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The new era of Asian nail salons is emerging and we need to understand it for what it’s worth.

Gone are the Fordham and Dremel drills, dust masks, odors and sanitation “are you kidding me?” issues. In are airy comfortable salons in high income neighborhoods that cater to women (and men) that want a manicure and pedicure done well and done fast without an appointment required.

On my continuous journey of salons and spas, I stopped into one of these newer salons and was surprised. It was busy. There were about 10 employees, all from Vietnam. The owner had plenty of family working the location including a brother and sister. The average tenure of doing nails for each manicurist was 10 years. All spoke English but conversed to each other in Vietnamese.

I sat down for a manicure. I was told the price was $16 and the combo manicure and pedicure was $51. Clearly prices have gone up. I paid $18 for a manicure in a very upscale salon recently. But there were at least 8 customers in the salon while I was there so it seemed price was not an issue.

My manicurist, Cammie, has been doing nails for 10 years and was originally from Vietnam and then moved to California. She works 6, sometimes 7 days a week, typically 12 hours a day. She is 26 and thinking about getting a college degree. As I am learning this information, I quickly understand this generation is not like the previous generation and competition in the nail industry is going to get more intense.

The service reminded me of driving through a car wash. Very automated, very thorough and when done, very good. After trimming and filing my nails, she put one hand in a plastic liner, applied a liquid lotion and then put an electric mitt on. She took my other hand and pushed back and trimmed my cuticles (all implements were in a sealed bag). The process was repeated with my other hand. Afterwards a very intense hand massage followed. Then came a hot towel to remove the lotion followed by the application of product (I use Peak and Glacier). The manicure lasted 25 minutes.

While you can make an appointment, most customers walk in and are taken care of immediately. The owner has had so much success, she recently opened another location a mile away. I was shocked. This location had 8 pedicure spas and 8 manicure stations. Yet only a mile away she found the need to open a second location.

They do gels and acrylics but the focus is on mani’s and pedi’s. They also retail OPI and Essie polish.

I walked out shaking my head. Consumers are the truest indicators whether a business will succeed or fail. Clearly women find these salons attractive and attractive enough as the new generation of Asian salons relentlessly pursues opportunity. This is a classic case study that we can all learn from.

Happy Friday!

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With so many things going on around the world, it is nice to turn off CNN, turn on Jimmy Buffett and take it easy on our first three day summer weekend.

Good news too is that it will be in the low 80’s and sunny with a slight chance of rain on Monday. Now if you are in Miami or Vegas, that might sound a bit cool but for us, it’s perfect weather.

I don’t know about you, but I hate going anywhere on summer weekends. Time goes by fast enough, it’s nice to stay home and chill out. Truthfully, there will be no chilling out since I am the grill chef and BUB is the kitchen chef and we stay very busy between shopping, prepping, cooking and cleaning.

But heck, that’s part of the fun.

And with all that’s been going on, we can all use a break and have a bit of fun in the sun.

Happy Thursday!

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Ever since Peter Pan, we have had a desire to fly like a bird. With spring in full bloom, birds are chirping away and having a good old time. And that got me to thinking, what would life be like being a bird?

One of the biggest benefits would be flying. Birds can fly anywhere. When it gets cold, they can fly south. When it gets hot, they can fly north. They can fly and land in trees, on ground and sometime, on water.

Birds can talk away without anyone telling them to be quiet.

Birds can poop anywhere, anytime. No bathrooms, no toilets, and no toilet paper to deal with.

Birds can make nests from twigs, lay eggs and have babies. No doctors, no hospitals, no nursing, no babysitters, no cribs or toys needed. And especially no diapers (refer to point above).

Birds can have fun in the sun and not worry about SPF30, sun spots or 10% tanning taxes.

Birds don’t need clothes, shoes, handbags or jewelry. They can just wake up and fly around naked. Male birds always see female birds naked and vice-versa. Of course that could explain all the chirping in the early mornings and late evenings.

What about the drawbacks of being a bird?

Birds make no money. They can’t go to the supermarket or fast food joint for food. They have to find their own food each and every day.

Birds have no privacy. I wonder how female birds poop in public.

Birds have “bird” brains so they can’t think, plan or look forward to the future. Being a bird is about living in the moment.

Birds can’t visit a doctor, optometrist or beakologist. If something goes wrong, it’s pain and agony until death.

Birds never go on vacation.

Birds don’t get to enjoy burgers, ribs and dogs off the grill on a holiday weekend. Just worms and insects.

And foremost of all? Birds can’t get a manicure or pedicure.

Happy Wednesday!

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I grew up on Jolly Rancher Watermelon Kisses. I ate them by the boxful. I also had my fair share of Pixy Styx, Sweetarts, Spree’s and candy necklaces. I was not into chocolate.

