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Describing herself as a “serial entrepreneur” on The Real Housewives of Orange County Season 19, Gretchen Rossi has worn many hats over the years, including singer, songwriter, and realtor. Now, she’s opening up about her main gig of influencer and content creator —and the importance of always hustling.
“I have like six different businesses,” she shared on Episode 16. “That, hopefully, is going to be forever. Just going to be ‘mail money’ coming in.”
Gretchen took the opportunity to snap photos of herself for her social media as the ‘Wives visited a vibrant tulip field on the cast trip to Amsterdam in the Oct. 23 episode, and it sparked a conversation with Jennifer Pedranti about the money to be made from influencing. Gretchen didn’t hold back about the importance of her Instagram, telling Jen, “It’s a full-blown business for me. I know people like make fun of it or whatever—I don’t care. If you get really good at it, you can make a lot of money.”
Gretchen added in her confessional, “I think it’s important to be able to stand on your own two feet and not depend on a man.”
Details on Gretchen Rossi’s fashion and beauty influencer career
Gretchen credits her flair for fashion and design to her father, Scott Forward, who she described as a “hugely successful designer” who gave her “a passion for colors, textures and designs at at very early age,” according to her website.
Gretchen admitted to the Los Angeles Times back in 2010 that joining RHOC during Season 4 gave her a unique career opportunity.
“I really started to think about it, and it comes back to my entrepreneurial ways,” she told the outlet. “I did see it as a way to build a business. To build some credibility within different areas I always had interest in—the beauty and fashion world. I saw it as a great opportunity to implement those ideas out to the public on a large level.”
Gretchen took that chance by debuting her own Gretchen Christine Collection of handbags during New York Fashion Week 2009, according to her website. She followed it up with her Gretchen Christine Cosmetics line in 2010, and Gretchen Christine Swimwear in 2011.
Today, her career has morphed more into fashion and beauty influencing, and she partners on social media with fashion and clothing companies to show off their latest trends, including Avara, where Gretchen appeared in a collaboration for its Thanksgiving line.
With more than one million followers on Instagram, Gretchen posts some of her best and most glamorous looks while giving credit to the designers.
A look back at Gretchen Rossi’s real estate career
Fans will recall Gretchen had a history as a real estate agent when she first appeared on RHOC in 2008.
“I worked my butt off—when I say that, I literally mean I worked 80 hours a week,” she told the Los Angeles Times. “And I was really proud of the fact that I was so young, and doing really well for myself. I’ve never lost that entrepreneurial spirit.”
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Gretchen’s real estate career also introduced her to her fiancé and life partner, Slade Smiley.
“I knew him from the real estate business,” she told the publication. “He was in the title business. I was working for the top producing real estate agent at that time. He was one of the top title reps, so we worked together a lot because of that.”
Gretchen Rossi’s singing career showcased on RHOC
Gretchen also credits her time as a housewife in helping her with her music career, which included her first major single “Nothing Without You.” She penned it after her fiancé Jeff Beitzel, who appeared with her on RHOC, tragically died of cancer.
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Gretchen shared with the LA Times she’s had a passion for writing music since childhood. “I’ve written songs ever since I was a little girl. I love to write. I’m a writer. I have this whole book of songs that I’ve had my whole life. After Jeff passed away, it was definitely a form of how I expressed myself. And I started writing,” she said.
Gretchen even became noticed by Nicole Scherzinger from the Pussycat Dolls, and performed with the group in Las Vegas during RHOC Season 7. But as far as an extended music career, she told the LA Times back then, “I’m not looking to be a pop singer at my 32 years of age.”
Catch up on what the rest of the Season 19 RHOC cast does for a living.
