Jenna Libman

Jenna Libman's genuine nature powers her business. What started as a hobby, the University of North Georgia (UNG) student has turned into a successful enterprise.

Libman started Driven to Style, her Instagram-based, secondhand clothing business, in 2015 while in high school. She also sells the gently used and new clothing on Poshmark, eBay, Mercari, and Instagram. Libman, who is pursuing a marketing degree with a digital marketing concentration and is scheduled to graduate in spring 2020, collects her inventory through shopping at thrift stores and secondhand shops.

She said the secret to her business acumen is simple.

"People can relate to me. I'm a real person," Libman said. "I wouldn't sell something I'm not comfortable wearing."

Libman earned the UNG Student Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award in October 2019 as part of UNG's Women Entrepreneurship Week.

She hopes to work in digital marketing for fashion upon graduation.

"I'd like to grow my business while doing that simultaneously," Libman said. "UNG set me up with the digital marketing skills and techniques needed to be successful in the real world."

Mariangela Vecchiarini-Piazza, assistant professor in the Mike Cottrell College of Business, has taught Libman classes as part of the student's entrepreneurship minor.

"Jenna is motivated to succeed. She has the right mindset and puts enthusiasm in everything she does," Vecchiarini-Piazza said. "Being in school and running a business at the same time can be challenging, but Jenna is very driven and organized and was able to excel in both things."

Libman said she has always loved the psychology of business marketing. The entrepreneurship minor was especially helpful as one of her classes required a 10-minute pitch about her business.

"When she was in my entrepreneurship class, I had a chance to appreciate her creativity, but also her work ethic and the great energy she brought into her team," Vecchiarini-Piazza said. "I think that by taking our entrepreneurship classes she further explored her strengths and became more aware of her entrepreneurial potential thanks to the practical and experiential approach characterizing our program."

Libman has also grown her leadership as social media chair for Delta Zeta, her sorority. From her fellow business students, she has learned to be more outgoing. She said her determination has served her well as an entrepreneur and a student.

"I'm willing to fight for how I believe something should be done," Libman said.