Inside the unique challenges of military spouse entrepreneurs: 'Not everybody is going to understand this life'
Key takeaways
- When Cece Meadows started her cosmetics brand Prados Beauty from her daughter's nursery in 2019, she just wanted a job.
- Meadows and her four kids had been living for two years in West Point, New York, where her husband, an Army Major, taught at the U.S.
- Spouses of military members say they often turn to entrepreneurship to overcome the unique hurdles they face landing traditional employment.
When Cece Meadows started her cosmetics brand Prados Beauty from her daughter's nursery in 2019, she just wanted a job.
Meadows and her four kids had been living for two years in West Point, New York, where her husband, an Army Major, taught at the U.S. Military Academy. After taking time off for the birth of her daughter, Meadows — a former Bank of America vice president, makeup artist and model — says she was struck by what she felt was a lack of available jobs for military spouses.
Spouses of military members say they often turn to entrepreneurship to overcome the unique hurdles they face landing traditional employment. They become their family's primary caregiver when their spouses deploy, they have limited job opportunities on and around military bases, and military families frequently relocate — every 2.5 years, on average.