At my peak, I got 6 cavities filled on one visit. I thought about sucking all those Rancher’s and wondering if the cavities were worth it.

As we get older, we learn that cavities are actually a walk in the park when it comes to what’s next in the dental chair. When the cavity breaks down, it usually means a cracked tooth (or even loss of a tooth). And that can mean a root canal.

The sole purpose of a root canal is to kill the nerve in the tooth so there is no more pain. If you have experienced this pain prior to a root canal, you know sitting in the dental chair is a better alternative.

Next comes the crown to cap the cracked tooth and that involves more drilling, more fitting the temporary crown over the tooth and repeated visits to the dentist. At least a crown is good for decades.

A couple weeks ago I experienced tooth discomfort but I wasn’t sensitive to hot or cold. I knew something was up so I went to the dentist (that’s the first big step) to have it checked out. He took his hammer and pounded my teeth, he took his pick and picked my gums and when I said nothing really hurt, he did it again.

Then it hurt! Still not knowing the cause, he took an X-Ray and it was apparent that the damage was underneath a crown and root canal I had in 2006. The X-Ray showed a shadow and he told me to visit the root canal specialist.

There aren’t many worse things in life than being told this. I grudgingly made the appointment and within five minutes of sitting in yet another dental chair, the Endodontist  agreed with my dentist. There was an infection in my root canal.

So I said let’s get it done. “Not so fast,” she stated. She wrote me a script for horse-sized antibiotic capsules and a week later I came back. After 12 Novocain shots and not enough Nitrous Oxide (no NO when doing surgery), she started the surgery.

Mind you, most people fear dentists more than death but not as much as public speaking. And being a dental regular, dental pain was tolerable. But having endodontic surgery is more like a root canal, cavity, crown and pickup truck dragging you from your limbs all at the same time. Between her pick and her drill, for 30 straight minutes, she was digging and pounding like gold nuggets were going to come out of my gums.

At one point, the surgeon’s aide said to raise my left arm if the pain was too severe. I was beyond listening skills, I was doing everything possible to breathe and squeeze the bloody gauze between my teeth. Finally, she stopped and i thought the stitching process would start. But no, “Larry, you are doing great, but there is still a bit more infection I have to get out.” I felt like Dustin Hoffman in Marathon Man.

Like all things good and bad, this too came to an end. My shirt was drenched in sweat. I am happy to say the pain in my mouth is gone, my swelling has subsided and life will go on. The only advice I can suggest in all this: Endure the pain in the dental chair if you have pain in your mouth. It is well worth it. HA!

Happy Tuesday!

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One thing great about being young are all the Big Hurrah’s you have to look forward to. Being young is about getting excited to get older so the Big Hurrah’s come quicker than later.

Here are just a few Big Hurrah’s we get to enjoy being young:

• First day of kindergarten
• First day of elementary school and riding a school bus
• first day of middle school
• First date, first kiss, first  . . .
• First day of high school
• Driver’s ed
• Getting driver’s license
• First car
• Graduating high school
• First job
• Going to college
• Graduating college
• First legal drink at a bar
• Getting married
• First big vacation
• First kid

And then the Big Hurrah’s start to fade and one no longer is rushing to get older. The biggest Big Hurrah’s are typically milestone birthday’s: 30, 40, 50, and milestone anniversaries.

In business, a Big Hurrah is selling your company. For most business founders, this happens once in a lifetime if at all. As the owner (or co-owner/boyfriend), everyday you have the right to make the final decision and do what you think is the right thing to do. And then one day something happens and you decide to sell. The Big Hurrah comes at signing the paperwork, the media attention and frantic phone calls to business associates.

Like most Big Hurrah’s, this one too is filled with post mortem depression. While retained with a contract, you no longer have the final say. You no longer have the corner office. You no longer are independent.

So what does one due to cure this depression? Good question. For many ex-owners, there is no depression, just elation and in most instances, they don’t stay on for more than 90 days. But for those that have signed a long term contract, my thinking is that they still want the glory days of being independent and relevant but struggle with being a “second-class” business citizen.

I will say they have more time to read blogs, send email, read the Journal, look out the beach house window and think about “what’s next?” And perhaps this is the greatest paradox for business owners. Unless we are ripe in age, we always want to know “what’s next.”

For many, they start up another company. Some retire and figure out a way to enjoy life on the golf course or by volunteering. But for a few, especially those on a long-term contract, financial freedom, the ability to visit St. Barth’s anytime or shopping all day long at farmer markets doesn’t do it.

The moral of the story is that no matter where we are in our life, we are always looking for one more Big Hurrah. And that’s not a bad thing.

Happy Monday!

