Your Nail Tech, Salon Owner, and Boutique Owner Need You
They built successful small businesses but now are forced to close their shops. Here’s how you can help.
Celebrity nail tech Tacarra “Spifster” Sutton travels between New York City, Los Angeles, and Atlanta to do nails. And not just any old nails; the 31-year-old creates nail art for the likes of Megan Thee Stallion, Danielle Brooks, and Janelle Monáe. The week before Covid-19 took over the news cycle was the week she was busy applying stained glass nails and French tips. She’s been praying to God for the opportunity to “chisel out a week or two to focus on me and chill out.” She never imagined the coronavirus would be that reason.
She made the inevitable announcement around 2 p.m. on March 25: Due to the spread of the coronavirus, she would be unable to service clients. It didn’t matter how famous they were. As she wrote on Instagram: “Look, it’s just not worth it! We gonna look back [on] this years from now regretting what we could’ve done. I care more about humans than how cute their nails are!”
Sutton’s lamentation of losing customers and having to shut down services is repeated nationwide throughout the small business space occupied by women of color. They are all making the tough decision (sometimes with help from a…
