Alibaba.com, a China-based global e-commerce marketplace for small businesses, told NAILS that searches on Alibaba.com for nail art products have increased 42% in the one-year period from July 2011 to July 2012. Some other fun facts based on Alibaba.com product searches:

• The U.S. leads the world in nail art-related product searches (this category includes nail polish) on Alibaba.com, accounting for 29% of total searches.
• The U.S. topped the world in countries interested in nail art with a flag. More than 60& of searches for nail art with a flag came from the States. (The next patriotic-nails region was the U.K., with almost 15% of flag nail art searches.)
• Alibaba.com only saw users in U.S., Australia, U.K., and China search specifically for Olympic-related nail art products, and those searches started in May 2012 -- buyers were getting ready for the spirited games!
• Overall, U.S. nail art buyers tend to prefer more feminine designs when considering nail art products as indicated by heavy searches for bows and flower designs and Hello Kitty.

After a nice boost from the Olympians, nail art wins and the U.S. also comes out on top.

--Sree