Nails Inc has a new place to call home.
The U.K.-based brand will enter Saks Fifth Avenue with more than just products. On Nov. 15, Nails Inc will open a nail bar within Saks called The Paint Workshop.
“It’s ideal for Nails Inc [to be in Saks] because we’re both a fashion and a beauty brand,” said Thea Green, founder and managing director of Nails Inc, who added that the company is also planning to open a standalone store in the spring.
Located on the fifth floor as part of Saks Beauty-On-5 experience, The Paint Workshop will provide nine services and each will be served with traditional English tea and British finger food.
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The space, which is 8 by 14 feet, is stocked with charging docks and iPads so consumers can browse and shop Nails Inc offerings. Customers can also create personalized polishes using the brand’s Styled By You app, which enables the user to customize their color choice with a laser-etched monogram, $20, or a crystal-embellished cap, $25.
The services start at $5 per finger for nail art and go up to $48 for a gel manicure.
While Green declined to comment on sales figures, industry sources estimated that the Manhattan nail bar within Saks could generate $1.6 million in its first year.
While most consumers go to a nail salon for a service and a beauty store to purchase polish, Nails Inc has a different model.
Green said that sales at The Paint Workshop in Europe are “50 percent service and 50 percent product.” She added, “Customers at Nails Inc have a service and buy product, while others want to just buy the latest innovation, as they have no time for a service. A number of our customers also buy more than one item.”
This service model could be beneficial for the department stores, since shopping online for beauty has become a bigger phenomena. “In-store sales have gone down due to e-commerce,” said a brand executive whose products are sold in Saks. “The service element could help boost sales, since the consumer has to physically go into the store, so they are almost forced to look at products.”