Facebook launched my startup

Wendy Gavinski, an avid snowmobiler, came up with the idea for Divas SnowGear out of sheer frustration.

"This is still a very male dominated sport," she said. " I just couldn't find attractive, flattering clothing for women who also enjoyed the sport."

So in 2010, the Madison, Wis., native started her own line of clothing for female snowmobilers with $30,000 of her own money. She turned exclusively to Facebook (FB) to market her company and sell to customers.

"It was the only way I could reach my target customers," she said. "If I put an ad in an industry magazine, or a banner ad in a forum, the readership for both are men."

The company's Facebook page launched in 2010. Today the startup is profitable and has over 43,000 likes. They use the site for targeted regional advertising, specifically aimed at women from 20 to 50 years old.

Gavinski said they also use Facebook to drive traffic to the more than 500 local stores that sell their products.