The entrepreneur and author tells PEOPLE she’s “moving slow and enjoying it”
Credit: v_designer_makeup
NEED TO KNOW
- In a new interview with PEOPLE, author and entrepreneur Loren Ridinger says she’s dating nearly four years after the death of her husband J.R. Ridinger
- She credits J.R. with inspiring her entrepreneurial success and continues to honor his legacy by mentoring women
- Ridinger says she’s embracing the next chapter of her life: “I’m open to it all”
Author and entrepreneur Loren Ridinger says she is open to finding love again nearly four years after the death of her husband and business partner J.R. Ridinger.
“It was daunting for the moment I first started to think about it,” Ridinger, 57, tells PEOPLE. “I’ve never had a boyfriend outside my husband in my life.”
Ridinger, who was married to J.R. for nearly 26 years, says she initially struggled with the idea of dating after losing him. But earlier in 2026, something shifted.
“In January of this year, I thought it’ll be four years this year. And you can get lonely and there’s nothing wrong with meeting people,” she says. “And so I started to open up my heart and my mind.”
Since then, the Market America CEO says she has been on “some fun” and “nice” dates, but she’s intentionally keeping her romantic life private.
“I think I’m just gonna stay quiet to myself and for the first time not open it up to the world,” she says. “I’ve been really under the radar.”
Credit: Courtesy Loren Ridinger
That privacy is important to Ridinger as she navigates what it means to potentially fall in love again.
“It’s more about protecting that moment for us and what it feels like and if it’ll work or not work,” she explains. “I’m moving slow and I’m enjoying it.”
Ridinger says there is someone she has been getting to know, describing him as successful in his own right and saying the two are “kind of protecting” their connection for now.
“I think every time you kind of open up the space for a lot of noise, it gets messy,” she says. “No rush.”
“I am so looking forward to finding love again,” she adds. “I’m so looking forward to being in love again because I believe in love.”
For Ridinger — author of Scrambled or Sunny-Side Up? Living Your Best Life After Losing Your Greatest Love — finding a new relationship would never mean replacing J.R. His impact on her life remains central to how she approaches love, family and business.
Credit: v_designer_makeup
“I have a J.R. that will always exist and you could never ever change that or replace it,” she says.
Ridinger, who counts Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian as close friends, credits her late husband with helping her recognize her own potential as an entrepreneur and encouraging her to pursue success alongside him rather than from the sidelines.
“It was the most defining moment of my life to meet someone who cared less about his ego and more about a woman making it and succeeding,” she says. “He wanted me to do it with him.”
The couple built their business together from nothing, and Ridinger says J.R.’s belief in her continues to inspire her work mentoring other women.
“I told myself when J.R. passed away, I would spend the rest of my life helping people become the best version of themselves,” she says. “And that’s what I do today still.”
That mission dates back to Ridinger’s teenage years, when she once did a classmate’s makeup and watched the girl see herself differently for the first time.
“When she looked in the mirror at the end of the time I worked on her face, I remember that she said, ‘I can’t believe what I see,’ ” Ridinger recalls. “She actually saw her future.”
The moment taught Ridinger that a simple act of kindness can have a lasting impact.
“I made it a life mission of mine to make sure that women know that … they are more than enough,” she says.
Ridinger also carries that philosophy into her approach to business. Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs? Build a strong team, find people who excel where you don’t and don’t let ego get in the way.
“Looking for a solid team and looking for people who are strong where you’re weak is really important,” she says. “Don’t let your ego get in the way.”
And when it comes to her own busy life, Ridinger has one rule: “I do the hardest things first,” she says, explaining that she tackles her biggest responsibilities in the morning so she can spend the rest of the day with family and enjoy her time.
After losing J.R., Ridinger says she has gained an even greater appreciation for how precious that time is.
“I don’t take advantage of time,” she says. “I don’t let people abuse my time.”
Now, as she looks toward the future — including new business ventures, a possible second season of her Prime Video series The CEO Club and, perhaps, a new relationship — Ridinger is embracing what comes next.
“For the first time in my life, I’m open to it all,” she says.
Read the full article here
