29-YO Gets More Than 300 Customers a Week at Her Nail Art Studio in LA, Including Celebs; Here’s How

Jenny Nguyen, a 29-year-old celebrity nail artist is clocking between 80 and 100 hours as a nail art studio owner in Los Angeles. She says the salon gets more than 300 customers in a typical week. Some of her most famous clients include Paris Hilton and Hailey Bieber. Her designs have also been featured in many ad campaigns for companies like Apple, Converse, and Chanel. In 2022, she earned close to $600,000 according to tax reports, and has earned more than that in 2023.

Nguyen has 16 employees including her husband Bryan Truong, who co-owned the studio. JennPaintt Nail Lounge in Los Angeles offers services that see many celebrities and internet personalities flocking to her salon. However, she is most known for her nail art services and is famous for her use of gemstones gel paint, and more. The designs that she creates, last around two to three weeks depending on several factors. 

Jenny Nguyen left college in her junior year to work full-time

Nguyen first moved to Los Angeles back in 2019 from New York. At the time, she was working as a substitute teacher for a public school and had planned to continue working as a teacher in Los Angeles. She tells CNBC Make It that she wasn't making as much money as she needed to support her parents. She then decided to try her hands at other industries and tried a new job.

“I was always drawn to entrepreneurship because I’m very competitive, very bossy and I’d rather work for myself than listen to other people tell me what to do,” she says. Then, when the pandemic hit, she started spending a lot of time on the internet like us all and stumbled upon nail art on Instagram. "I follow a lot of nail artists on Instagram, so while I was at home in lockdown, I kept seeing it on my feed, and I thought to myself 'Why not give it a try?'" says Nguyen. 

How Nguyen built a 6-figure business from scratch

It took a few months for her to learn the craft and she enrolled in a program that cost her $9,000. She took a few weeks to finish the program and later started working on setting up her business. She started advertising her business and reached out to photographers and offered free nails for their shoots to build her portfolio. 

Nguyen soon started garnering recognition for her vibrant design. "Social media and customer referrals helped me build my client base," shares Nguyen. She finally opened her first salon called JennPaintt Nail Lounge in downtown Los Angeles, and the salon currently sees more than 300 customers in a typical week.

Growing the business and new avenues 

"Being an entrepreneur is very lonely and stressful … but when I started hiring more people, I felt a lot better, and I’ve been able to grow my business faster,” says Nguyen. “If you want to go far, you have to go together."

She says that she works late in the evening and sometimes even on weekends to grow the business. However, she is enjoying every bit of it. "Nail art is always exciting and makes people happy,” she says and she is extremely grateful to do this work. 

She recently took to Instagram to announce the arrival of her new book, writing, "Why am I writing this book? I’m here to share a story of family, love, resilience, and determination, hoping it becomes a source of inspiration for you. I’m 29 this year. I grew up in a humble village in Vietnam. My parents, dedicated farmers who don’t speak English, worked tirelessly to shape a better life for their children. They epitomize hard work, and my love for them knows no bounds."