America is quickly fading away. I remember the days where people worked hard to make a living. When the day was settling down, you could look out as the sun set and know that today was a good day. Now we hand out free things left and right while also living way above our means. I know we can’t go backwards but I hope that we hold onto the old days of where everyone worked hard for what they had for as long as we can. That’s my HOPE.  -Becky Pierce 
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America is quickly fading away. I remember the days where people worked hard to make a living. When the day was settling down, you could look out as the sun set and know that today was a good day. Now we hand out free things left and right while also living way above our means. I know we can’t go backwards but I hope that we hold onto the old days of where everyone worked hard for what they had for as long as we can.

That’s my HOPE. 

-Becky Pierce 

While working for another company selling in home air purifiers, I wanted to participate in a craft show with my purifiers, because the show drew large crowds. The craft show didn’t allow industrial products but told me to find another “unique craft-type product” to sell on the front table of my booth and then I could sell my air purifiers from the back table. I met a man in San Diego who introduced me to a glass nail file, but his price was too high and I couldn’t afford to buy from him. Plus, I knew that crystal was stronger than glass so I googled crystal factories to see if I could get the files made up in crystal. I found a family owned crystal factory in Europe that was just starting to make the nail files out of crystal and I literally spent my townhome rent money to manufacture my first run of crystal nail files to sell in the arts & crafts fair in Montrose, CA. My Landlord called me during the weekend of the show asking for my rent money!! All I cared about initially that weekend was to make my rent money back, $1800 and then I would worry about making profits after that. It turned out that in 2 days I sold over $7000!! (And I didn’t even have time to sell any air purifiers.) In the weeks that followed people were calling me ordered a dozen of more files because “everyone in the office wants one”, or “I love this thing so much I want to get them for Christmas presents.” I frequently visited a UPS store to ship air purifiers, which I was selling as my full time job at the time. The UPS store also had a gift shop. I asked them if they would like to sell the nail files on the counter and they did. I then visited the owner of a female clothing store whom had purchased an air purifier from me and asked if she would like to sell the files to her customers and she did as well. These were my very first two wholesale clients! Today I am one of the largest distributors of crystal nail files in the United States and I have retail customers in Greece, Hong Kong, France, Australia, Great Britain and more. I graduated from craft shows into Tradeshows to a thriving on-line store and large wholesale business. We created another category called Spa Girl on the Go where we sell top notch anti-aging and spa products for busy men and women and “spa treatment Do-It-Yourselfers”. We are expanding our on-line presence with a blog, banner ads, solo ads and webinars launching this fall. Our slogan is “Files for Smiles” we are making the world a happier place, one nail file and pumice file at a time. I Am A Mom and Pop - Colleen Lloyd-Roberts Top Notch Nail Files
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While working for another company selling in home air purifiers, I wanted to participate in a craft show with my purifiers, because the show drew large crowds. The craft show didn’t allow industrial products but told me to find another “unique craft-type product” to sell on the front table of my booth and then I could sell my air purifiers from the back table.

I met a man in San Diego who introduced me to a glass nail file, but his price was too high and I couldn’t afford to buy from him. Plus, I knew that crystal was stronger than glass so I googled crystal factories to see if I could get the files made up in crystal. I found a family owned crystal factory in Europe that was just starting to make the nail files out of crystal and I literally spent my townhome rent money to manufacture my first run of crystal nail files to sell in the arts & crafts fair in Montrose, CA. My Landlord called me during the weekend of the show asking for my rent money!! All I cared about initially that weekend was to make my rent money back, $1800 and then I would worry about making profits after that. It turned out that in 2 days I sold over $7000!! (And I didn’t even have time to sell any air purifiers.)

In the weeks that followed people were calling me ordered a dozen of more files because “everyone in the office wants one”, or “I love this thing so much I want to get them for Christmas presents.”

I frequently visited a UPS store to ship air purifiers, which I was selling as my full time job at the time. The UPS store also had a gift shop. I asked them if they would like to sell the nail files on the counter and they did. I then visited the owner of a female clothing store whom had purchased an air purifier from me and asked if she would like to sell the files to her customers and she did as well. These were my very first two wholesale clients!

Today I am one of the largest distributors of crystal nail files in the United States and I have retail customers in Greece, Hong Kong, France, Australia, Great Britain and more. I graduated from craft shows into Tradeshows to a thriving on-line store and large wholesale business.

We created another category called Spa Girl on the Go where we sell top notch anti-aging and spa products for busy men and women and “spa treatment Do-It-Yourselfers”.

We are expanding our on-line presence with a blog, banner ads, solo ads and webinars launching this fall. Our slogan is “Files for Smiles” we are making the world a happier place, one nail file and pumice file at a time.

I Am A Mom and Pop

- Colleen Lloyd-Roberts

Top Notch Nail Files

I recently started my own photography business, Shutter Sweet Photography (LLC), but have been taking photos for years. I was a full time caregiver and mom for my daughter who had spinal muscular atrophy (SMA for short). She passed away from SMA type 1 last August at 21 months old, and I knew I would need something to pour my time into once she was gone. I was already pursuing photography on the side, but took the leap to make it full time at the beginning of 2012 once I was ready to get back to work. I named the company Shutter Sweet Photography because I always called my daughter my “sweet girl” and wanted to incorporate that into the name somehow. My goal is to capture sweet moments and memories that clients will cherish whether through portraits, weddings or events. There are a few other second shooters who joined the Shutter Sweet team and assist me when needed. We’re based in Atlanta, GA but travel all over to capture creative yet timeless photographs that will last a lifetime. We donate our time and talent to those in need and non-profit organizations and hope to make a difference through our “Photography Gives Back” program - where we donate 50% of all print proceeds to non-profit causes of the client’s choice. My website address for our journey with Skylar and SMA is SkylarMarieJones.com and my business website is ShutterSweetPhoto.com. I Am A Mom and Pop Ashley Jones
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I recently started my own photography business, Shutter Sweet Photography (LLC), but have been taking photos for years. I was a full time caregiver and mom for my daughter who had spinal muscular atrophy (SMA for short). She passed away from SMA type 1 last August at 21 months old, and I knew I would need something to pour my time into once she was gone. I was already pursuing photography on the side, but took the leap to make it full time at the beginning of 2012 once I was ready to get back to work.

I named the company Shutter Sweet Photography because I always called my daughter my “sweet girl” and wanted to incorporate that into the name somehow. My goal is to capture sweet moments and memories that clients will cherish whether through portraits, weddings or events. There are a few other second shooters who joined the Shutter Sweet team and assist me when needed. We’re based in Atlanta, GA but travel all over to capture creative yet timeless photographs that will last a lifetime. We donate our time and talent to those in need and non-profit organizations and hope to make a difference through our “Photography Gives Back” program - where we donate 50% of all print proceeds to non-profit causes of the client’s choice.

My website address for our journey with Skylar and SMA is SkylarMarieJones.com and my business website is ShutterSweetPhoto.com.

I Am A Mom and Pop

Ashley Jones