CND is out to prove that hybrid technology isn’t just for cars with Shellac Hybrid Nail Color, a part nail polish, part gel offering that CND hopes will rev up the nail salon business by drawing women disappointed by the ephemerality of manicure perfection.
“It will be our biggest launch to date, and we are 30 years this year as a company,” said Jan Arnold, co-founder and style director of Colomer Group-owned CND, who estimated Shellac, scheduled for a May release, will generate $25 million to $30 million in first-year service revenue. “It is a market changer.”
Shellac, which comes in 12 shades and is expected to cost nail salon customers from $25 to $65, is applied like a polish manicure, although the base, color and top coats are set under a UV lamp like a gel. Shellac’s advantages are that it is designed to take 30 minutes to complete, half the time of a hard gel service, but will last at least 14 days — a week to 11 days longer than most polish manicures — and won’t chip.
Related Articles
Arnold hopes Shellac will convince 85 percent of American women not getting manicures in nail salons that nail salon visits are worth the price. “There’s nothing worse than having a gorgeous manicure, and three days later, having a chip,” she said. “We believe this will get women back into the salon. Once it is on, it is like putting on your shoes. You don’t worry about it.”
To remove Shellac, CND doesn’t require women to soak their fingers in bowls of acetone until they prune. Instead, nail technicians cover fingers with remover wraps saturated with acetone, wait 10 minutes and slide Shellac off nails with a stick. Arnold projects it will take 45 minutes for an entire removal and reapplication process.
Shellac builds on CND’s strength in nail enhancements, a category that includes gels and acrylics and constituted about 50 percent of CND’s $60 million in revenues last year, according to Arnold. “Acrylics have reached a critical mass,” she said. “The audience for gels is broader because they are a little softer…and colors have become more sophisticated as technology grew.”
CND is launching Shellac globally in the more than 80 countries where the brand is available. Arnold anticipates Shellac, along with positive economic trends, will help propel double-digit growth at CND this year. The recession forced nail salon customers to stretch out the time between manicures, she said, adding of nail salon business now, “I definitely see it coming back. We have had a really strong start to this year.”