that’s usually a sign it’s worth building.
Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?
Hayley: One of the most important shifts in growing my business was realizing that creative vision alone isn’t enough. Creative brands only scale when they’re supported by disciplined operations and thoughtful legal structure. Early on, my focus was almost entirely on the work itself…which is instinctive for artists. I just wanted to design. But longevity comes from building the systems that protect the work, not just produce it.
Another critical step was investing in community. Bridal is inherently relational, and it taught me that growth doesn’t happen in isolation. Pay close attention to clients and collaborators. How they experience your brand, not just your products, will help guide smarter decisions across every touchpoint.
Taking a business to the next level often means shifting from momentum to intention. Focus and infrastructure are what allow a brand to evolve without losing purpose. For me, that looked like assembling the right advisors, being proactive about intellectual property, clarifying brand language, and becoming far more selective about opportunities. Growth required saying no more often…which, for someone who genuinely loves saying yes, was a learned skill.
Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?
Hayley: I’ve learned that the most effective sales and marketing rarely feel like marketing at all. People, especially in creative and luxury spaces, have a strong radar for when something is being forced. Transparency and sincerity tend to travel farther than polish alone.
Storytelling matters because products don’t exist in a vacuum. People connect to why something was made, not just what it is. When you share the intention, the process, or even the imperfections behind the work, you give customers something to participate in, not just purchase.
I’m also a big believer in creativity over clicks. You don’t need to be everywhere at once. Earned credibility is built through coherence.
And finally, community does more for a brand than any campaign ever could. The most powerful advocacy I’ve seen has come from clients, collaborators, and partners who felt genuinely included along the way. Word of mouth isn’t old-fashioned… it’s just genuine.
Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?
Hayley: I’ve learned that strong leadership is less about having all the answers and more about paying attention. Empathy, in particular, has proven far more practical than people give it credit for. When you understand what motivates your team and what they’re navigating, you create space for better work and better ideas.
Clarity has also been essential. Teams do their best work when the goal is clear, and they understand how their role fits into the larger picture. Ambiguity tends to slow things down far more than a lack of talent.
Adaptability is another lesson I’ve learned in real time. Creative industries shift quickly, and leadership often means holding a point of view while staying flexible enough to adjust when conditions change.
For anyone looking to grow as a leader, I’ve found that progress usually comes from staying curious, asking for honest feedback, and building environments where creativity is supported, but responsibility is shared. Leadership isn’t static; it evolves as you do.
Lastly, acknowledge people’s hard work. Always.
Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams?
Hayley: One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned about building teams is that mindset matters just as much as skill. Technical abilities can be taught, but values, curiosity, work ethic, and how someone shows up in a group are harder to manufacture later.
Clear communication has also been essential. Teams tend to work best when expectations aren’t a guessing game and when feedback can move in both directions. Some of the greatest improvements I’ve seen have come from simply creating more room for dialogue.
I’ve also learned the importance of giving people real ownership. Teams do their best work when they feel trusted (not micromanaged) and when they understand that their perspective genuinely matters.
And finally, culture tends to follow behavior. The tone you set, the way you listen, and how you handle pressure often speak louder than any formal policy. Teams pay attention to what you do, not just what you say.
Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?
Hayley: One thing I’ve come to appreciate is that character tends to outlast any single win. Brands, titles, and visibility can shift quickly, but how you operate and how people experience working with you have a much longer memory.
I’ve also learned the value of asking the uncomfortable questions early. Whether it’s contracts, partnerships, or big decisions, clarity at the beginning usually saves far more time and energy later on. Avoidance almost always costs more than curiosity.
And finally, it helps to define success for yourself before letting external metrics do it for you. Visibility is fleeting; purpose is steadier. The work that endures is usually the work anchored to something more internal than applause.
Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?
Hayley: Someone once told me that attention is temporary, but integrity is cumulative. That advice has stayed with me through every chapter of my career.
Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?
Hayley: If there is one message I hope people take away from my story, it’s that reinvention is not failure. Sometimes life forces you into chapters you would never choose, but those chapters often reveal your strongest voice… and teach you a little something more about yourself.
