Briogeo: Nancy Twine

In 2010, a tragic personal event changed the trajectory of Nancy Twine's life. Suddenly, her promising job on the trading floor at Goldman Sachs no longer seemed fulfilling; she wanted something more. Drawing inspiration from the homemade hair treatments she used to make with her mom, Nancy decided to create a line of shampoos and conditioners that catered to all textures of hair without using harmful additives. But as an African American entrepreneur pitching beauty products to white, male investors, she had a tough time raising money. Finally in 2013, with an investment of $100K, Nancy launched Briogeo, eventually landed it in Sephora, and—even in the midst of an economic crisis—is expecting it to do $40M in sales this year.