Today we’d like to introduce you to Tina Nguyen.
Hi Tina, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My story began on September 28, 2017 when I took a leap of faith and moved to Austin, TX on a whim. I was born and raised in Pensacola, Fl- a small beach city right in the panhandle. Besides the beautiful vacation-worthy beaches, my hometown served its purpose of raising and molding me for the day I embarked on my life’s journey. However in 2017, at 23 years old I knew I was ready to expand my horizons and step into a world bigger than I ever knew. At that point in my life, I just finished my bachelor’s degree from the University of West Florida. I majored in Exercise Science/Kinesiology and had big plans to apply to a doctor of physical therapy program. Today, I am not a physical therapist but instead, I am a small business owner and my practice is nail artistry. I remember being so conflicted about letting go of physical therapy being that I was so sure that it was the avenue I wanted to pursue. In hindsight, I should’ve just fully trusted the process and my introspection for my life’s purpose because where I am today is exactly where I belong and it has been extremely fulfilling.
How did I get to where I am today? Hard work. I’ve been in the nail industry for over a decade. My mom has been in the nail industry since she was pregnant with me. My parents immigrated from Vietnam about 30 years ago. Although they met and formed their union after settling in America, each of them traveled here with nothing other than a dream for a better future. My parents worked extremely hard my whole life and were finally able to open their own salon years after picking up the trade. I can truly say my hard work ethic and ambition stems from them.
Growing up in a nail salon came with its own territory. It was already set in stone that when I became of age, I would apprentice my mom, go to cosmetology school and help out in the salon. I remember developing such a resistance with the nail business because I felt like it was forced upon me. As a bitter kid, I remember telling my parents, “When I grow up, I’m going to college and I am going to make sure I have a ‘real’ career. I am not going to do nails. I want a job that pays a salary and has benefits like health insurance and 401k. I will never do nails”. They say never and I can fully attest to that. Here I am today doing the one thing I swore I’d never do, running my own nail business and participating in revolutionizing the industry in every way I can to make sure that it is in fact considered a ‘real career’.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Growth is definitely not linear and if anyone has ever told you that it is lied to you. It’s been a roller coaster ride to say the least. There’s been many times where I have felt so frustrated because I was pushing something that seemed almost impossible with very little resources. The biggest struggle but also the biggest blessing during my journey was to quit working for someone and venturing off to own and build my own company. I’ve always worked in busy walk-in types of salons and to be honest, I would compare it to almost working in an emergency room in a way. There were always waves with people coming, complaints, particular demands, rush. Every client was just a price tag and it was an extreme hustle culture. It served its purpose in pushing me to work efficiently, however that lifestyle day in and day out isn’t sustainable in my opinion. At what point do you slow down and just enjoy who is in front of you? My anxiety had gotten worse over the years because day in and out it felt like I had to cater to demands that really did not serve my purpose or really anything I was interested in. I am interested in creating space for people to come and be themselves and to be still. I discovered that part of my fulfillment involves creating community. I couldn’t accomplish that in those types of environments and my mental health suffered. Christmas eve 2019, I decided that enough was enough and I had to remind myself that I moved to Austin to create a life I believed in and in that moment, I was ready to close that chapter of my career and I walked away not knowing that by taking that leap of faith, my life would be forever changed.
I opened Aura Beauté Co. in January of 2020. I was terrified because apart from my degree in Exercise Science/Kinesiology, I was a regular nail technician with no background in business. That world was so foreign to me. I had very little money and a very unstable number of clients. Where I was previously, I was the only person who was fully booked day in and out. When I left, essentially I had to start over because I didn’t have time to tell everyone I was leaving and because I worked for someone else that the big rule in the beauty industry is that you can’t “steal clients”. I have a whole mouth full on that concept because I am not sure why we objectify people as if they can’t make their own decisions on where they want to spend their money but that’s not the point. The point is that I had no clue how and where the income would be coming from and the first few months were definitely rough. Then came covid and the mandatory quarantine. I know I wasn’t alone in it but during that time, my whole world was rocked and I just felt so defeated as a new business owner. Again, I should have just trusted the process and my resilience because my business wouldn’t have taken off had those rough couple of months and covid never happen. I owe it all to those struggles because in those months, I realized my own strength. Furthermore, those six weeks I was off I decided to find a medium to release the anxious energy that consumed my health. I bought a fake mannequin hand off Amazon, picked up a paintbrush and never looked back. Today, I am now one of very few hand-painted nail artists in Austin and I love it here.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a natural nail artist who specializes in hand-painted nail art. I am known more so for abstract nail art, however my style varies from client to client because everyone has different preferences. A typical nail appointment with me would be when one of my girls comes in with inspiration they’ve found through social media. I then analyze it, create a vision in my head then we execute a final piece that was inspired by another art piece but more customized to her.
