Lee’s Nails (Pur)Slay the Day

In May of her junior year, senior Elise Lee began her own Gel-X nail business that she manages through the Instagram handle @purslaynails. Her business grew rapidly and she attracted multiple clients in her first week. Even before starting the business, Lee had always enjoyed getting her nails done, but she felt that going to a nail salon could sometimes be too expensive, leading her to purchase a Gel-X kit online and teach herself how to do nails at home. Gel-X is a new type of nail treatment that provides the strength of gel and length of acrylics, without the damage to the natural nails underneath. She would practice doing Gel-X nails on herself first, then on her friends. When they saw Lee’s skills improve, her friends encouraged her to start a business. To begin, she needed to obtain the necessary tools; she purchased a nail drill, a nail lamp, nail polish, gels and charms for a total of around $140 to the total cost. After she acquired all the necessities, she advertised her work on social media. The appointments are scheduled through direct messaging on Instagram, and potential clients have to send available dates and pictures for reference. The flat rate for one set of nails is $50, which is immensely cheaper than some professional acrylic nail salons that charge up to $100 or more. 

 Lee booked six clients during her first week and quickly started to make a profit. Senior Samantha Steigh, one of Lee’s earliest clients, was deeply pleased with Lee’s work and low prices, which led her to set up a few more appointments.

          “The environment is unique,” Steigh said. “It is in her home where she provides snacks, plays music and makes the overall vibe good. I was very satisfied afterwards because she had done the exact design I wanted. She is nice and considerate, asking if doing certain things to your nails are okay before actually doing them. I have gone back multiple times after the first time because I was satisfied with her work and the prices were good.” 

Another client and a friend of Lee, senior Zaya Enkh-Amgalan, was also satisfied with the experience. Lee’s cleanliness and hygiene were especially impressive. 

        “I really liked her ideas,” Enkh said. “She knew how I wanted to get my nails done. She can do any designs on my nails, which is really impressive because I cannot do anything on my nails. Also, she is very clean with hygiene. She cuts the cuticles and cleans them before she paints them.”

         Lee admitted that it was difficult to balance the time she puts into the nail business with other aspects of her life. However, she was able to solve this as she improved her time management between appointments and extracurriculars. Another problem she faced was that when she increased the price of her services, many customers were confused. She had to explain that this was because she purchased new, more expensive tools.

The nail art business is not something Lee plans to do in the long term future. However,  she explained that she will not be going to an esthetician school since she does not see herself becoming a nail technician. Currently, she plans to continue this pursuit as a side job even after graduation. Lee truly enjoys running her shop and is especially thrilled by the joy of positive comments. 

“It feels great [to get good reviews],” Lee said. “A lot of the time, my customers [tell me I can] do whatever [I] want on the design and they just give me no boundaries, so I [get] creative freedom. It means a lot more when they like those sets [because] it is something that I put together instead of copying. It is really gratifying.”