Melissa Butler was born right here in Detroit, Michigan and attended Cass Technical High School. Butler went on to further her education at Florida A&M University, graduating with a bachelor’s in business finance.  She worked as a stockbroker on Wall Street and claimed that her passion for beauty was, “natural.”  Butler felt that the beauty world was full of impure ingredients and not inclusive enough, therefore leaving people to go on a journey just to find the right fit for products. In her Brooklyn apartment, Butler began to formulate her lipsticks, while ensuring they were vegan and vibrant. Butler made 27,000 dollars in sales from her lipsticks in just one year and made the big decision to come back to Detroit two years later. The Lip Bar became Butler’s official full-time job and later made 100,000 dollars in revenue from her lipsticks. In the year 2015, she went onto the well-known tv show, Shark Tank in hopes of receiving a deal. Unfortunately, it was unsuccessful but that did not stop Butler from continuing to create something of her business. Butler took the criticisms of the sharks and put herself out there in order to gain recognition for her growing cosmetic company. Luckily, Target recognized The Lip Bar in 2018 and put the colorful lipsticks on the shelves across the country. Since then, The Lip Bar has opened their own flagship store in the heart of downtown Detroit and has made a connection with putting The Lip Bar in over 3000 CVS stores nationwide. Butler has also been highlighted in the INC magazine as top entrepreneur in the year 2020.