Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabriela Urbina Medellin.
Hi Gabriela, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Hi! Well, my name is Gabriela, some also call me Gaby. Just one “B,” it’s the way to spell it in Spanish. Today, I’ll tell you a little about how I became a small business owner of a nail studio in Nashville, Tn.
I am the eldest of four daughters of Mexican immigrant parents. I was always held to high expectations – as I’m sure most children of immigrant parents are. Anyways, I had no help or resources available to me as far as applying for college or gathering financial resources. My parents were very strict and rarely, if ever, allowed me to participate in any extracurriculars, so I had very few connections to faculty and staff at my high school. In addition, I didn’t know it then, but I was a very anxious kid, which made it hard for me to seek out help. I grew up in an environment where we fended for our own. Therefore, me stepping forward to ask for assistance wasn’t something I felt capable of then.
Fast forward to high school graduation in 2012, and not knowing what to do since I was denied federal financial assistance, I continued working my first job at a department store. That summer I worked a lot and contemplated what the rest of my future would hold. One day on my way to work, a radio commercial came on, “Earn your manicurist license and start making money in six months!” “Six months?” I thought. I contacted the technical college advertised and enrolled in their nail technology course.
I had liked polishing my own nails and playing with different lacquers in my spare time. I thought “If I start working at a nail salon, I can make more money than retail, and save to go to traditional school!” It was the perfect plan – or so I thought. I made a deal with my parents that if they helped me pay for part of the cost, which the school asked for upfront, that I would go to a traditional school as soon as I could. To my surprise, they agreed, they just wanted me to have some kind of “further schooling.” With their help, I was on my way to becoming a licensed nail technician.
My experience at that school wasn’t the best. We didn’t have an instructor more than half of the time, and the other faculty who would come in to check on our class weren’t interested on “the nail students.” To add to my dismay, three months after I started the course, I got a letter from FAFSA saying they had reviewed my application and had made a mistake. I was now eligible for financial aid. Also, remember how I said the course was supposed to only be six months long? It took me eight months to complete it. I had grown frustrated with the lack of engagement and instruction available to me. I wanted to drop out of that school as soon as I was eligible for financial aid and go to a university.
I thought I had just wasted my parents’ savings and I would fail them. I talked myself out of dropping out because I only had about two months left in the program. I stayed and completed the program. After graduating and obtaining my manicurist license, I started my first nail salon job, and enrolled in community college. I’ll always be grateful to my first nail salon boss for letting me work part time while pursuing my associate’s degree.
When I finally finished that degree, I left the nail salon to work at a special education school as an assistant teacher. After working there for two years, the job had become very taxing on my mental and physical health. I decided to go back to the beauty industry as a nail tech and enroll at Middle Tennessee State University to get my bachelor’s degree.
I always thought I wanted to be an English as a second language teacher. I had to take ESL classes myself as a child, and so I wanted to give back to my community in the same way.
As you know, that is did not end up being the case. While finishing my Bachelor’s Degree in 2020 at MTSU, I came to the realization that I had fallen in complete love with the manicuring industry. I’ve had many jobs from retailing to having the opportunity to teach and work with children, and of course, being a nail technician. By far the most rewarding was teaching, but the one I loved and enjoyed most was doing nails.
I thought I broke my mother’s heart by telling her I did not want to be a teacher anymore but rather have my own nail salon. She wasn’t excited but supported the dream, along with the rest of my family.
Being a nail technician brings me so much happiness and fulfillment. I love that I can meet people from all backgrounds and learn so much from all of them. I still get my little dose of teaching by educating my clients on their nails, and even exposing them to my own upbringing and influencing diversity on some of them. Other times I help other fellow nail techs or aspiring
“DIY-ers” as well.
The stories I get to learn and be a part of while holding my clients’ hands are some of the most inspiring. I look forward to each visit and it makes me feel honored that people choose and trust me to provide a service for them. Being able to be artistic is a plus for me.
Providing a space where everyone feels safe and wanted for who they are is my priority. That is why I started planning to open my own nail studio in 2020. It was terrifying to think about opening a business during the COVID-19 pandemic. It took me a while, but I finally signed the lease to a suite at the end of March 2021. I’ve had my own nail studio, 6 1 5 Nail Art, for six months now and I cannot believe the immense growth and support I’ve received from the community.
