It was after one really bad experience hobbling home barefoot after a night out in heels, when I asked myself, ÔÇÿWhy do women always sacrifice comfort for style?' says Hailey Coleman, 24, of how she came up with the idea for her business, Damn Heels. We wear heels because it makes us feel sexy and confident, but once our feet start to hurt, we feel less than fabulous.It wasn't long after this experience that this Ryerson business management grad came up with the idea of creating foldable flats inspired by high-heel designs (think something like ballerina shoes, guys) that you can carry around in a purse while on a night out. Once the heels become too much of a pain, you would simply kick off the heels, slip on the flats, and carry the heels in the Damn Heels' tote bag.  I started talking to everybody about this idea, says Coleman. And I really mean everybody. I did an exchange in France, and I even remember sitting at a caf├® with some Americans telling them about this idea. And for me it really got to the point where I was like, ÔÇÿMan, I've been talking about this so much, if I don't do something about this, it's going to be one of those cases [of] what if when I'm older.' And the second push was that there was a competitor that came on the market'that was the first to really enter this product category. So I thought to myself, the wave has started, if I want to catch it, I really need to start it now. So those two things propelled me to actually start.With that decision, Coleman threw herself into her idea. She developed a detailed business plan which she entered into the Slaight Communications Business Plan Competition (BPC), run in partnership with the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) and Start Me Up Ryerson. On March 31, 2009, Coleman was awarded the top prize, a $25,000 grant for her company that launched in December of that year (coincidentally, Damn Heels launched the same day Coleman wrote her last university exam).Today, what started out as simple ballerina slippers has evolved into beautiful flats that you can wear every day. Coleman says that things are moving along well: outside of charitable events and celebrity functions that Damn Heels sponsors, new styles are being added to the Damn Heels' line, and more stores are carrying the product as well. Really, Damn Heels are perfect for anyone who's looking for something that's flattering and feminine on the foot, with the comfort of a flat, says Coleman.But no new business launches without a glitch or two. Really, it was a fast learning curve, Coleman admits. The biggest mistake that always comes to mind was when I got my very first shipment of flats. I misquoted the weight of my shipment [and I ended up having] ten boxes air freighted in, which was fine if it wasn't for a bill for $10,000, Coleman says, with rueful laugh. So yeah, that one hurt a lot. But it was all part of the learning.When asked if she had any advice for budding young entrepreneurs, Coleman says, I would say just go for it. When I first started I thought, I don't have a family that I need to support, and the money that I'm putting into this I always thought of as money that I would be putting into an MBA, so the debt that I was coming out with wasn't astronomical for my age. Also, I learned the importance of starting with, ÔÇÿwhy.' Why you do what you do? I think asking that question, and asking it regularly, helps give you more vision and more direction for what you're doing. For example, my ÔÇÿwhy,' my whole purpose with Damn Heels is to inspire women to look and feel fabulous, so that they can lead happier, more confident lives. That's really guided the whole direction for the company.