Denver Nail Lounge - Mongolian Dynamo Ditches Master's Degree For Manicures

Photo courtesy of: denver.metromix.com

The Denver Nail Lounge changed ownership recently and the woman who is now in charge has serious cojones. We are impressed by her here at Denver Subculture because she is doing things HER way!  Her name is Puna Javzandolgor and she's a wicked smart, goal oriented, driven woman who is bound for success.  What makes her courage evident?  She took the entrepreneurial plunge in a big way when she decided to buy the Denver Nail Lounge.  It is located in the Denver Pavilions shopping center, on the 16th Street Mall, in downtown’s Central Business District.  Low rent it is not!  A lot of pretty fingers and toes will have to march out her doors to cover costs, but she doesn’t seem fazed.

So, you're asking yourself, with a location as mainstream as the Denver Pavilions, how is Puna fit to be part of Denver's Subculture?  It's all in the approach.  She is originally from Mongolia.  After the borders were finally opened in the 90’s, she traveled to America.  She entered the country with nothing less than a Master’s Degree in Computer Science. Unfortunately, she quickly found that the job market was too competitive; particularly because she was competing with U.S. citizens who were also seeking steady employment.  Rather than piss and moan about what some people would view as misfortune, she made no hesitation in ditching her degree in favor of something more lucrative.  Humble and hardworking, she decided that a steady income could best be had doing nails.  So, she went to work in Korean owned salons, learning bit by bit what everyone was doing right, and more importantly, what they were doing wrong.  Seeing that the shop owners were finding success in spite of their poor business management skills, she determined that she could certainly find even greater success utilizing her sharp intellect, natural business savvy and superior English speaking skills. 



Photo courtesy of: kmgh.cityvoter.com

We have to admit that her English speaking skills go a long way.  It’s a breeze to make appointments, express likes and gripes and, shoot the shit with her.  (If our willingness to note the annoyance of communication problems in nail salons offends you, you're reading the wrong blog.  We embrace every walk of life, but we tell it like it is.) We also love the way she’s smartly taking advantage of the immediate benefits that are inherent in her adoption of the Denver Nail Lounge.  Such as the existing interior design concept.  With her few added tweaks the Denver Nail Lounge reminds us of Twister meets ...
Candyland.  It’s no secret that nail salons are notorious for their heinous interiors, so surely we can all agree that getting your nails done in Candyland is a huge selling point.

Speaking of selling points, Puna’s level of customer service is by far her most exceptional offering.  She shelves arrogance in favor of appreciation for the fact that you walked in the door with your hard earned money on the ready.  (Check out Denver Subculture writer Kristine Condition's account of her "Nordstrom Experience" at Denver Nail Lounge!)  And as far as we can tell this applies to everyone.  Whereas some salon owners might shy away from a gaggle of teenage girls popping in off the 16th Street Mall, she recently welcomed them AND gave them a discount!  On the flip side, she has a highly trained nail tech who is an expert at high-end silk wraps.  Great news for those of you in the Subculture who've made good money as a result of, or in spite of, your wacky ways. (Wink!) Regardless of your fiduciary findings, her base prices are good.  The Denver Nail Lounge also offers several discounts:  group parties, student, teen and children.  (By the way - Puna is also a mother of 3! Damn, girl! When do you sleep?) Currently she is also showing some financial love with killer grand opening specials.  In addition to the manicure, pedicure and silk wrap services, she provides gel shellac, tips, waxing services and 30 minute foot massages.

What more could you want?  How about great Subculture shopping right outside the door?  Fashion Fusion, Hot Topic and Sashe shoes are right there. As if all of this weren’t enough, Puna even speaks Russian!  So if you have Russian friends with language barriers this is the place to send them.  And Red Square is just a shuttle ride away.  You can show off your pretties while tossing back just about any flavor of Vodka you can imagine.  (Yes, again, we made a stereotype leap.  Get over it.) The website for the Denver Nail Lounge is currently in design so we are not yet able to provide a link.  But you can call to make an appointment, or just show up.  Puna will be waiting.

The Denver Nail Lounge

500 16th St, Ste 136

Denver, CO 80202

Ph. 303-623-2335

Hours of Operation:

Mon thru Sat 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Sunday 11:00 a.m. -6:00 p.m.

F#$! the mainstream!