I lived a life of ostentatious wealth and luxury when I was growing up. High-end retail, fancy dinners, the latest brands, and designer perfumes inspired me to dress the part, as my life revolved around the demands of my busy career and little social life. As I got older, my brand of luxury evolved to include shoes, handbags, and clothes, but mainly apparel. Now, as I age and my taste in designer clothing evolves, I find myself gravitating toward the more affordable, more accessible brands that offer well-made looks at reasonable prices.

I started salons towards the end of my 20s in order to impress my husband, but eventually realized that my business didn’t have staying power. I changed my focus to content development, but what happened with that didn’t change the fact that for me, paying for well-made clothes in a boutique store wasn’t satisfying enough. That’s when I decided to redirect my business toward having the best-looking nails possible. I was a patron of a local nail salon in Chicago, and was a bit taken aback by the amount of effort and luxury the staff put into making their clients feel beautiful and beautiful. The experience was as empowering as it was inspiring.

Toward the end of 2017, I finally moved to Cleveland, OH and opened Verdure Nail Salon in Tremont. Verdure is a minimalist, color-heavy salon with smooth, cool, straight, and gently sculpted cuts and colors. There are three main chairs and I always make sure there is a clipboard in front of each chair for customers. I love walking into a salon with a clipboard and having clients write their name and address down and ask me questions. From here, customers are entered into my e-compaint system and we start off with a five-minute, blind tasting of Veuve Clicquot Brut Cocktail Wine. There’s no one else in the room! I then have my stylist style my client’s nails (unless they’re on call), fill their tubs with various creamy colors, and they’re off to head to their appointments.

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It’s important to me that my clients always feel as much of a sense of accomplishment as if they put in a full day at work. I try to remember to include something personal about each client, and for me, that can mean anything from a single spa touch or a gift bag filled with spa oils, moisturizers, and body lotions, to going the extra mile and offering an extra manicure as a gift. Being able to play with polish, creativity, and fine detail is a great way to ease people into becoming clients and even offers unique perks like the round-the-clock manicure service. In that way, I can make clients feel like the absolute best version of themselves, which then translates into the biggest turning point of an individual’s day — meeting, greeting, and soon to be having a lengthy manicure.

Not only does Verdure make customers feel extra special, but I also find that every once in a while, our customers spend their time at Verdure feeling care-free, freeing, and confident. The rush of our warm air, soothing music, and eye-catching vases and rich colors made it extremely relaxing for me and inspired me to start my own business in 2018. I don’t want my clients to feel left out or fall into the trap of thinking they aren’t getting anything. I see myself as a space where strangers bond over genuine beauty tips and uplifting support, and I offer it up to anyone who walks through my door.

Of course, I also encourage all women to look for a product company that offers high-quality products at accessible prices, but I’m lucky to have wonderful resources in my own salon, and that makes my job easier.