Colleen Lloyd-Roberts Nails It

Deborah Triplett

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“I never set out to have a nail file company,” says Colleen, the entrepreneur and visionary behind Top Notch Nail Files. “It was totally women’s intuition.” After spying glass nail files for sale, Colleen figured that crystal, being stronger than glass, would make the files even more durable. She promptly went home, came up with a design, located a crystal manufacturer, and spent her rent money on a stash of them. To promote her new business, Colleen bought a small booth space at an event, and in two days she’d sold $7,000 worth of nail files—enough to pay her rent and then some. Her files were a huge hit, but Colleen’s good business instincts were what put her on the map. “I always think you’ve got to reach for the stars,” she says. Her company has expanded to offer a variety of crystal files and other products, and Colleen credits her success to her willingness to take calculated risks. “You have to step out of your comfort zone,” she says.