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The barbeque gods did not pay attention to my request for a sunny day today. Hopefully the rain will hold off as we celebrate our first TNG barbeque of the season today, Cheeseburgers in Paradise. On the menu we have Black Angus burgers, salmon burgers, baked beans, BUB coleslaw, and our signature waffle cone station. If you are nearby between 12-1:00PM, stop on by!

As the stock market sinks below 10,000 again and the worries in Europe continue along with all the other lousy news, the possibility of a “double-dip” (not ice cream) has raised its ugly face. The thoughts of that happening are nauseating at best and in Michigan, devastating. The question is, what will turn everything around?

Can the news in Detroit be any worse? Even Mayor Bing stated the obvious yesterday, “We have no idea how to stop the violence.” What hope is there when your leader doesn’t have an answer?

CND’s new Shellac has proved to be a hit and good news for the nail industry. Seems everything is soak-off gels and acrylics are mostly dead. BTW: We have more Shellac on the way.

I don’t know about you, but does road construction this season seem more unbearable that usual? Telegraph is a disaster for 9 straight miles and you never see any crews working on all 9 miles at the same time. Perhaps it’s because the government is in charge.

Speaking of which, can you believe the Obama administration gave out a permit to BP for it’s leaking well (33rd day) without any verifications or tests? Heck, you have no idea what we need to go through with the city to get a sign 12” bigger than code.

It’s not really Memorial Day weekend next week, is it?

How did Smoothies get to be so hot?

Does anyone eat at Ponderosa?

Have you heard anything from anyone about the smoke-free ban since it was enacted on May 1? Not even a whisper.

Happy Friday!

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Here is my latest idea: Sleep Spas.

More on that idea in a moment.

In the meantime, I love to watch passengers on flights to and back from Las Vegas. Going to Vegas, passengers are drinking beer, mixed drinks, laughing and hooting and can’t wait to land and go down the escalator to the tram. You pass up the people who are going home and thinking “too bad for them.”

Three-four days go by and suddenly you are the ones going up the escalator. The plane takes off and guess what? Right on, most everyone is passed out. No beer, no mixed drinks, no laughing or hooting. In fact, most passengers are exhausted and passed out.

Why? Sleep deprivation.  For more than 80 million American’s, sleep deprivation is an issue. I’m lucky, I fall asleep in less than one minute. But for many, they can’t fall asleep for a long time or they wake up in the middle of the night and can’t fall back asleep. Ambien and other prescription drugs are exploding in sales although they shouldn’t be used for more than 30 days in a row.

We sell a white noise machine from Marpac, The Sleep Mate,  that works wonders. At least it’s drug-free. A lot of people swear by it.

Why is it some people have no issues and some do when it comes to sleep? How many hours per night do you think the average person needs?

The experts suggest between 7-8 hours and even a 10-15 minute power nap in the afternoon. However, I know people that sleep less than 6 hours and swear they don’t any more than that. I know that when I get less than 6 hours, I feel it.

Sleep is one of those things we take for granted and don’t think about its benefits (or loss if one doesn’t sleep). I know one thing for sure when it comes to me: Sleep is something I look forward to each and every night.

Now back to my idea of Sleep Spas. Sleep Spas would feature ultra comfortable day beds, iPod docking stations, ambient light, salt walls and a blissful environment to take a power nap or relax. Sessions would be available from 30 minute up to 90 minutes. There would also be hand and/or foot massage options. Would you be a client?

Happy Thursday!

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As I ran down Las Vegas Blvd (aka The Strip) towards downtown on an early Sunday morning, I ran past at least 8 wedding chapels (one even offered drive-through service and there was actually someone behind the window!), several 24/7 jail bond offices, numerous tattoo parlors, Cuban restaurants, homeless people walking behind carts or sprawled on benches and motel after motel.

Back in the day, these motels were hot properties. Most of them were still open but their signs have not changed: Deluxe A/C rooms. Color TV! Restaurant. As I finally made it to Fremont Street, I ran past the Four Queens, Golden Nugget and many more old hotels advertising $1.00 beers, $8.88 dinner buffets and your chance to win $1000 every hour. If you thought there were strange people at the airports and amusement parks, you haven’t seen anything like this.

That was Vegas before Vegas become Las Vegas. New hotels opened on the Strip as business boomed and the motels and downtown hotels could no longer handle all the tourists. Circus Circus, Frontier, Desert Inn, Riviera, Tropicana, and Barbary Coast offered better rooms, more entertainment, bigger casinos and better restaurants. But it was still Vegas.

