Rozanovich worked in corporate America at the can't-get-much-bigger IBM. For 12 years, she worked in various cities for various parts of the company. She worked in Raleigh, N.C.; Boston; and Cincinnati and handled everything from accounting to finance to sales operations. Then her life changed on a vacation to Florence, Italy.

It wasn't a jaw-dropping piece or a high-fashion boutique that caused the change. Instead, it was the fact that she spent her entire vacation working. "That was the defining moment. I had spent so much time working and working on vacations, and I was like, 'I'm done!' " Rozanovich says.

So she turned her focus and energy to creating something of her own. "When we lived in Boston, I fell in love with a lot of the boutiques that were opening in the North End section of Boston at the time," Rozanovich says. And she and her husband decided that they would move back home to the Queen City where she would create a boutique of her own. 

Now, Trend Boutique just celebrated their one-year anniversary a little more than a month ago. But it took time, planning and effort to bring her dream to fruition.

A self-proclaimed "not very much of a risk taker," Rozanovich made sure that her plans included much more than the clothing lines she would carry and the Boston-inspired layout for the store. "One of the great things I learned working for a company like IBM is business plans, making plans two years out, three years out, four years out for anything," she says.

And having a plan is one of Rozanovich's top pieces of advice for risk takers. "When you take that risk of doing something you love, have a firm plan," she says. "And develop a business plan and stick to it." While it might be easy to stray away from that plan, Rozanovich instead recommends to keep the plan front-and-center and constantly re-evaluate the plan to adjust to your needs.

As for taking risks with your style, Rozanovich recommends starting small. "Take a risk with one piece. It doesn't have to be a whole outfit," she says. "Take a risk with one piece, and then slowly incorporate new things into your wardrobe."

PHOTO CREDITS

Photographer: Nikki Petty

Model: Stephanie Rozanovich 

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