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The Nai l Fi le Autumn 2012


www.BeautyServe.com Salon Spy . . . Salon Spy . . . Salon Spy . . . Salon Spy


Salon Spy


Name: MWnails


Where:


Old SpitalfieldsMarket, 11B Commercial Street, London, E1 6BG t: 020 7247 0288 w:www.mwnails.com


Managing Director: Henrietta Flynn


Date opened: April 2012


Brands / equipment used:


Essie,OPI, Shellac,Artistic, Bio SculptureGel


The MWnails cabin crew.


Amongst the excitement of the bustling Old SpitalfieldsMarket, through a small, pretty shop front window, sits something that’s drawing the attention of bothmale and female visitors of the market – a shop decked out like a 1960s aeroplane.This ‘aeroplane’ is in fact a nail bar.


Filled with original seats from anAir France plane, covered in a typical 70s-style fabric, and the inside panels taken from anAir Canada plane, a treatment menu that replicates a departure board and ‘crew’ sporting an old-school cabin crew uniform,MWnails has gone all out in creating a nail bar with a difference. On entering the salon, you instantly feel as if you’ve gone back in time and left wondering where you will depart…


Not only is it created to replicate an aeroplane, but the name of the treatments also add to the thrill of the experience, with treatments such as Shanghai Shape, Perfect Panama and TwoWeeks to Tahiti.


The ‘aircraft’ boasts over 20 crew members, all prepared to go out of their way to make a visit to MWnails what it should be – a fantastic experience.


The Nail File just couldn’t resist a visit toMWnails to see just how the nail bar looked and to chat to Managing Director Henrietta Flynn about this new concept…


The salon is obviously such a unique idea, where did it come from?


“We saw this as an opportunity for a new style of nail bar, filling that space between the no frills nail bar and the full-on Spa experience.We wanted to create a space and treatment range that makes everyone feel special and pampered – and what makes you feel more special than turning left on a plane? Once we realised that was the crux of the issue it became relatively easy – we simply had to create a First Class aeroplane!”


The salon includes genuine fixtures and fittings from a plane. How did that come about?


“We developed the concept and then hunted for the right suppliers to help us make it all real. It’s all quirky and gorgeous and everywhere you look there’s original 70s detail – from our fabulous phone through to the First ClassAir France seats in our pedicure stations. Our overhead lockers really work and the jump seat downstairs in our Spitalfields flight deck comes complete with seatbelts.”


What’s important to you when choosing a nail range?


“Quality, quality, quality.We’re all about first class service and so every product we use has to reflect that.We look to build strong relationships with all our suppliers – so they become partnerships that grow with us as our business grows.


“We also take health and hygiene incredibly seriously so we have sourced the best foot Spas we could find, importing them from Canada because they have a UV filter for better sanitation, and we installed a state-of-the-art air extraction system to look after our crew and our clients.We even have our own sterilisation room in each salon.”


What has been your key achievement so far in the industry?


“I have to say that we’re all delighted with the impact the flight decks have had, it reflects exactly the feel we wanted to create. It’s obviously been great to see the press coverage and blog reviews and having Sky andMTV filming here is very exciting but, more importantly than all that is the response we’ve had from customers. They understand that this is not a gimmick business; it’s a First Class nail experience from arrival to departure.”


What’s the ethos of the nail bar?


“We think it’s important that everyone feels relaxed and welcome on board our ‘flight decks’ – it’s not an exclusive club. It’s a lovely space to spend 20-minutes or an hour treating yourself but in an affordable way, so clients leave looking, and feeling, good.We also know it’s the detail that makes for smooth landings so we work hard to ensure that every aspect ofMWnails is First Class. It’s the real File High Club!”


The nail treatment area Treatment review:


As I stepped on boardMWnails, I was greeted by the friendly crew and asked to take a seat – the seats are genuine seats from an aeroplane laid out in rows of three.A member of the team placed my bag in an overhead locker, explained to me what my pedicure treatment would involve, enticingly called Tokyo Toes, and left me to choose which shade of Essie polish I would finish with – a hard task for any girl when faced with an array of gorgeous shades.


My treatment took place downstairs in the salon, where I was shown to a large, comfortable First Class aeroplane seat with a bubbling foot bath by it (if only all flights were like this!).My feet were left to soak for a few moments and then my therapist Eva applied cuticle remover to the cuticles on all toe nails, before clipping away any excess cuticle that was left behind. Eva then discussed with me the length and shape that I like my toenails and got to work on filing them to perfection.


Now onto the pampering, Eva massaged Essie’s Microdermabrasion exfoliator into both feet,


one at a time, explaining that because my feet were quite soft anyway, I didn’t need anything too harsh at this point. Each foot was then placed back into the footbath for a few more minutes of bubbling and then dried ready for an application of Intensive Recovery, which is a moisturising cream and was massaged into my feet and my legs, leaving them soft and refreshed.


To complete the treatment, Eva applied Essie First Base to my toenails, followed by a couple of coats of my chosen Essie shade – Lapiz of Luxury, a pretty shade of sky blue – and a topcoat.


I found the whole experience atMWnails fantasic and I loved the whole concept; it didn’t feel like a gimmick, I really did feel as if I had experienced a First Class treatment and I could imagine nipping there in my lunch hour for a little pampering! Two-weeks later my feet are still soft and the blue on my toes still looks as fabulous as it did when I walked away from the nail bar.


Are there any plans for the future?


“We’re constantly developing it!Attention to detail has always been critical and it’s key to everything we do, but there is always more that can be done, it’s part of what makes it all so exciting.


“We’re also looking at new treatment products, for example we’re currently introducing Ejuvenate from Essie, which has had great feedback from our crew and clients.We’re also looking to grow our ‘fleet’; we’re already looking for our next flagship premises.”


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