By Jared Liddell

THE COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way the world operates and has pushed many persons to come up with innovative and creative ways to use and share their gifts and talents, and this is no different for 14-year-old entrepreneur Evanjalie Nelson, the owner and nail technician of “The Nailroomby.Evanjalie.”

The young entrepreneur launched her own nail-art business in December 2020 and intends to continue growing her brand and her business. In an interview with the Pepperpot Magazine, Nelson disclosed that the pandemic gave her the blessing of free time. She stated that after some time at home, she decided that she wanted to learn something new and started searching for activities that piqued her interest and that she could use to occupy her time.

“Well I just picked up nail art because I was bored being home and having all this free time, no physical school or anything, but I was seeing persons all over picking up these activities and trying to learn more and so on during the pandemic, so I decided that I would do the same,” she said. “ I started trying to find something that suited me and that was unique, and I always had an interest in nail art, so I decided that even though it is a challenge it’s something I wanted to do.”

She stated that during the pandemic she spent six months practising and perfecting her craft to ensure that she had enough experience when she intended to get her business started. Nelson stated that she did hundreds of hours of self-teaching using YouTube as her main guide and tutor. She noted that she remains thankful for her mother who remained supportive of her undertaking this journey, as well as providing finances and moral support.

“Thankfully when I was practising and learning my mom was very supportive of me doing it so she purchased all of the equipment I needed and so on so I was able to learn and practise. I actually did practise for about six months using practice hands and so on, then I moved on to my family members and thankfully school was closed; so I was able to get some of my friends to be my practice clients,” the young entrepreneur explained.

Nelson said that she never thought she would be an entrepreneur at such a young age since she still has classes to attend and her studies to pursue. She stated that the COVID-19 pandemic has given her a level of free time that she could not have experienced had physical school still been instituted.

She noted however that although she did not have physical schooling, online schooling did consume a portion of her time. She said that to ensure she had a balance between the times spent sharpening her skills for nail art and the school she had to come up with several timetables to ensure that she had adequate time for both.
Nelson stated that when she finally opened her business to accept actual clients, she was excited and extremely happy. She said that knowing within just six months she was able to sharpen her talent and bring it to a level that she could now not just earn her own money, but also be the owner of her own business, felt like one of the greatest achievements she could have gotten out of 2020.

When asked what piece of advice she would give to other young persons who are trying to navigate life through the pandemic, Nelson said, “take every opportunity that comes.” She explained that many times younger persons pass up on opportunities because they feel they cannot get everything completed on time or in the time they have allotted. She noted that during the pandemic the support she received from her mother enabled her to make the best of the free time she had, to not just learn a new skill, but to also turn it into a marketable and profitable venture.