I am the most proud of the journey I embarked to get where I am today. It takes grit and consistency to not only make art that you are proud of but also to stand behind it and continue even when you feel like giving up after not seeing progress. I remember being the underdog at the salons I worked at. I would be called “too slow” or called out for making too many mistakes. It’s crazy to think that one day I picked up a nail art brush to soothe my anxiety and now my whole life is forever changed because I stepped into my power and decided to finally put faith into my craft. The same girl that was once at the bottom of the lineup is now running a company that she believes in all the while being fully booked months on end aside from a massive waitlist of people ready to join. It’s absolutely wild.
What sets me apart from others is the fact that I am a nail artist however my passion isn’t that. My passion is actually building community. Through my business and the safe space I provide to my guests, I have been able to build such a strong support group/girl gang. I always say that nails really isn’t the actual business, and it’s not. Aura Beauté Co. is more than nails. It’s a space where you can come as you are and feel like you are home. It’s where we dream, share stories, educate, love on one another. You just get to walk away with pretty nails afterwards. It’s a pocket of sunshine and safety when it feels like the world has gone mad. I truly believe that people should leave you better than they came and through my business, I am able to provide that. My community consists of very strong, intellectual humans and I am so grateful that they have chosen me to not only give them their dream nails but also to guide them through my own journey and experiences.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Absolutely. If I’m being honest, at one point of my life, I was the most scared person. I do believe it stems mainly from childhood trauma because my mom is also the same. I was physically scared of being injured and being in any kind of accident but I also mentally feared failure in all forms. Being so afraid of everything really hindered me from opportunities such as playing sports, going on trips and having fun. Today I am the proud owner of taking two major risks (to me) in my life. The first one was deciding to move from my hometown on a whim to Austin and then leaving two weeks later with only what fit in my small car. I had never been to Austin before and to be honest, I really am not sure why I picked this city. Not very many people leave my city, especially for reasons other than going to college. I didn’t have a job lined up, that much money saved up or a concise plan. I knew I was capable of doing so much more in my life so I left and I never looked back. The second big risk was when I decided to go into business by myself for myself. I wanted to stay in my industry but I couldn’t bring myself to work in the places I worked at anymore. The industry culture in those places went against my morals, values and how I wanted to show up in the world. I wanted to do my own thing for a while before I actually pulled the trigger. It took me a really long time to do it because there were so many people (mainly management) who planted the idea in my head that I wouldn’t be able to pull it off. They told me I wouldn’t make money or be successful on my own. So what did I do? I left. My business speaks for itself, and although we are still in the building phase, boy were they so wrong. In both risky situations, I held on to my beliefs. There were times when things got rocky and I felt like all odds were against me but I never quit. Instead, I trusted faith over fear and because I stood behind my values, I have arrived in the most incredible destinations. I highly recommend everyone and anyone to take risks. If it doesn’t put you in harm’s way or jeopardize your safety (in all aspects), do it. Do the thing that you think about constantly but are too scared. Trust that you are the driver of your life and let the journey unfold as you step into your power.
The next big risk that I will be taking that I’d like to mention before we end this interview will be a project that I plan on launching here in Austin 2022. It will be called “The Aura Beauté Project” and it will be based on the idea of building community through storytelling and sisterhood conversations. The details are not finalized yet, however this is a huge passion project that I would love to bring to life. It will be everything that I have been through, every lesson that I’ve learned along the way and every powerful story that has been brought to my nail table. I want to continue my life’s work and extend that to the lessons and stories that are to come beyond my studio. Every woman has a story, I am very intrigued and would love the opportunity share those stories whether it’s health-related, professionally related or just life related in general. Building this platform and launching this project is a risk, however just as the others that I have taken has become successful, so will it. I truly believe that something beautiful and incredible will transpire from it.
Contact Info:
- Email: tnguyenbeauty.atx@gmail.com
- Website: theaurabeauteproject.com
- Instagram: tnguyenbeauty.atx
