Nail salon owners in Southern California have come together to give back to health care workers.
Nails technicians and establishments have been hit hard by the Coronavirus, as they are not considered "essential" businesses. However, their daily operation requires supplies to protect against powders and polishes (gloves and masks), which are definitely considered "essential" to health care workers.
A handful of salons have reportedly collected nearly 75,000 paper masks and 280,000 gloves for donation. NBC4 reports that this collective movement is being hailed as "Nailing It" by the nail salon owners themselves!
Both NBC4 and ABC7 have highlighted these incredible acts of kindness. NBC highlights Johnny Ngo, the owner of Whale Spa, who said the following after his salon donated supplies:
"I heard stories last week about nurses and doctors working in the ER and ICU without masks, so we made an effort to donate as much as we can… all of our stock we have left."
Another member of the industry - Tam Nguyen, who runs Advance Beauty College - told both ABC7 and NBC4 that he considers donating supplies a calling for the industry.
According to the Professional Nail Association, there are 6,000 nail salons in SoCal, leaving about 30,000 nail technicians out of work. Nguyen told NBC4: "We connected the dots and said, 'You know what? We can do something about this. When I heard [what others were doing], I wanted to be part of it."
If your business/establishment in currently closed, and you have gloves and masks available, donations can be dropped off at Advance Beauty College locations in Garden Grove or Laguna Hills, Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
NBC and ABC report that a huge donation is planned for Tuesday morning in Huntington Beach - 13,000 masks and thousands of pairs of gloves to go to health care workers.
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