- Florence Kwok, Jitsu MacMaster, and Kelly Wilson founded Press On Shop to help nail techs continue to run their business online during the pandemic.
- When salons began to close due to COVID, they started a virtual salon shop selling press on nails as an alternative to nail salon visits.
- Press On Shop has a waitlist of hundreds of nail artists waiting to sell in their shop.
- Cardi B’s nail tech Jenny Bui has already listed her press on nails for sale.
- The shop is run by QTPOC and women. 20% of the featured nail artists also identify as LGBTQ and POC.
- While the LGBTQ community comprises Press On Shop’s core customer base, the startup has attracted all ages and backgrounds.
- Demand for press on nails is growing rapidly, and the shop is the first to launch a “Press On Nails Only” marketplace with a wide range of styles, designs, and showcasing talented nail artists from all over the world.
Earlier this spring when nail salons were forced to shut-down due to COVID-19, nail techs everywhere began searching for ways to service clients virtually as beauty fans looked for ways to maintain their beauty routines at home. Press-on nails began trending on Google and sales skyrocketed as demand increased. Nail techs who had not previously offered press-on nails as part of their service offering soon realized there was a gap in the market and quickly put their creativity to work transforming their services to reach an even larger audience in the digital space.
The founders of Press On Shop, Florence Kwok, Jitsu MacMaster, and Kelly Wilson, all former tech employees, found the online experience of buying press on nails extremely inconvenient. “We’d browse Facebook groups, then direct message a few artists we liked, send them inspo pictures of any customizations we wanted, measure our nails, send them our nail measurements, put it on a Google form, and then pay through Paypal invoice,” says Florence Kwok, CEO of Press On Shop. “We knew there had to be a better way.”
Press On Shop wants to emulate a real nail salon experience, where customers come in and pick out their colors, length, and choose the style of nails they want. Customers can now browse through hundreds of press on nail art designs from nail techs and artists around the world, and request customizations directly from the artist’s virtual shop. Nail artists are able to easily communicate with their customers online, customize and list nails up for sale.
“It’s the same quality as salon nails since they’re professionals, and use salon quality materials, and ends up lasting longer than actual salon nails, and are also so much more affordable,” says Jitsu MacMaster, CTO of Press On Shop.
Kelly Wilson, CCO of Press On Shop, who is a nail artist herself, is also an admin on several of the largest press on nail groups on Facebook. When members of the groups started to share stories about their businesses struggling due to COVID and clients choosing to use press on nails instead of visiting salons due to safety concerns, Wilson realized that there was an opportunity to help nail techs directly sell press on nails to their clients.
The nail tech community is a tight knit group. Many of the featured nail techs are women, and a large percentage identify as QTPOC. The site serves as a marketplace for nail techs from around the globe who want to bring their nail designs to the masses. “People love the curated assortment of fashion-forward nails on our site. They are all salon-quality and direct from professional nail techs,” says Wilson.
By the time the marketplace launched, Press On had nearly 1,000 applications from nail techs who were interested in selling or buying nails and traffic to the site is in the top 5% of newly launched shops on Shopify. “Press On Shop has amazing nails, is easy to use for both shoppers and sellers, and is really here to help small businesses, independent artists, and women thrive,” says Alesia Lanzo, former beauty executive.
With all the buzz, big sellers including Vo Tino (200K followers) and Cardi B’s Nail Artist Jenny Bui (1M followers) have started to sell their nails on Press On Shop. Celebrities including Gigi Gorgeous and Christine Quinn have also been seen around town sporting nails from Press On Shop.
Customers can shop for press on nails by nail length, style, artist type, shipping speed, even price point. Global shipping is available.
About Press On Shop
Get fresh, salon quality nails anytime. We create custom-made press-on nails designed by artists around the globe, and deliver it straight to your door. Learn more at pressonshop.com. Find us on Instagram @thepressonshop.
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