Meet Mayra Martinez | Nail Enthusiast

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mayra Martinez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mayra, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
When I created my nail business, I was a junior in high-school. I definitely had plans to pursue a post-secondary education, so my business was a side hustle for me. From a very young age, I’ve enjoyed the busy life and always having something to do because it makes me feel very productive. After getting a taste of college life, doing nails started to feel overwhelming and was taking up too much time away that could have been used to study. It is extremely hard to run a business and pursue a Public Health/Nursing Degree. I have to be very flexible with availability especially since my schedule is constantly changing every semester. There have been way too many times where I go days without taking a break, eating or sleeping enough. I am fully aware of how counterintuitive these actions may be considering I always express how important it is to put your health first, but the accumulation of stress and pressure can make these things seem impossible to do. I am in a constant circle of responsibilities as a college student and entrepreneur, and if I am not in my nail room, I’m at school! Not only this but I am also a sister, daughter, girlfriend, friend, and mother of 5 dogs. Hanging out with family, friends, or my partner can be very difficult if I do not manage my time efficiently. You can just imagine how slim my time constantly is. As I’ve evolved as a business owner, I’ve learned to manage my time properly and to dedicate time for those whom I love. Procrastination simply isn’t an option, and I persistently have to push myself to get things done when they need to be done. I’ve also dedicated time to myself by partaking in self care more often, which means listening to music, doing my own nails and pedicures, taking my dogs on a walk, or dissecting movies with my boyfriend. It really takes a strong individual to run a business and continue to get their education, so I do take pride in what I do and how well I do it.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve learned so many things running a nail business that I can just ramble, but I want to get straight to the point with some of what I consider the most important to me. First, I want to talk about my motto which is “Empowering Women through Nails” and I have creatively designed a space to inspire and encourage women to partake in self-care. When I do nails, I always have the goal of earning my client’s trust, having them step out of their comfort zone, and feel great doing that. In order to do that, I recognized that communication is key. With running a business, great customer service and communication is required. Many nail salon clients experience anxiety due to not knowing what the outcome of a nail set may look like. Part of their anxiety is not being able to trust the nail tech, but with communication comes trust. I always make sure my client is comfortable and trusts me by asking them if it is okay to move on to the next step of their nail process. This skill has allowed me to build connections with my clients and a returning clientele. One of the most meaningful things to hear from a first time client is how much they trust me and how I am now their nail tech. I make sure to listen and consider my client’s ideas and opinions because I want them to leave my nail salon LOVING their nails and FEELING empowered. I have also had the opportunity to evolve artistically. To me this means not only on nails, but also photoshoots to display my work, and creative ways to market my business. I enjoy social media marketing and content creation and am looking forward to expanding this skill over the summer. I also have acknowledged the value of collaboration within the beauty industry and the potential for nails and hair to serve as a conduit for the social determinants of health; particularly, social integration and support systems. This means it is very important to take care of yourself to live a longer and happier life. In collaborating with my best friend who is a hairstylist, we constantly strategize creating film advertisements and conjoin our expertise to grow our businesses by reaching a bigger audience.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
The perfect trip for me would actually be a business one. Like mentioned above, my best friend has a hairstyling business and I would really enjoy brunch dates where we design ways to connect and expand our business. By this I mean, creating bundle deals (like we have before), planning photoshoots and film advertisements around the city with our clients included (of course), and simply having fun taking pictures and listening to all types of music. There are many great breakfast places in Atlanta that I think about having these brunch dates at, and some of my favorites are Homegrown, The Flying Biscuit, Breakfast at Barney’s, and Highland Bakery. I also envision these brunch dates with many of my entrepreneur friends where we are all dressed up in suits looking real bossed up and talking business! This is something I am also looking forward to doing more often with my entrepreneur friends.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are a lot of people I need to thank and recognize their support in getting me to where I am today. Thinking about it in a chronological order, I would first like to thank my boyfriend (who is also an entrepreneur) for inspiring, motivating, and investing in my business, my father who has helped build the nail studio of my dreams, friends who would support whether that was by making an appointment, shouting me out, telling their friends and family, and uplifting me when I felt unmotivated, my mother who has helped keep my studio clean, my brother who would tell all of his friends, my clients who would push me to be creative and constantly compliment my work. There are so many people involved in my journey and I am just so thankful that I have people who are genuinely supportive. These are all my puzzle pieces to the big picture and without a piece, I do not think I would be where I am today.

Website: https://bookmayrasnailworld.my.canva.site/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mayrasnailworld?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayra-martinez-303437232

Image Credits
Tahir Siddeeq