Meet Teressa Fiderio

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Teressa Fiderio. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Teressa, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

Growing up I was a ballet dancer. I started dancing when I was 4 years old. Ballet taught me discipline, focus, and adaptability and played a huge role in developing my confidence and self-esteem. As a child, I was incredibly shy, and dance helped me have a safe space to express myself. Ballet taught me body awareness and helped me develop a positive relationship with my body. It takes confidence and internal fortitude to push through the self-doubt and hold back against the internal monologue of feeling like you’re not enough. With discipline and practice, I learned to how to have a healthy mindset and realized my self-worth came from within.
While dance gave me a good foundation for high self-esteem and confidence it wasn’t until as an adult, I experienced a personal setback that I really became even more confident.

In 2013, I went through a very difficult divorce. At the time I felt like I lost everything. The life that I had planned for myself was drastically changed. My dad said to me, “Sometimes the worst day of your life becomes the best day of your life”, but in that moment I brushed him off. The thought of rebuilding from the ground up can be overwhelming and scary, but you take it day by day, piece by piece until it starts to resemble a life you want to live and are proud of. And it is a life you created for yourself by yourself. That alone is so powerful.
As a result of my divorce, I learned how to be an incredibly self-reliant, independent, and capable woman. The skills, like adaptability, that I learned at a young age have helped me thrive. This experience has increased my confidence and self-esteem tenfold. Today I am grateful for the challenge my divorce presented me because without it, I would not be the confident woman I am today.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am a Cleveland, Ohio native who owns a photography and videography business, T Star Productions. I am also the founder of a line of non-toxic beauty products, Scarlett Grace Beauty

When I graduated from John Carroll University with a degree in Communications, I knew I wanted a career that brought joy to people’s lives and have a positive impact on others. Shortly after college, I worked at a local news station as a production assistant and saw firsthand how much negativity there was in the world. As someone who has always felt most comfortable in the creative world, I realized I needed to change directions. In 2005, I started T Star Productions. We began as a wedding and event videography company. Weddings are one of the most joyous days in a person’s life and it’s an honor for me to capture that day so they can hold onto it forever. Now, almost 20 years later, and after navigating a ton of obstacles and challenges that come with owning a small business I am proud to say T Star Productions has grown from offering strictly wedding videography to now providing corporate and commercial media, wedding videography, and photography. In 2017, we expanded into photography including high school seniors, dancers, families, maternity, newborns, milestone moments, and of course, weddings. Being adaptable, disciplined, and focused has helped me build a business I am proud of.

In addition to owning T Star Productions, I also own a line of 10 free, vegan, cruelty-free nail polish, Scarlett Grace Beauty. The Scarlett Grace brand began in 2020 and was inspired by two beautiful nieces, Adrianna Scarlett and Grace Gianna. I have always been conscious of the environmental toxins we are exposed to, especially in beauty products, but it wasn’t until I had nieces that I really began to examine all the chemicals in nail polish. Chemicals like Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP, Camphor, etc most of which are known endocrine inhibitors and nervous system disregulators. At that point, I became committed to developing and producing a nail polish that is free of the 10 major chemicals found in most commercial nail polishes. I created a product I am comfortable with my nieces and others using. Scarlett Grace nail polish comes in over 50 unique shades from your classic creams, to shimmers, beautiful glitters, and incredible shifty duo chromes. Scarlett Grace nail polish is not only made of quality non-toxic ingredients but they are long-lasting, durable, and absolutely gorgeous! Not to mention so fun to create!!

Every day I am blessed to wake up to careers that I absolutely love!

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Adaptability
Tenacity
The ability to dream

My advice to anyone starting out on their journey is to never ever give up. When you face challenges and obstacles and feel like there is no way around them, take a deep breath, step back and try to find a new angle. just don’t quit. You can take that minute and have that pity party, but know you will get right back up stronger and more determined than ever. There will always be 1,000 nos, but you have to look for that 1 yes and I promise, it will give you the courage and strength to keep going. Develop the confidence to say “I can do anything I set my mind to” and you will.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

The most impactful thing my parents did for me was believe in me. Simple as that. I was a dreamer, a little flighty, and lost in my imagination as a child and when I came up with new things I wanted to try my parents didn’t discourage me. They believed in me.
When I graduated college and said to my parents “I’m going to start a production company” They said “Ok how can we help? When I told them I was going to develop and make nail polish, “They said that’s awesome how can we help”
My dad is a business owner who has taught me so much about owning a business and he continues to believe in my abilities and encourage my ideas. My mom is a phenomenal artist. She fostered my creativity and helped me thrive as a creative person. She is always available to help critique work, offer artistic suggestions, and discuss the craziest subjects. Because of her, I don’t look at the sky and see the color blue. I see every color of the rainbow and appreciate the beauty.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tstarvideoproductions.com. https://www.scarlettgracebeauty.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/t_starproductions. https://www.instagram.com/scarlettgracebeauty/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TStarVideoProductions
• Other: https://www.facebook.com/ScarlettGraceBeauty
  https://www.instagram.com/scarlettgracebeauty/
  https://www.scarlettgracebeauty.com/

Image Credits

T Star Productions