Through many different nail designs, Noah Phillipe has found a fun creative outlet. Photo by Grace Hensley.
GIANNA CASSIN | STAFF REPORTER | gcassin@butler.edu
Members of the Butler community are achieving extraordinary things, both on and off campus. From first-years to alumni to administrators and back, each Bulldog has a story to tell. Read on to discover the next of our Bulldogs of Butler through a Q&A style interview.
Noah Phillipe, a sophomore pre-pharmacy major, started their own business creating custom press-on nails. On their website, there are over 20 nail designs customized for each customer’s nails. They run the business all on their own, from marketing to creation of the nails.
THE BUTLER COLLEGIAN: Can you tell me a little bit about your small business and what it is?
NOAH PHILLIPE: I have been painting my nails since I was probably in seventh or eighth grade; I’ve always loved doing it. One thing that I was going to pursue if I didn’t make it into college was becoming a nail tech. Since I didn’t acquire a license, I can’t do acrylics on other people, so I was like, “How can I bridge that gap?”
Because I love doing nail art, people compliment me all the time on my nail art. How can I provide it to other people? I decided to start doing an acrylic press-on nail business, which is all e-commerce. I post all of my designs on [my] Instagram; the [handle] is @NoahNailedIt. People place their orders to get a customized set sent to them.
I’m starting to work on a process where I can create everything custom, even down to the design. All of their nails will fit to them, which I think is the best part. When you buy store-bought press ons, there are 25 that come in a box, and they’re really flimsy, and sometimes they don’t fit well. You can’t get exactly what you’re needing. With my products, I’ve been designing them for each person as if I was there putting them on them myself.
TBC: Did you start this business when you got to college?
NP: I started this past summer, actually. July 11 was the day that I started it. It was on a whim. I was like, “You know what, I’m just gonna do this. I’m gonna actually put forth effort into my work,” and the rest is pretty much history.
TBC: How do you fit people to their size?
NP: I have all of my sizes available online, and I have a sizing chart that is available [to browse]. [Customers] can look at the sizing chart, and then I recommend taking a piece of tape and putting it across the widest part of [their] nail bed, measuring on both sides and then taking a ruler and measuring [their measurements].
TBC: Are you the only person that works on this project, or do you have any help?
NP: I’m the only person that works on it. At times, it is very rough because I am [responsible for] legal and the website manager and marketing and finance. I’m every single part of the business.
TBC: Did you ever look into getting help?
NP: Right now, I am not in a place to financially compensate anybody else [to help me do it]. For right now, it’s really just me doing [this] for fun, and I really enjoy that, but I would also love to have help in the future. I have to work on building up a clientele and getting recurring purchases.
Photo courtesy of NoahNailedIt on Instagram.
TBC: Do you have a set amount of time you commit to your business per week?
NP: I work probably about 20 to 30 hours a week on my business. [I] have to stay very active with trends and whatnot. I’m always looking at what’s trending on Instagram [for art inspiration]. My marketing sometimes takes hours. There’s so many aspects of [managing the business].
TBC: How do you balance school and work?
NP: Thankfully [the business is] not extremely busy so it’s not super hard. There’s a five-to-seven-day window for me to make the [orders] and ship them out. I never let an order sit for longer than seven days, and I never try to bog down all of my orders at one time; I try to space them out. If there is an issue with meeting deadlines, I reach out to the customer and say, “Hey, I am one person. There are many things that I can do, and there are many things that I can’t do, and sometimes I can’t fit it into my schedule.” I work out a deal, whether it be a partial refund or a compensation on their next order or so on and so forth. I’m trying to be really personable about everything because [challenges] come up in everybody’s life.
TBC: Do you have a website where customers can place their orders?
NP: It’s NoahNailedIt.com. All of our social media [platforms have] the same name except for [our] TikTok. There’s a period in between each word [in the TikTok handle], but we’re working on changing that.
TBC: Is there anything else you want to say about your business?
NP: I’m looking for any and all clientele. If any people have any questions, they can reach out to me by email [noahnailedit@outlook.com] or social media, and I’d be happy to answer any questions. I’m maybe working out some customizable options in the future. I’m really looking to open up to all Butler students and beyond.
NoahNailedIt.com is currently offering 20% off using code “Collegian.” The Butler Collegian receives no compensation in conjunction with this code.
