They say the No. 1 thing to consider in real estate is location, and the power of CHA Natural Nail & Spa's proximity to Whole Foods is not lost on the nail spa's owners.
"People who shop at Whole Foods care about natural, organic stuff," said general manager Hannah Dinh. "Even the pet store [Nooga Paws] has organic."
CHA Natural Nail & Spa offers healthier and herbal products for manicures and pedicures in an upscale environment - from massage lotion that incorporates lavendar oil, to regular and gel nail polish that doesn't stain, weaken or dehydrate nails due to the lack of formaldehyde, toluene, DBP, BHA and solvents. Though routine options are also offered, the resultant acrid fumes are absent.
"We try to make it a different nail salon for people who want healthier," Dinh said, referencing the personal exhaust fans at each work station as well as the variety of products. "Not a lot of nail salons do that."
While the salon's quality and atmosphere keep people coming back for dip powder and gel manicures, the two most popular services, it's the customer service that has really won over customers, Dinh said.
Manager Vy Duong said customers followed them from a previous salon they'd owned in the East Brainerd area to The Nail Bar, a similar salon by the same owners near Hamilton Place mall, even though they didn't tell them their plans.
But their customers found them, even forcing them to open the salon earlier than anticipated, said Duong.
"We didn't plan to open that day," she said of the East Brainerd spa's day-before-Thanksgiving opening in 2015. "Everything passed [state inspection] in the morning and we were trying to clean up some stuff. Then we have customers knock on the door and say, 'Are you open yet?' Everybody know us and had been waiting and waiting and waiting on us to open.
"If you're good, wherever you go people will follow you."
It's a theory both she and Dinh have personal experience in. Duong owned nail salons in Washington, D.C., and Dinh in Atlanta, where they're from, respectively, and their families are in the business.
CHA Natural Nail & Spa features several pedicure "pods" separate from the main manicure area, offering a more relaxing environment as well as the option for semi-private group seating. In addition to the range of nail services, aesthetic options from permanent makeup to waxing and eyebrow threading are also offered.
The business is at 313 Manufacturers Road and can be reached at 805-5206.