Magazine for the professional nail industry.
Issue link: http://nailsmag.epubxp.com/i/190368
Don't let busy professionals pass up the chance for a mani-pedi. Laka Manicure Express captures clients with its highly visible and convenient kiosks inside mall walkways. Manicube brings the manicure to ofces and eliminates client wait time by booking all appointments in advance and using quick-dry supplies. massage or a toenail polish change, while Employee of the Year still types away, takes a phone call, or fuels up with another coffee. "In a world where your groceries and drugstore items can be ordered on demand, you start to think about a vision of life 2.0 when services and chores are done on your own terms so they become convenient and achievable, freeing up that time for the things that really matter to you," says Katina Mountanos, who, along with Liz Whitman, founded Manicube (www.manicube.com) in New York City, a quickly growing venture that offers 15-minute manicures to clients in clients' own offices. To snag a time-strapped clientele, there are two emerging strategies. The first is the one Manicube employs — to bring the service to the client with minimal interruption to her day; the second is plop your salon smack in the middle of where the client is running her errands, rendering a quick nail fix a no-brainer. clean-up, a short massage, lotion, and polish. And the client is able to stay focused on her work during the service. "Our nail protocol allows a nail tech to work one hand at a time, so the customer has one hand free to browse magazines, play music, or check her e-mail," Mountanos says. The in-office manicure niche isn't limited to the United States. The Nail Spa, with seven bricksand-mortar locations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, launched "Deskside Revival Services" in September to a flurry of media attention. The spa offers a range of mobile offerings at different time and price points, with its most popular being the "Put Your Feet Up" package that includes a manipedi, a head/neck/shoulder massage, and a hand and foot treatment (such as reflexology). It's an hour and 30 minutes, and The Nail Spa charges 490 dirhams (~$133), which it says is a 30 dirham (~$8) premium of what that same service would cost in-salon. The Nail Spa's founder and owner Shabana Karim says it's not difficult to get permission from office managers to allow services in their spaces. "Good IT'S YOUR MOVE Founded in July 2010 with two clients, Manicube's mobile strategy has opened the doors of so many offices in New York City that it's expanding to Boston and San Francisco by March 2014. "We are lucky to have great word-of-mouth and press and that has actually meant that most clients reach out to us! This inbound pipeline means we do very little 'recruiting' and active sales," Whitman says. "Corporate client sites are excited to offer a convenient service that increases employee satisfaction and productivity by eliminating one of their weekly chores." Part of Manicube's genius is it understands its market — and doesn't try to be something it's not. "There are really two types of manicure customers: those who view it as a weekly chore, part of their professional upkeep, and those that view it as an indulgence, or a time to get away with friends at a nail salon. We are catering to the first segment," Whitman says. "Our signature manicure is designed to keep our busy customers professionally polished for all they do at work, at home, and out on the town." She characterizes the 15-minute service as a full manicure that includes nail shaping, light cuticle NOVEMBER 2013 >>> | NAILS MAGAZINE | 169