'Nail Biters are Welcome' says NV Nails

Downtown Spotlight

Atlantic News, July 25, 1995

[The following article is courtesy of Atlantic News.]

HAMPTON -- As more merchants look for potentially profitable places to do business, they are finding downtown Hampton has potential. Such is the case with NV Nails, the area's only complete nail store now open at 7 High Street.

Michelle K. Smith moved from California to New Hampshire and immediately fell in love with the people here. She called her father who was planning to retire from the nine store nail operation he owned in San Diego, and told him he had to come here. He did ... retirement postponed! Dick Smith has promised his daughter a year to advise her in opening and operating a shop here, one in Portsmouth, and if all goes well, starting a franchise operation.

Because of the training and service concept and the use of their own products, Smith plans to see the store grow to support as many as seven operators. While operating nine stores in California, Smith contracted a chemist to develop better acrylic products than on those on the market now. He feels that his own brand of acrylics, catalysts, glue, and color polishes surpass anything available to the commercial user or the individual. The price of his products is about half the cost of others available.

Since the use of the lower price products, the volume of customers, operator expertise, and the fact that the shop only does nails, NV's prices are said to be about half the price of the hair salon who also does manicure and nails.

"We don't do hair, we don't furnish a tan, but we give the best possible service for nails, and the store will be open when the professional business woman or man needs it," says Smith. Their first appointment is at 9 a.m. and the last at 7 p.m. and the shop is open everyday but Sunday. Uniquely, if a nail breaks, no appointment is necessary, the wearer just walks in and the application will be repaired immediately.

An interesting part of NV's business is for nail biters. The product that has been developed will adhere to the very limited part of a bitten nail. Application of a very hard nail will make it possible for the nail biter to work at eliminating the habit. Smith says the nail is so hard, almost ceramic, and cannot be bitten.

"I want to retire and go live on my boat in Florida," says Ken Smith, but he seems to be back in the work mode and looking into opening the franchise store in front of Marshalls in Portsmouth. "Beautiful hands are our business," says Ken and Daughter Michelle.