Before 2003, when she took a leap of faith by starting what is now one of the Top 100 production companies in the world, Nancy Glass was the first woman to be solo host of a nationally syndicated news show and the first person in cable to be nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Daytime Talk Show Host.

But the former anchor of Inside Edition was also growing tired of being on the air.

“I was a single mother and didn’t want to travel anymore,” she said. “I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I loved to write and loved to produce.”

Despite knowing “nothing about business,” as she recalled, Glass launched the Glass Entertainment Group. More than 20 years later, the Bala Cynwyd-based multimedia production company employs 150 people and has produced 2,000 hours of programming for networks that include A&E, TLC, National Geographic, Animal Planet, HGTV, and CNN.

October is National Women’s Small Business Month, a time to celebrate women-owned businesses and their lasting impact on the economy. In 1972, there were just 400,000 women-owned businesses in the United States. Today, there are approximately 13 million, and they represent 42 percent of all U.S. businesses and generate $1.9 trillion worth of annual revenue.

For any entrepreneur, creating a new company can be a risky proposition. In Glass’s case, her financial partner, Firstrust Bank, has been there from the get-go and has provided her peace of mind behind the scenes as she’s led her business to the peak of its industry.

“Firstrust is a bank that I can actually have a conversation with, and I find that to be comforting,” she said. “They know me and exactly how I operate in this Wild Wild West industry I’m in. For a lot of people, it’s confusing to look at a company like mine. Most people don’t understand my business — in some instances, you’re the contractor, and in some, you’re the developer — but Firstrust took the time and effort to understand it.”

Glass, a visionary yet pragmatic leader, said she considers Firstrust a part of her team.

“We’re not a conventional company, and I started in this business with nothing — no equipment, no office,” she said. “I’m super conservative financially and ran things out of my dining room. I only got things as I needed them. When I wanted to buy an office building, I went to Firstrust for a loan. Later, when I wanted to buy the land next door for parking, they financed that, too.”

Last year, Glass Entertainment Group had a combined 20 different shows and podcasts in production. The company’s portfolio includes game shows like Let’s Make a Deal and Split Second; television series like Betrayal (Hulu), Botched Bariatrics (TLC), Parents Gone Wild (Lifetime) and Kill or Be Killed (Peacock); films like Bitconned (Netflix); and podcasts like Confronting: O.J. Simpson.

Glass acknowledged having to overcome challenges throughout her journey that are unique to women business owners.

“Men didn’t take me seriously at the beginning, but that’s OK because I never paid any attention to that,” she said. “I wasn’t politically connected or part of the old boys club, so I had to work harder than a lot of other people.”

And she did so in Philadelphia — not Los Angeles or New York City, where most of her competition is based.

“People always look askance because we’re in Philly,” said Glass. “I’d have people dismissively ask me, ‘What time is it where you are?’ We’re an outlier in so many different ways.”

She shared one of the keys to her success and how Glass Entertainment Group has been able to consistently deliver high-quality content and captivate audiences across multiple platforms.

“Stay open creatively, stay curious technologically, and grow exponentially,” said Glass. “I’m very lucky. I’m in a business that’s really hard, one that’s like a machine that eats its feeder. I wake up every day grateful for my team and what we’ve been able to achieve.”

Learn more about how Firstrust Bank is helping people and businesses achieve success in the very region it calls home.