Although I had a steady clientele follow me from my previous salon jobs, I had some room to welcome new guests. I am so glad that not only have I met new clients, but that I’ve been able to provide a space where people of all genders and races feel comfortable and safe coming to. I won’t comment too much, but all I can say is that I never felt fully accepted or respected in past salon jobs.
I’m proud to be a first-generation Latina graduate and business owner. We need more representation of all minorities in business. I am the only Latina in my building thus far. I hope that as more people move into the building it will welcome more stylists of all backgrounds of life.
We all face challenges but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As I mentioned before, a huge struggle was not having the resources or networks others may have the advantage of to go to school or start a business. To me, that has always been the biggest struggle. It’s hard to find people who are willing to help you when they don’t believe you’ll succeed because you’re a minority or your goals and dreams aren’t the most ideal. No one ever said that directly, but accountants and or advisors would always question my goals as if they were pointless or out of reach. This feedback makes it even harder to want to seek out help from others.
Not having family or friends who understand the limbo of being stuck between two cultures is also frustrating. On one hand, I wanted to make my family proud while on the other I didn’t know why I was so focused on what they wanted and not on what I wanted long term.
Everything I’ve achieved and accomplished in my business has been out of my hard work and motivation to finally listen to myself and follow my dreams.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I currently specialize in natural nail care and hand-painted nail art. I’ve been painting nail art for over 8 years. It started as a hobby in high school doing it on myself, and now, it’s bizarre to call it my career. I’ve always been artistic and not to brag but decent at drawing and painting, so I guess it came naturally to me.
Of course, learning to work with gel polish as the medium and still learning to master it is always a work in progress but is always exciting to learn new techniques.
My favorite designs to do are abstract or what I call/are known for “celestial” designs. Think “Starry Night,” or Monet’s Water Lilies, anything that seems dreamy or whimsical. I love having endless ways to embellish nails!
I think what sets me apart from other artists in the area is that I am honest. I don’t fake “nice,” or have to “put my customer service face” on. I am me and that’s what I give people. I say what’s on my mind, respectfully and cordial, unless otherwise perceived. I treat people the way they treat me which thankfully most of the time is kind and grateful. I believe clients can see right through the facade. If you’re just being sweet and nice for the money, they know and sense it and you will not attract positive people that way. My clients take care of me, as I of them. I’m proud to be the owner of a place where people feel safe and genuinely cared for.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is having the ability to represent my culture as a Latina in the beauty industry and being a business owner overall. I represent my culture within my business by playing a variety of music, so you might hear TLC and then a little Selena y Los Dinos right after. I also demonstrate my culture throughout the décor in my studio. Something you’ll see a lot of in my studio is butterfly décor. Butterflies can be seen almost everywhere, every day, in Mexico but are rare to see here in Tennessee, USA. To me, they represent the beauty of migration and growth. In addition, my current logo also represents both cultures. I choose to have a serpent in my logo because of their split tongues. The tongue representing being bilingual/bicultural. Snakes are also said to symbolize a strong creative force transformation and healing, all things I have experienced throughout my life. My decor throughout the studio encompasses who I am and that was important to me when deciding to open my business.
Finally, and most importantly, as mentioned before, I am very proud to own a business where people feel safe and cared for. It was important to me to provide a safe space for my clients and myself. When you come into my studio, you can forget about your troubles or worries if only for an hour, or you can discuss it freely and free of judgment. I don’t expect much from my clients other than respect of my being and boundaries. They can come as they are, and I will always make them all feel welcomed. The beauty industry can be an ugly place both for providers and clients. There is body shaming, gender, and race discrimination, and even judgment on things you like such as your music taste or television shows. It’s incredibly sad to experience treatment as such by “beauty professionals.” Our mission in this industry should be to “beautify” our clients by accepting and uplifting them not tearing them down. As someone who’s experienced both ends of this spectrum, it’s important for me to show acceptance and positivity with all my clients. I am so grateful for them, and I hope they know it.
Being kind to all is what matters the most to me. Sometimes a nice little gesture can be what makes someone’s entire day better.
So why not do that? Just be kind.
Contact Info:
- Email: 615NailArt@gmail.com
- Website: http://www.vagaro.com/615nailart
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/615nailart
