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True Colors
Fashionista launches new
line of nail polish.
RYAN FISHMAN I SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
A
Alix Craig
38
May 23 • 2013
JN
lix Kay Craig has
always had a passion
for fashion. Now the
27-year-old Orchard
Lake native is taking her love
of all things couture to the next
level, launching a nail polish line
that's both reasonably priced and
environmentally friendly.
"AKayStyle is about empowering
women, teaching them to identify
themselves and creating a luxury
product that's affordable," said
Craig, who lives in Birmingham
with her husband and business
partner Steve, 29.
After high school, Craig moved
to California to follow her dream of
working in the industry and studied
at the Fashion Institute of Design
and Merchandising in Los Angeles.
She and her husband moved back
to Michigan in 2009, having always
planned to return home to leave
her own mark on the Metropolitan
Detroit fashion scene.
"Steve and I loved growing up
in a vibrant Jewish community, and
we feel connected to the icons that
came before us," Craig said. "We
each have family history in and
around this business in Detroit —
Steve's grandfather owned Schiller
Millinery, and my family had a
jewelry store in the city for years.
"Coming home, I wanted to
bring a touch of the Hollywood
style I always loved back with me,
and I wanted to revitalize this city's
fashion heritage. I was looking for
some way to share what I learned
living around the California fashion
scene with the place I call home,
and while I thought of opening a
store, or launching a clothing line,
in a struggling economy it just
didn't make sense," she added.
While waiting for the right
opportunity, Craig worked in retail,
learning more about the business.
"I would come home every night
and read magazines or look at
pictures of runway shows, and tell
Steve all about what I saw, but
because he wasn't so interested
in women's fashion, he suggested
I start blogging and sharing my
passion with others," Craig said.
What started as a hobby quickly
turned into a serious project, with
tens of thousands of readers all
over the world, from Paris to Dubai.
"I didn't realize how many
people would read my blog and
be interested in my opinions, and
I really fell in love with having a
voice," Craig said. "What I wanted
to do with the project was collect
looks from all over the country and
world and show women locally
how they could get those runway
looks, and that's how I came up
with the idea for the nail polish
line."
Today on her website, www.
akaystyle.com , Craig pairs high-
fashion looks with the various
colors of her nail polish line, a
product she proudly manufactures
domestically and assembles in
Michigan.
"The polish is high end, but
affordable. It fits anybody, it's
vegan and healthy, and it's an easy
application. Just like the blog, it's
fashion at your fingertips, or at
least on them," Craig quipped.
Since launching AKayStyle, Craig
has been featured on Fox News
and in StyleLine magazine, and
placed the polish in half a dozen
local boutiques across Bloomfield
Hills, Birmingham, West Bloomfield
and Rochester. The line is also in
Southern California and Miami.
"Our first in-store placement
was at Luigi Bruni Salon in
Birmingham, and they've been
incredibly supportive. We love our
local partners, and it's a Michigan
business, so it's important to us
that the product is available across
Metropolitan Detroit," Craig said.
The polish is also available on
her website, with bottles selling for
just $12.
"The polish is relatively
inexpensive for premium brands,
which usually run from $14 to $30.
We chose not to overcharge so the
product could be affordable and be
in line with our brand's theme —
making high-end fashion available
to anyone." ❑