Meet the Founder: Braelinn Frank on Building Rave Nailz in Miami

Rave Nailz didn't start in a salon. It started at a kitchen table.

Braelinn Frank, founder and CEO of Rave Nailz, is self-taught. She never got a nail tech license and never wanted to sit in a salon. Instead she studied graphic design and spent years doing marketing and branding for some of the biggest names in EDM and rock, including design work at Red Light Management and campaigns for School of Rock's ~150 schools.

Then she started making hand-painted press-ons as a side project. In 2013, when she listed her first sets on Etsy, there was no press-on category at all, so she filed them under jewelry. The side project took off while she was still working full time in music marketing.

From rave roots to retail

Those handmade sets went on to Dolls Kill, Hot Topic and Urban Outfitters. Rave Nailz has since walked at NYFW, appeared on Euphoria and been featured in The Wall Street Journal.

In 2023, Braelinn relaunched the company as Rave Nailz, Inc. The rave and punk roots stayed as the anchor, and the audience got wider. "The brand is the hook," she says. "But nails are for everyone."

Building in Miami

Today Braelinn builds Rave Nailz from Miami, a city where nails are part of the outfit. She's a winner of the Dream Ventures Accelerator pitch competition, and she's growing the brand into national retail.

What's next: beauty for your hands

A salon manicure is mostly prep: care first, then the art at the end. Braelinn's vision is to bring both home. Rave Nailz is building a complete nail and hand care routine, the way skincare and haircare already work, starting with high-design, high-function press-ons and expanding into daily care.

"Salon nails, no salon," she says.

Shop the latest collections at ravenailz.com, and follow along on Instagram and TikTok at @ravenailz.