Jul 27, 2026
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Add us on Google27-year-old Sahar Yona has an interesting business strategy: she sleeps beside multiple phones and keeps her laptop volume turned up so she never misses a potential customer.
For Yona, every call could mean another job, and another step toward building the locksmith business she launched from scratch.
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The New York City entrepreneur says her company, Locksmith Girl of NYC, went from a slow start to receiving as many as 60 jobs a week after a single TikTok video took off. The video encouraged women who felt uncomfortable calling a male locksmith late at night to consider her services, racking up more than 600,000 views.
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Yona told Moneywise, “Why not use my skills to help women feel safer and let them know I’m here if they need me.”
A $7,000 startup cost helped unlock a new career
Yona’s path into locksmithing was unexpected. In 2021, she applied for what she thought was a receptionist job at a locksmith company. Instead, the interviewer suggested she try working in the field.
“I’d never held a screwdriver in my life,” Yona said, but that didn’t stop the entrepreneur who had a “go-getter” mindset.
Over the next two years, she trained, worked toward her license and spent about $7,000 on the tools and equipment that she needed to start up and run her business and after working as a subcontractor, launched in November 2024.
For entrepreneurs looking for a lower-cost business opportunity, trades like locksmithing can offer a path to ownership without the massive startup costs often associated with launching a company.
Many locksmiths operate as solo business owners, traveling to customers instead of paying for a storefront or hiring employees, according to Jennifer Richards, a fourth-generation locksmith who runs a family locksmith business in North Carolina and teaches locksmithing courses through the ALOA Security Professionals Association.
The average locksmith salary is about $76,000 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, though experienced technicians and business owners can earn significantly more, and Yona says she saw that difference firsthand. Once she became her own boss, she told CNBC that she now earns more than she did working for other companies.
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The trade also offered her a way to stand out. Locksmithing is still a heavily male-dominated trade. Women make up only a small fraction of workers in installation, maintenance and repair occupations — about 8% nationally, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data — making female locksmiths rare.
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How entrepreneurs can turn attention into paying customers
Yona’s experience shows how entrepreneurs are finding new ways to turn their niche skills into profitable businesses, combining traditional trades with modern marketing strategies. Her biggest business breakthrough didn’t come from a billboard, a Google ad or a marketing agency; it came from social media.
When she posted a TikTok video highlighting her perspective as a female locksmith and why some customers may prefer working with a woman, the response was overwhelmingly positive.
Yona told Moneywise, “Before I blew up, I asked people how can I get more customers and women were saying you should market yourself towards women, I didn’t think about that, but why not?”
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Yona’s story is a powerful lesson in marketing: listening to your community can be helpful. Sometimes, the most effective strategy is sharing what makes your business different and connecting directly with the customers you want to reach, even if you don’t have a massive marketing budget.
Small business owners can use platforms like TikTok, Instagram and other social channels to showcase their expertise, answer common customer questions and share their personality. In Yona’s case, hearing positive feedback from her customers helped her figure out how she could market more effectively.
But attention alone doesn’t build a business. Entrepreneurs also need systems to handle increased demand, including clear pricing, reliable communication, scheduling processes and making sure they have boundaries to help prevent burnout.
Yona told CNBC that she still struggles with stepping away from work, worrying she could miss an opportunity if she’s not available.
But as she continues growing Locksmith Girl of NYC, she is focused on turning that momentum into a long-term business, telling Moneywise, “I’ve always been good with finances and saw an opportunity to fill a niche…I didn’t realize it was something that was so needed until many women expressed it to me.”
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Freelance writer with an economic development and consulting background.
