Sahar Yona, 27, sleeps every night next to two phones and a laptop with the volume turned up to maximum so she can always hear calls from potential clients.
Jonah is a New York City-based residential and commercial locksmith who is available 24 hours a day because, as a self-employed owner, “every job matters.” She wants to make money and grow her clientele as quickly as possible with Locksmith Girl of NYC, which she launched under its current name in July 2025, she says.
She has momentum. In January, when business was slow, a video she posted on TikTok telling women in New York to call a male locksmith to pick their doors at night if they felt unsafe has been viewed more than 600,000 times. Since then, she says, she’s been getting more work than ever from both men and women, up to 60 jobs a week. She says her busiest day so far this summer involved working from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. the next morning.
Jonah is not an online influencer. As of Friday afternoon, she only had nine videos on her account. But her message clearly resonated. Jonah declined to reveal his personal income, noting that prices vary depending on the difficulty of each job, but said he now earns more as a business owner than he did previously working as a subcontractor for a large locksmith company. According to job site Indeed, the average annual salary for a locksmith in New York is $76,745.
Jonah, a female locksmith, is not alone. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women make up less than 1% of the nation’s more than 5 million installation, maintenance and repair workers. But more women than ever are becoming locksmiths, according to anecdotal information provided by a spokesperson for the ALOA Security Professionals Association, a locksmith trade group.
Jennifer Richards, a fourth-generation locksmith who has run her family’s locksmith business in Hickory, North Carolina, for the past 31 years, said she feels locksmithing is a tailor-made career for “mechanically inclined” women who want to own their own business. All six employees, including her sister-in-law and niece, are related to her.
“Female locksmiths think things through and have a more gentle approach,” says ALOA member and instructor Richards, who notes that more women have taken her classes in the past three years. “The lighter operation is actually an advantage…you can feel the movement (of the pin in the lock) much easier.”
$7,000 and a “go-getter” personality
Richards said the majority of locksmiths work alone. Equipment like locks, drills and key-cutting machines are expensive, she says, but it’s a relatively easy blue-collar business to start, given that it often only requires a van rather than a storefront or a team of employees.
Jonah spent $7,000 purchasing an initial set of tools, she said. Her entry into the industry was somewhat by chance. In 2021, she successfully interviewed for a receptionist position at a locksmith office. Yona’s interviewer suggested that she get a locksmith’s license because she had the temperament to work in the field, Yona said.
“I had never held a screwdriver in my life,” she says. But she says she has a strong “go-getter” personality and decided that becoming a female locksmith would give her an edge in a male-dominated industry. She spent two years training, applying for licenses and purchasing tools, she says. After that, he gained experience working at a subcontracting company in the city.
Jonah in New York.
sahar yonah
As a subcontractor, she says, her work hours and income were relatively stable and predictable throughout the year. But she said her co-workers were all male and she experienced misogyny from customers, co-workers and superiors.
She decided to become her own boss in November 2024. People who find Jonah on TikTok know that she works alone and is generally patient, she says. In general, she says she maintains the same strict boundaries with her clients that she learned as a subcontractor. Before accepting the job, you will need to see a photo or video of the lock and speak with a representative over the phone.
Still, she says she feels guilty if it takes an hour to relax in a bathhouse, play pool at a local bar, or walk her dog, a German shepherd/Rottweiler mix, in Central Park. “The scary thing is that I can’t leave the car too much. It’s my legs,” she said, adding, “I should be able to cope.”
When Jonah gets a call while out to dinner with a friend, the friend often jumps in Jonah’s car and goes to work with her, she said. Those moments are becoming rare, she says. She added that she’s always thinking about work and feels a little paranoid, and in between jobs, she’s started looking for a brick-and-mortar store for Locksmith Girl in New York.
In other free time, Jonah practices lockpicking. “I like the rebelliousness” of the job, which involves legally entering places that are meant to keep people off limits, she said.
Correction: This article has been updated to clarify the inaccurate characterization of Sahar Yona’s job status when she interviewed for a position at a locksmith’s office in 2021. At the time, she was unemployed.
Do you want to get ahead at work? Next, you need to learn how to make effective small talk. In CNBC’s new online course, “How to Talk to People at Work,” expert instructors share practical strategies for using everyday conversations to increase visibility, build meaningful relationships, and accelerate career growth. Sign up now!
