We were lucky to catch up with Nicole Soto-Rios recently and have shared our conversation below.

Nicole, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

Fearless.

I think people let fear get in the way of what they want to do. When i first decided to step away from the toxic salon I was working at and go on my own I was so freaking scared!! I had so many questions on my mind like “ are my clients going to follow me” “do i have enough money to fall back on if it doesn’t work out” but i used that fear to motivate me to just DO IT! Once you face those fears, work your butt off, and accomplish that goal, it such an amazing feeling and you want to see what else you can do.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

About me – Well, my name is Nicole but I go by “Nikki.” I’m a Professional nail artist, a boutique owner, and a mommy to my Bebecita Izzy and my fur baby name Chola who works with me at my shop. During my downtime I’m usually in mom mode, crafting something with glitter, making merch for THE BOUTIQUE, doing my own nails, cuddling my babies, or eating chocolate.

How I got started – I’m originally from Kansas City, Missouri and I grew up around the West Side which is a populated Mexican community and the lowrider lifestyle was very popular then and having your nails done (especially with airbrush designs) was something you needed to have done. I always had my nails done since i was 13 years old and I loved watching the nail techs do their work to the point i was studying every move they do so i can do my own (which I did) and practice nail designs on friends. Fast forward to 17 years old, I moved to Chicago (recently graduated high school) not really knowing what I wanted to do in life until my dad had told me to try Cosmetology school since i was into beauty stuff so i did. Once we got to the nail studies in school, I fell in love with it and I knew this is what i wanted to do. At that time, nail art wasn’t really a thing except in the Latina and black communities but a lot of the student would let me practice on them and soon i was know as Notorious Nikki Nails.
A year later I graduated from cosmetology school and got my first job at a nail salon and at that time nail art was becoming popular so the owner really marketed nail art since not a lot of people could do it, and then that featured on the news, 190 North show, Chicago Magazine, Nails Magazine, and so much more. Unfortunately, the owner decided to close shop and that’s when I met the owner of Flirty Girl Fitness, she then offered me a job as a spa manager at her Lincoln Park location, after a couple years as much as I loved my staff and the people that work there the owner was just not the person I wanted to work for so I decided to go on my own not knowing if clients were going to follow me or her if it’s gonna work out but I’m so glad I decided to take that risk. I worked so hard to get clients by working more on my nail art skill, Working at my shop from 9am to sometimes midnight and then I realized that I’m paying so much rent for small little box and decided to look at store fronts, found a place and I was able to move in of June 2020 right in the middle of a pandemic. At that time I was so scared to open not knowing if my clients were going to come and get their nails done but Once I opened all my clients were ready to get their nails done and they know that I was taking extra precaution to help prevent the spread of Covid.

I think what sets me apart from other nail salons it’s not only do I pride myself with the work that I do but I also give an experience to a client. No matter what they’re going through that day I’m always here to listen, get to know them, give my feedback if they’re willing to hear it and also give them bomb ass sparkly nails.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I luckily came into the nail industry right when nail art was becoming popular but for me nail art was always in my life and my culture. I worked, studied color theory, and perfected my art by taking classes . Nail art is apart of fashion you have to know style and what works and know when enough is enough or you get to crazy of a design. I’m never too scared to tell a client NO if the design or idea doesn’t seem/look right because at the end of the service they are walking out with art that I created and I don’t need a bad rep out in the streets. I create my designs by taking inspiration from every day life like fabric prints, nature, my sketches, just everything but I’m always working on my skill. I also like to get to know my clients, they’re coming to the appointments for a reason some use this time to vent, relax or a pick me up but either way I always want them leaving my shop feeling good rather than cheated.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Referrals. Most of my clients let me put little work of arts on their nails and everyone always wants to see their nails, some people like family or coworkers get so invested into my clients nails that they send them ideas on what to do next on their nails. Social media is great as well but i see it as more of an online portfolio of my work but most of the time those followers don’t book (which is fine) but most clientele comes from clients friends, family, co-workers.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.nailVida.com
• Instagram: NailVidaBoutique
• Facebook: Nail Vida boutique
• Linkedin: Nicole Rios
• Other: Tik Tok NailVidaBoutique