Las Vegas happened in 1989 when Steve Wynn opened the first “adventure” hotel on the Strip, The Mirage. Known for its volcano show outside and its luxurious Hawaiian gardens inside, along with white sharks and the first big stage show ever, Siegfried & Roy, tourists came by the tens of thousands to see this spectacle. You could hardly walk the sidewalk when the volcano was blowing fire into the air. Steve Wynn knew people were easily entertained.

Not satisfied with The Mirage, next came Treasure Island and his greatest triumph, The Bellagio. The water show outside is still one of the greatest tourist attractions as are their indoor gardens and art museum.

Alas, Wynn sold to MGM and took some time off. Once his non-compete ended, his next vision became reality, Wynn Las Vegas. Just when you thought there couldn’t be anything better, Wynn proved there would be.

Unlike City Center that recently opened, you won’t find a stitch of concrete, steel beam or 100’ window. What you will find is that every detail  has been designed for his guests wonderment. I really can’t explain it fully, but Wynn has figured out a way to take all of one’s senses and ignite them at the same time. All the employees are friendly and helpful. The restrooms are not only clean but stunning.

In a word, Wynn has class. Perhaps you saw him on “60 Minutes” and listened to his story. If not, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that Wynn has figured out a way to offer the best customer experience 24/7. This is no easy feat.

The salon/spa is the only 5 diamond rated one on the Strip. If you own a spa or salon, a visit is very worthwhile.

Steve Wynn keeps learning and has mastered the craft of hospitality. I for one will keep learning from him and thanks to him, I already have some great ideas that you will see come July.

Happy Wednesday!

P.S. When I returned from my run, the door man asked me if I wanted a bottle of water. I said “sure.” He then asked me if I wanted it cold or room temperature. Only at Wynn.

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There is quite nothing like working during the daytime, looking out your window and thinking it’s nighttime. The first half of May has been mostly that: Rain, cold, dreariness and now flash flooding.

It snowed in Denver and Minneapolis this week. It snowed in Northern Michigan last weekend. The temperature on Sunday when i went for my 8AM run was a brisk 33. And this is May.

Nebraska flooded earlier in the month. The east coast flooded in March. Florida had it coldest winter in its history.

All this confirms Al Gore is correct: Global warming is a serious threat to our planet.

Not if you are wearing fleece in May. But here’s the thing: It’s 80 and sunny in Las Vegas and if you live in Vegas, you don’t know about the grayness in Detroit. It’s no wonder so many moved to Vegas over the past 10 years.

I know from previous blogs that lack of sun is harmful to ones health and well-being. So I have an idea.

Sun in a bottle. This patent-pending idea will change our moods forever. The bottle can sit on your desk, in your car or anywhere you want instant sunshine. After charging, you open the lid and dazzling sunlight bursts out bringing all the benefits of being sunny outside. No more gloom, no more bad moods. Just fun in the sun.

Oh, the item is not available for sale just yet. In the meantime, all we can do is what we do best in Michigan: Look at the forecast for the following week and be thankful that is shows sun and mid-70’s.

Happy Thursday!

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I was at the Sports Club this morning and Nick at the front desk (typical 25 minutes late) told me he wished the place would burn down. Metaphorically speaking of course but I asked him why. His response, “So I don’t have to work here anymore.” I said if you think this is bad, go visit a hospital.

At the Cleveland Clinic, on one floor a mother just delivered her first child and both parents are elated. On another floor my mother is being operated on to remove a tumor from her kidney. The operation began at 8:30AM.

At 8:30AM, Marc Davis’s plane to Vegas took off. He couldn’t sleep the night before he was so excited. I remember when I was a kid that happened to me when the next day was going to be super. Marc is 47 but still a kid. He got to Metro at 6:30AM to have breakfast and then hit the bar for a couple Crown’s on the rocks.

On Monday, a former employee called me to tell me she is so excited to come back to TNG and better yet, she had not one but two offers on her home. She sold it at a higher price than thought. The same day one of my workout buddies left for Houston after being unemployed in Michigan for two years. He left behind his house that is so underwater, it’s nearly floating away. His wife is meeting him in June and they will live in a rented house until things change.

Last week Ernie Harwell passed away at the age of 92 after battling cancer. He led a long and happy life. He was memorialized not once but twice at Comerica Park. On the same day Detroit police officer Brian Huff was gunned down after responding to a call. Hoff was 42.  He too was memorialized with 4000 some officers and friends attending the funeral.

They say ones attitude and being optimistic or pessimistic affects each and every day. That is partly true. Sometimes life just deals different cards to different people for no reason at all. Some of the cards are good, some bad and a few have the Joker. Here is what I think makes the difference between a great day and a bad day: 1/3 genetics, 1/3 how you take care of yourself and 1/3 luck. Perhaps Marc Davis will win a hand in black jack. . . perhaps.

Happy Wednesday!