Hello and welcome to Work in Progress (WIP) – Work in development – with me, Ilana Lipzstein, for the newspaper The Brasilians!
I am happy to be here and bring you tips and news about women entrepreneurs.
In pandemic times, people had to adapt and use creativity to face unusual problems.
As a woman, and also an immigrant, I know the importance of resilience, hard work, and persistence. We have to be strong, creative, and capable of multitasking under pressure. It’s in our genes.
Yes, we go to meetings with grocery lists in our bags, and we have special codes with our children to answer the phone, regardless of the moment, if it’s an emergency. We are practically always prepared for disasters every day, while ensuring our children are happy and well-fed. It has never been easy to be a woman, and 
today it is even harder.
During quarantine, I started a new Blog and Consulting service to help women discover their talents and find new opportunities regardless of everything that is happening around us.
On my journey, I found wonderful entrepreneurs and great business ideas.
In my column Ilana Wip, I will share stories that will certainly encourage and inspire you to find new paths, talents, or hidden passions under the pressure of everyday life.
To start, today I will present a story about a successful entrepreneur. I am sure her journey will inspire you to also discover your own talents and understand that you are also a Work in Progress (WIP).
Eight years ago, Brazilian Gislene Luz opened her company, A Sweet Garden Creations, in New York, launching herself into the party market as a Dessert Stylist. If you are not familiar with the term, Dessert Stylist means being a Fashion Designer of sweets. With a lot of creativity and artistic talent, Gislene transformed traditional dessert sweets into party attractions, decorating her tables with cascades of sweets and edible gardens 
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Creating decorations for all tastes and budgets, Gislene quickly achieved success, working side by side with some of the biggest party decorators in New York, such as Diana Gould and David Beahm, and decorating dessert tables at the most famous event venues in New York, such as the Plaza Hotel, the Manhattan Club, and 583 Park Avenue.
With the pandemic, in-person events were unexpectedly canceled, leaving many professionals and artists like her unemployed. With two young children and many bills to pay, Gislene needed to reinvent herself and adapt to the “new normal,” and all the insecurities that came with the pandemic.
That’s when fear turned into challenge and Gislene created her own online business, offering suggestions and consulting for home party decorations. “We live on memories, even when we are going through difficult times it is important to celebrate to create good memories,” she concludes.
The new venture generated a rapid increase in followers on the company’s social media, and on Instagram alone, A Sweet Garden Creations gained 12,000 new followers.
Another change was the reduction in the size of dessert tables, which previously served over 200 guests, to cater to smaller events of up to 30 people. “This is the new normal,” she says, believing that small events are here to stay.
To survive the crisis, Gislene emphasized the importance of learning new online skills, as well as researching new market trends and opportunities. “When one door closes, we need to pay attention to the new ones that may open,” she states optimistically.
Ilana_Wip is about strong and courageous women like Gislene, and everything they can share with us, as we all try to be our best version.
Ilana Lipsztein, the voice behind Ilana_Wip, recently joined forces with Simone Goldstein (EntendeuMidia.com), a Marketing and Social Media Expert, bringing even more efficiency to Ilana_Wip in achieving its goals.
It’s never too late to start, and it’s also never too early to change. Follow @Ilana_Wip on her journey, as she is also an eternal WIP: Work in Progress. Follow @Ilana_Wip on Instagram and Facebook, and also on her lifestyle Blog, www.ilanawip.com.
ILANA LIPSZTEIN
Journalist & Entrepreneur
ilevents2@aol.com
Instagram: @ilana_wip