Nailed It: Gina Farran's Love Letter to Resilient Entrepreneurship Gina Farran's journey with Glaize is a testament to building a business fueled by love, resilience, and a commitment to sustainability.

When Farran launched Glaize, a London-based sustainable nail polish brand, she set out to redefine beauty with innovation and a deep commitment to self-care. For this ex-finance professional, nail care became a form of self-love and the foundation for a sustainable beauty brand.

"I've always been obsessed with manicures," Farran says, reflecting on what sparked the idea for Glaize. But her busy finance career left little time for self-care. "When I was working in finance, my hours were very long, and I just never had time to go to the salon," she admits. Frustrated, Farran saw a gap in the market - no DIY solutions offered salon-quality nails without the hassle. "There aren't any great DIY solutions that allow me to have great-looking nails without the time, effort, or cost of a salon mani," she explains. While many beauty brands diversify quickly into skincare or haircare, Farran sees untapped potential in nail care. "Despite nail care not being as large as other categories like hair and skincare, it's still a massive industry," she says. "There's a lot of work to be done within the nail care segment before we think about exploring other beauty segments."

Farran's focus comes from a belief in building something personal and meaningful. "I personally think it's really important to build something that you use and love. It gives you an edge," she says. In a time when start-ups often chase the next big trend—be it AI or the metaverse—Farran advises against following the hype. "Too many founders chase sexy segments because they think they can ride the VC funding bubble, which eventually always bursts," she says. "I'm much more of a proponent of building something that seems unsexy but is fundamentally a great business, and most importantly, something that you truly believe in."

Building with care
Glaize stays true to its values of self-love and quality. "We've built our own factory and invested really heavily in our product development journey," Farran says proudly. "All our gels are made in-house from scratch by our London-based team- and we've got our own formulation chemist and production technicians." This hands-on approach allows Glaize to respond to trends faster than its competitors. "Owning our production process means we can turn around new colours and designs much faster than competitors and with no minimum order quantities," she explains. "This allows us to test more and understand what sells and what doesn't, without investing heavily in design or colour-specific stock." Farran emphasises continual improvement. "We've always taken a long-term view at Glaize," she says. "Product improvement is a continuous journey for us - both from a product quality and sustainability standpoint- and this is something we'll never compromise on."

A love story
No love story, in life or in business, is without its challenges. One of Farran's toughest moments came soon after Glaize's launch when funding fell short. "There have been many challenges, but I'd say that the scariest one was when we couldn't raise any money just after we'd launched," she recalls. The market had shifted, and Glaize was too small to attract venture capital. "We almost went bust multiple times." Instead of giving up, Farran leaned into her vision with more determination. "I managed to raise a bit of money from friends and family—and my husband officially joined me as my co-founder." This experience shaped Glaize's long-term strategy, making it more sustainable and frugal. "Looking back at this time, I feel like it definitely made us a better business," Farran says.

Start with love
With Valentine's Day in the rear view, Farran's advice to entrepreneurs is simple: start with love. "I really think it's important to build something that you use and love. It gives you an edge." But she's quick to debunk a common myth: "People think that starting a business will give them more free time," she laughs. "It obviously depends on what type of business you're building, but if you want to build something big, it will consume you. You'll have to learn how to switch off."

For Farran, Glaize is a labour of love - and standing out in a trend-driven industry. "Build something you truly believe in. That's where the magic happens."