She Was Rejected On Shark Tank. Then She Used That To Her Advantage.

Two things led Melissa Butler to become an entrepreneur: She hated her Wall Street job; and as a Black woman, she couldn’t find lipstick that complemented her skin tone. “Growing up, I never saw people who looked like me and were considered beautiful,” she says. “As I got older, I started understanding how the industry perpetuates this B.S., linear idea, cruelty-free lipsticks in bold shades like purple and green. She had no idea what she was doing -- but naivete served her well, forcing her to take when she had no other option. Today, thanks to relentless hard work (and a little bit of stalking),  is an eight-year-old brand with $2 million in funding and shelf space at Target. Here’s how she built it.