Emese Koppànyi
co-owner, Edange & Koppànyi salon, Draguignan, France; nail competitor; wife

What about being a woman makes you uniquely suited to be a nail tech?

A woman can be like a friend to clients. When a client sits in a nail tech’s chair, the client starts to talk, talk, talk, like she would with a psychologist.

What advantages do women have when working in the nail salon environment?

Almost every woman likes beautiful nails, so it is easy for women to make other women happy with our nail creations. I love my job, I do my best on the clients every day, and, since I specialize in French nails (it’s 99% of my work and the only category I compete in), I get to practice a little on every client.

What advantages do men have when working in the nail salon environment?

I think it is easy for men to get clients, because men are special in a nail salon. I’m sure every woman wants to get her nails done by a man. 

What’s the best part of working with your husband at the salon?

I can see him all day long.

What’s the worst part of working with your husband at the salon?

I don’t like that he’s my only colleague in the salon because it means I have to ask him to get my nails done, and he doesn’t like to do it. He thinks I’m a complicated client, but of course that’s not true (laughs).

In your own words, what kind of nails does your husband specialize in?

Ninety-nine percent of his clients are middle-aged and they want short French or natural nails. His clients like him because he makes real-life nails in a short amount of time. When he wants to create some beautiful stilettos or bridge nails, he asks me to be his model.

When competing with each other, what is your partner’s greatest strength?

I love his precision. And because we work and practice together, we know each other’s style. We have the same movements, the same precision, and the same timing. 

When competing against each other, who are you rooting for?

When we compete against each other, I’m rooting for our victory. If we can make the top three, then it doesn’t matter who passes the other — we are happy.

What else would you like to add?

All of my life I was looking for Fréd. I’m happy to have found him. We have the same passion, the same thoughts, the same business, and the same desires in life.

Frédéric Edange
co-owner, Edange & Koppànyi salon, Draguignan, France; nail competitor; husband

What about being a man makes you uniquely suited to be a nail tech?

I think it takes a lot of courage and work to succeed in this business, and I have that. I’m a fan of perfect things. If I weren’t a big fan, and if I didn’t like the taste of perfection and detail, I could never do this job.

What advantages do women have when working in the nail salon environment?

Women understand each other very well in the client-nail tech relationship — they can chat, speak about men, etc. But on the other hand, the female coworker-female coworker relationship can be a nightmare.

What advantages do men have when working in the nail salon environment?

Women always love to be treated well by men, right?

What’s the best part of working with your wife at the salon?

She is next to me every day, and I get to watch her work. We are so complementary. We don’t need words to communicate. We simply understand each other.

What’s the worst part of working with your wife at the salon?

Doing her nails…because it is very complicated work (ha ha ha).

In your own words, what kind of client nails does your wife specialize in?

Emese is a specialist in pink-and-whites. Sometimes she executes nail art and sometimes she creates pipe nails, which her clients love.

When competing with each other, what is your partner’s greatest strength?

We know our technique and we know each other. When it comes to our competition work, we are like twins.

When competing against each other, who are you rooting for?

When we compete one against the other, the devil of the competition means we live in two worlds and we are two rivals. But we have a lot of respect for each other because we know the difficulty of the work, including the mental work — because the mind is often the deciding factor in who wins.

What else would you like to add?

Men and women working together in the salon is a chance to share the same passion. When couples encounter disagreement at work, that is what will build their strength and unity. It has great power to propel you both to the highest possible place in this business.