LU$TER OFF GLOSSLAB
Salon chain at breaking point
Embattled nail salon Glosslab has been scrambling for cash despite celebrity backers that include former Miss Universe Olivia Culpo, The Chainsmokers and rapper Lil Yachty — and some insiders claim the company is in danger of shutting down for good, The Post has learned.
The New York-based chain — which has touted a water-free, hygiene-minded approach to manicures and monthly memberships for unlimited access to its salons — has been mired in chaos under founder and CEO Rachel Apfel Glass, according to former employees.
As reported by The Post, Glosslab has lately been accused by landlords of skipping hundreds of thousands of dollars in rent, even as it has shuttered stores.
Insiders blame an overheated and chaotic expansion under Glass — with multiple sources claiming she was nowhere to be found even as the company unraveled.
“She had no interest in the day-today operations of this business,” one former employee said of Glass, asking not to be identified. “Rachel was fully absentee. Her interest was in picking out nail polish colors for Instagram posts.”
Another former executive said, “Rachel was very interested in doing podcasts and being a working mom . . . She was trying to build a personal brand but neglecting the brand she was running.”
Rachel was fully absentee. Her interest was in ’ picking out nail polish colors. — Former Glosslab worker
Defaults on $5M loan
Glass declined to comment. A spokesperson for Glosslab said former employees’ allegations that Glass was “hands-off” and “absentee” were “a very inaccurate characterization” of the executive.
Glosslab recently defaulted on a $5 million loan from a key partner — Joshua Coba, the co-founder of publicly held European Wax Center, sources said.
Last year, Coba bought seven Glosslab salons, becoming its first franchisee and agreeing to expand the franchise nationwide. But now the stores he bought are affiliated with the New York company in name only, former employees tell The Post.
“It’s a delicate situation,” another former employee said, adding that without Coba’s support the company has a “bleak future.”
Asked about the rift with Coba and the $5 million loan default, a Glosslab spokesperson did not deny the allegation, but called it “inaccurate,” declining to elaborate. Coba didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Faced with a dire shortage of licensed nail technicians, Glosslab has resorted to costly and bizarre measures — including buying Uber rides to send workers from Manhattan to understaffed salons in Westport, Conn., and Hoboken, NJ — a round trip that could easily top $300, former employees told The Post.
In addition, New York-based technicians were handed daily cash bonuses of $150 to $200 to cover shifts in newly opened salons across state lines, sources said.
The bigger problem, according to insiders: The company has long fielded complaints that it hired underqualified and unlicensed technicians — who kept their jobs despite mishaps and concerns raised by customers, employees and city inspectors alike.
Glosslab was so desperate for workers that “if nail techs had friends or family that wanted to work, we would have them train at one of the locations alongside another licensed technician,” a former employee told The Post. “They’d train for four or five days and then be sent to Glosslab.”
According to another former employee, “We had numerous instances of nail techs cutting clients, or giving them botched manicures. When clients would complain, the company would throw money at the problem by giving them a free manicure or even free memberships in hopes they wouldn’t leave a bad review.”
‘Deceived’ investors, too
A Glosslab spokesperson responded that “all of Glosslab’s technicians are licensed,” and that, “As is common practice in the industry, Glosslab offers free services to correct manicures if a customer isn’t satisfied.”
Glosslab wasn’t just deceiving customers — but also prospective investors as the chain scrambled to raise cash, according to sources.
“Whenever an investor would be visiting the store the company would place fake appointments in our books so we would look busy, even going as far as having employees of the company sit in and get their nails done to give the illusion of a successful business,” a former employee claimed.
“Many managers would be upset about that because after the investor would leave they would delete all the fake appointments out of the books,” the source added.
“These appointments took up slots that actual paying customers could have taken causing that store’s metrics to be down for that day.”
A Glosslab spokesperson responded that “this is untrue,” adding, “Glosslab pays its staff for every appointment. Staff were never asked to provide services for which they were not compensated.”
Insiders say the company began spiraling out of control during the pandemic after it partnered with The Lab, a Brooklyn-based angel investment firm. Co-founded by Andy Stenzler, who started the Rumble boxing fitness chain,
The Lab brought in celebrity investors and steered Glosslab toward aggressive expansion.