The British nail chain Townhouse, known for it’s luxury interiors and nail service offering, is set to open its first stateside salon off of Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills next month.
The 1,500-square-foot space will offer what the company calls signature and luxury manicures and pedicures as well as nail colour refreshes and gel treatments priced from $40 to $100. Five to six additional locations are scheduled to open in the Los Angeles area this year before the concept expands to a second U.S. market in 2025, when another 30 locations are in the pipeline.
Many of us in the UK will have seen more and more Townhouse nail salons opening up across towns and cities across the country. “Our brand is aspirational,” says Juanita Huber-Millet, founder and creative director of Townhouse. “So, it’s really important when bringing in a new brand from the U.K. that we go for that aspirational market, and we really felt like that’s what LA is to us.”
When questioned about their expansion, Townhouse aims to plant a location in every major metropolitan area in the U.S. over the next five years before pushing into suburban neighbourhoods, a strategy that it’s followed in its home country. It currently, as of 2024, has locations throughout London, Guildford, Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, Bristol, Birmingham and Wilmslow. It plans on shifting to a franchise model in the future to supercharge U.S. growth.
As Townhouse enters the largest beauty market in the world, Huber-Millet is confident that due to the brands high-quality service and it’s sought-after Instagram-worthy interiors, it will set itself apart from the competition. “It’s not just about having a beautiful salon and the latest technology or seamless online bookings,” she says. “We’ve got the customer care element. We’ve got reliable treatments that really last. We really care about our team members, and we want to provide a space that they love working in where they feel like they can grow and they’re valued. I don’t see all of those aspects put together in any other brands so far.”
Premium nail salons are nothing ‘new’ so to speak, but theirs something about a luxury, dedicated destination for nails that is driving people to book. They make it completely about the customer, offering swatches to browse on a screen next to their seat, along with an on-screen drinks menu too.
Launched in 2018 with three U.K. locations, Huber-Millet created Townhouse to challenge negative associations that have plagued the global nail salon industry for decades. She self-funded the company for its first three years.
“It’s not well-regarded in any way in beauty. It’s almost the least regarded sector of the beauty industry, and it is associated with those really low quality nail bars that I’ve experienced throughout my life,” says Huber-Millet. “I launched Townhouse because I wanted to revolutionize the nail care sector because I felt like it was so left behind.”
Townhouse has largely relied on organic marketing and gifted influencer visits to spread awareness, which we expect to see happen across the U.S too.
Again, something to set the nail brand apart from competitors is the fact Townhouse is looking to grow its product business as it expands locations. Last year, it introduced a small product line with reasonably priced cuticle oils and hand creams. The products are sold on Townhouse’s website and in its locations.
