Meet Frida Martinez

We had the good fortune of connecting with Frida Martinez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Frida, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I was born and raised in Long Beach, CA. My whole childhood we lived on the not so nice parts of Long Beach living check by check with my mom and four siblings. I saw my mom and older brother struggle majority of my childhood. I always told myself I wish I could do something to help. Seeing how we struggled and how hard life was made me who I am today. I work day and night, weekdays, and weekends to help not only myself but my family. Working hard everyday to not see my mom nor myself struggle with anything.

What should our readers know about your business?
In my career I’ve gone through so many ups and downs & exciting/proud moments but, one thing I am most proud about is where I work today and how beautifully my clientele has grown. I started off working from home once I got my license I decided to move into a salon. After a year changes were made and I found my new home, Blooming Eyes. Here I was able to grow my clientele with the help of my beautiful boss Kate. With that I also got recognition from tik tok, instagram as my following grew more and more, and word of mouth with my work just getting better and cleaner. It was not easy whatsoever to get to where I am now. I wanted to be a full time nail tech for the longest but creating a steady and loyal clientele took me about 4 years. Before being full time I was working part times and fitting in clients here and there when I got some. There were days I would cry and wanted to give up cause I would go days and even weeks with little to no clients. I had really no support from friends nor family other than my sister and cousin. I overcame my challenges by truly believing in myself, practicing day and night, and not giving up just truly being myself and getting myself out there. A big lesson I’ve truly learned is that a stranger will become a client before a friend/family becomes a client. I’ve learned to not be so hard on myself or hate my work due to the fact that I wasn’t getting clients. Your people will find you and people will recognize you and your work with time.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
LA is the place to be especially with a bestie in town! Definitely go take a little trip to Downtown Long beach and go to the pike, hit the beach & maybe even the aquarium. I would go eat Lucille’s for some amazing ribs, go to some museums like discovery cube in orange county (my favorite), and to end the night, 2nd street in LB to hit the bars for some drinks. A place that’s very interesting and special to my childhood and even adult hood is Signal Hill skyline. It’s a beautiful view for pictures, picnics, meditation, workouts, etc. and definitely a place I’d take a friend to visit.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The only person I’d truly want to dedicate this shoutout to is my older brother, Fernando. He’s a father figure to me and truly the best mentor and support I have. He was always there for me growing up and getting to where I am now. He got me my first practice hand to practice nails, he would sit with my somedays to show me nail videos and even apply the acrylic and file when I would get frustrated cause I wouldn’t get the hang, he pushed me to start working at a salon and now at a private studio, he shows me about credit, he pushes me to travel and explore, he pushes me in my fitness life, he shows me how to invest my money into things that would benefit me in the long run, & he was truly the only one that cheered me on and believed in my journey of nails even when I didn’t believe in myself. I believe my brother deserves all the credit in who I am today because of him and his applauses I kept going and believing in myself.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clawsbyfrida?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Other: tik tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@clawsbyfrida?_t=ZT-8vqYVmCAaA2&_r=1