Nodspark's founder: "When I first started, no one knew what nail wraps were in Singapore"

When Eugenia Ye-Yeo started Nodspark, a Singapore brand that
designs and sells nail wraps, she wanted to offer a luxury busy women often
don’t have time for: self-care.

The concept was simple: the nail wraps, which require no
drying time, provided an easy solution for time-strapped women to look good
with minimal effort.

Fast-forward a few years, and Nodspark not only has a loyal
fanbase, but has also done numerous collaborations with designers, local brands
and even Her World. We speak to Eugenia on her journey to setting up the brand
and challenges that came with it.

Why did you set up Nodspark?

I started Nodspark as I saw the potential in nail wraps being a perfect fit for our Singapore demographics. With our fast-paced city life, being able to look put together in a short amount of time is such a win-win! The concept of nail wraps are amazing, as we don’t have to spend that much time waiting for the nails to dry, let alone having intricate designs on the nails. And the best part is that you can do it yourself in the comforts of your home!

What are the inspirations behind your designs?

We are inspired by the world around us, and the experiences that we love. It can be food, a scenery, an animal, or even scents! We also design according to the seasons, and what the trends are in the local and international market, depending on what our focus is for the range of design!

Tell us more about your collaboration with Her World.

The collaboration with Her World was a unique and meaningful experience, as we have never done a nail set using gemstones before. Being able to translate the gemstones and make them two different styles of nail wraps was a challenge from the creative angle, but we always love a challenge! And the outcome was so amazing- the designs being very on-trend with nail lovers especially for Self-Love (Rose Quartz).  Power Boost (Moonstone & Malachite) was a very different style, more suited to users who love something simpler and executive-looking. Being able to do work with Her World on this for their 60th anniversary was such an honour for us, the publication being Singapore’s most established monthly women’s magazine!

What has been the biggest challenge you've had in your
entrepreneurial journey, and how did you overcome it?

The biggest challenge in my entrepreneurial journey has got
to be marketing. Back when I first started marketing Nodspark, no one knew what
nail wraps were in Singapore! As it was a foreign concept, it took me a long
while and needing to be creative in my outreach and marketing messages.

Knocking on doors and speaking to a variety of people doing business really helped shape my way of marketing and reinforce certain business development ideas. More doors open when you keep knocking!

What has been some of the most memorable feedback you’ve
gotten from customers?

I
remember a customer who once wrote into us, telling us how using Nodspark gave
her some glamour, when she almost had none. She was a mother of a pair of newly
born twins, on top of having an older son. She had a wedding to attend and did
not have the time to get herself ready. She could not get her hair done, nor
did she have time for the lash salon. Nails were the only thing she could do
very quickly by herself with Nodspark.

There
was another Caucasian mother who came up to us during a pop-up event and gave
me a tight warm hug. Likewise, she did not have the capacity to do any self-care
for a few years due to her tight schedule and looking after 3 children. She
expressed her happiness in discovering our nail wraps as she found much comfort
and joy in getting her nails done up so quickly.

These
are just some of the many stories and experiences that we receive, which
reinforce the love for the work that we do here at Nodspark.

What are some things about nail wraps that people don’t
know about?

Nail wraps can be removed using everyday home essentials
like olive oil - it comes out smoothly! This was a tip sent over by our
customer, and it works like a charm!

Any other exciting plans we should know about?

Look out for our upcoming Christmas range which we are so excited to share! We also have exciting news to share come early next year on our efforts to upcycle our packaging. We’ve been working hard at this to ensure that our packaging goes beyond one-use!