Every entrepreneur starts with a dream. But what is it that allows some go-getters to build wildly successful businesses, while others simply stagnate? April Ryan, the founder of the multi-million dollar nail company Red Iguana, believes that ambition and action are the keys.
Ryan knew from a young age that she wanted big things for herself. She knew that she wanted to make her mark in the beauty industry. However, growing up in an impoverished household in a small town in southern Russia, the odds seemed stacked against her.
While the harsh realities of life may prevent most people from even attempting to go after their dreams, Ryan stayed true to her vision and used her ambition to propel her out of poverty. Today she runs an international nail empire that brought in $3 million dollars last year alone.
“My advice to anyone who dreams of building their own business is to stop thinking about it and just do it,” Ryan says. “No matter what it is, it’s not as hard as you think it is. But you have to take action now if you want to turn your dream into a reality.”
Planting the seeds of a dream
Growing up in a small town in southern Russia, Ryan had a very tough childhood. Her parents were working-class but struggled to put food on the table and clothes on their children’s backs. At school Ryan and her two older brothers were some of the poorest children in their classes.
“Winters were the worst because I only had one pair of ripped shoes to wear and my feet would always hurt,” says Ryan. “My mother used to sew my clothes or I would use my brother’s hand-me-downs. Even food at the market was too expensive for us, so we would grow our own vegetables when we could.”
Despite her unglamorous upbringing, or perhaps because of it, April dreamed of being in the beauty industry. She always had a creative streak, and she saw cosmetology as the perfect outlet for her artistry. The only problem was there was no cosmetology school in her town and even if there had been, she had no money to attend.
“I knew that if I wanted to get into the beauty industry I would have to teach myself,” she says. “As a teenager, makeup was too expensive for me. Nail polish was cheaper, so I started creating with that. My classmates were impressed and that inspired me to be a nail artist. Unfortunately, there were no opportunities for me to gain professional knowledge or a proper license.”
Ryan’s luck changed when an independent educator from a vocational school came to her town offering a nail technician course and a job afterward for the student with the best marks. Determined to make her dream a reality, Ryan graduated at the top of her class and was awarded a position in a local salon.
Never settle for less
With her foot in the door of the world of aesthetics, Ryan hoped to expand her knowledge and skills. However, she grew frustrated with what the salon was offering. “There was no ongoing training and the owners never brought in professionals to educate us,” she says. “Most things I learned were self-taught, so after six months I decided to leave and work independently.”
Ryan quickly became the most popular nail technician in her town. For most entrepreneurs, that might be the pinnacle, but Ryan saw her success as another stepping stone to propel her vision further. With her earnings, she moved to the biggest city in southern Russia and opened her own nail salon, which she named Red Iguana.
Working 12 hours a day, seven days a week, Ryan built Red Iguana into a chain of three nail salons. Business boomed and the money rolled in, but with the success came problems.
“Russia is not an easy place to do business,” she says. “There is a lot of jealousy and corruption. It can be dangerous because you never know if someone is going to burn your car or break your windows. I was so stressed every day. I look at pictures of myself from that time and I look older than I do now.”
At the risk of succumbing to mounting pressures, Ryan thought about how she could pivot. She knew she didn’t want to give up, but also that there was not much more she could do in Russia. If she wanted something bigger for herself, she would have to take on an even bigger challenge. In 2014, she made the move to the United States to follow her version of the American dream.
Always move forward
When Ryan arrived in America, she was determined to make it work against all odds. She threw herself into English language classes and scored a job at a well-known Beverly Hills nail salon. In her spare time, she created nail art tutorials on Instagram. The tutorials exploded in popularity because she used professional nail products that are not mass market. Brands began hiring her to make videos for their products and do professional expos as an educator.
“At one point, I was making up to five videos a day,” she says. “I was using my own hand as a model, but the problem was I was also using UV lights and that was starting to damage my skin. I knew I couldn’t keep doing it, but I also knew that the plastic hands nail technicians use weren’t realistic enough. That’s when I got the idea to create my own models based on my own hands.”
It took months of research, development, and learning the ins and outs of prosthetics before Ryan had a finished product that she was proud of. The result was a silicone hand that was
lifelike down to every detail, including wrinkles and scars. The day she launched it on social media, she had a flood of sales requests.
Red Iguana is now the world’s largest distributor of silicone nail art hands with 24 different models in a range of skin tones and sizes. The company also distributes high-end nail products including eco-friendly gels developed in Europe, polishes, technician tools, and accessories. Never one to rest on her laurels, Ryan has big plans for the future of the business including new product lines, new markets, and a goal of reaching over $5 million in sales.
Ryan believes that anyone can do what she did provided they take steps to overcome their fears and act on their ambition. “I remember that I was scared every step that I took because I didn’t know what I was doing. But now I realize that things are easier than they look. You can always educate yourself and find information on how to do anything.”
Even with an abundance of ambition, many entrepreneurs find breaking into their chosen fields daunting. To them, Ryan says, “Don’t stress too much if you’re not the first or the best to do something. There’s always a place in the market and you’ll always have your piece of cake. Just keep going and never give up.”