Today we’d like to introduce you to Thuylinh Nguyen
Thuylinh, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was always in the service industry. I waitressed for 7 to 8 years to help my family and pay for school. I graduated with a degree in finance at the university of New Orleans and initially pursued a career as a financial advisor. (First in my family to go to college and earn a degree. Class of 2015) As I was assisting my clients on how to set up generational wealth, it allowed me to start thinking of my own family. We came from a very poor background. My dad is a fisherman and my mom worked various jobs from crab picking to casino dealer. Presentation was a big part of my career as we were constantly in front of clients. As well as customer service and networking. My hair had to be well groomed, make up daily and nails every two weeks. I’m a numbers girl so I started calculating how much I was spending on these things and it made me curious as to what opportunities would be there. Fast forward, I met a friend who was a nail technician and a conversation started about possibly starting a nail salon. She had the extensive experience as a nail technician and I had a finance background. We became partners and bought our very first nail salon together in 2015. (I’ll include photos) It was an existing business and we did the renovations ourselves. Spent endless hours painting, scrubbing the grouts of the tiles, putting furniture together ourselves, etc. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing but I knew that I wanted my family to be a little bit more comfortable. As the business grew, I also wanted more because I saw the potential and how the industry is constantly innovating. I really wanted more because my son was also coming soon. My vision was to builder A bigger salon, a more modern one with newer technology. I sold my share of the salon. I, spontaneously, decided to pack up whatever could fit in my Tahoe and moved to Houston in 2020. I was terrified but I knew that if I wanted more for my family, I’d have to take the risk. Houston is a much bigger city and it was very intimidating. I quickly realized that I didn’t have enough resources to jump start another salon anytime soon. Hence, my short career as a real estate agent. I figured since had the background in sales, customer service, knowledge and experience with real estate as an investment product, why not. Again, it was terrifying as I was rapidly going through my savings as there were months of no pay. Then, I met some of the most generous individuals in the midst of a real estate transaction that would change the course of my journey. While I was trying to figure out how to open a salon again, I travelled a lot to California to do market research for real estate. Again, in sales, presentation is very important. I ended up going to various salons in California as I found myself to spending a bit more time there than Houston. But no one had the enhancements that I would usually wear (tips and dip). Hence, I was introduced to something called a gel overlay and gel x (2021), I was obsessed with the outcome and how healthy my nails were after removing it each time. My technicians there educated me thoroughly through the process as it was very new to me. When I would come back to Houston, asking for the same thing at multiple salons, either no one knew what it was or it was a terrible job because of their lack of education for the product/process because it was so new. After months of being disappointed, I finally decided that this was an opportunity for me to have the chance to introduce something new and refreshing to Houston. I love the nail industry but also disliked the reputation that it had for being an express, “chop shop” business. Hence, the concept of Drip. I wanted to “redefine” the express nail salon experience by providing luxury, customer-focused service that is both relaxing and efficient within a spa-like atmosphere. There’s also this stereotype as to what types of nails certain professionals or individuals are “supposed” to wear. I aspire to break out beauty boundaries & stereotypes; inspire & nurture individual expression & creativity. Drip was built to commit to diversity, cleanliness, innovation and support. I wanted Drip to be more than just nails. I wanted to nurture relationships and create a safe space for everyone to feel welcome to express themselves freely.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It was definitely not a smooth road and still isn’t. It’s an emotional roller coaster especially knowing that my family is depending on Drip to succeed. We started from ground up. Being new to the city and attempting to introduce a new concept is our biggest struggle
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We specialize in Gel X, structured manicures using soft/builder/hard/poly gels and various nail art.
I’m most proud of how open minded our clients have been and the trust that they’ve instill in us to introduce them to new concepts.
I think what sets us apart is how we nurture relationships versus being transactional. We, also, consistently provide continued education which I find most salons do not offer. We take a lot of pride in education
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
To take risks
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.dripnailsalon.com
- Instagram: @dripnails.htx
