As a single mother with a young son, Cindy Nguyen worked diligently for many years as a nail tech to build her client base and save money so she could open her own nail salon.
She opened her first location in Temple Terrace six years ago and this past February opened a second store in Lutz on Florida Avenue, a quarter mile north of Bearss Avenue in the same shopping center as The Gathering Place restaurant.
“Owning my own store allows me to work my schedule around my boy and his activities, said Cindy of her 12-year-old son, Bryan Truong.
Cindy’s dedication to her son, a sixth grader at Williams Middle Magnet School, is the same dedication she showers on her clients. Her shop, Nail V.I.P. Professional Care, is appropriately named because she considers every customer a very important person.
Cindy arrived in Florida 25 years ago as a refugee from Vietnam. She was sponsored by an organization in Tampa and has lived here ever since.
“I love it here — Tampa has been very good to me,” said Cindy. “People were very welcoming and the weather is much like Vietnam’s.”
Cindy is very proud of her new Lutz store and its sparkling tile floors, warm green and yellow walls and brightly lit atmosphere. There are eight pedicure chairs and nail stations and the latest equipment used to hygienically and professionally provide manicures and pedicures to women of all ages.
Working alongside Cindy are five licensed nail techs.
“I asked my most experienced technicians from my Temple Terrace store to join me at the new Lutz location,” said Cindy. “Everyone here has been doing nails for over five years and all are fully licensed.”
All of Nail V.I.P.’s techs are Vietnamese, and for a good reason, said Cindy. “In our culture back in Vietnam, women do a lot of hand- work, which taught us great attention to detail and makes us skilled at working at things close up, like nails,” said Cindy.
Located close to Avila and other upscale communities, Nail V.I.P. has gotten off to a fast start since it opened. In addition, many cus- tomers from Lutz/Land O’ Lakes work downtown and stop by on their way to and from work because the store is just minutes from the Bearss and Interstate 275 interchange.
“This location is very convenient for customers, plus we’re open seven days a week,” said Cindy. Store hours are Monday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
To celebrate the store’s grand opening, Nail V.I.P. is offering 15 percent off every service. This makes Nail V.I.P.’s most popular service, a deluxe pedicure, just $22, which includes a mud menthol foot mask, sea salt soak and eucalyptus moisturizer. After this skin care treatment, old toenail color is removed and customers choose from over 75 colors for their new polish.
Gel nails are also very popular and are the number one choice for manicures. Most clients return every two weeks to keep their nails in tip-top shape. Light pinks and blues are trendy spring colors that many women are choosing.
“We love our customers and welcome walk-ins,” said Cindy. “Many woman don’t have time to make appointments. We can almost always accommodate someone who stops by.”
The shop is located at 16305 N. Florida Ave., Lutz. They can be reached at (813) 304-2648, or at www.FloridaNailVIP.com.
This story is a feature of the advertising department.
