Skip to main content
BoF Logo

Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

How Safe Is a Gel Manicure?

Nail bars now outnumber banks on many high streets. But as another ingredient in gel polish is about to be banned, is there really a risk-free way of getting your nails done?
A manicure at the Julien Farel salon
Last month, the European Union banned TPO – an ingredient that helps gel polish to harden under UV light. (YUKI TEI)

From French tips to glazed doughnuts, shimmering cat eye to high-shine chrome, getting your

Please sign in to ensure you can read our agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice. Or get in touch at support@businessoffashion.com if you experience difficulties.

Further Reading

The Manicure Gets a Makeover

As demand for nail products and services still lags behind 2019 levels, nail art and has proven to be a bright spot in the category.

The Soho House of Nail Salons

Majesty’s Pleasure, which opened this week in New York City, wants to offer nail services and eventually, other beauty offerings to a clientele that wants a social outlet as much as they do a fresh manicure.

The Brands Driving the Post-Pandemic At-Home Nail Boom

The shuttering of nail salons during the pandemic birthed a new sector of digitally-native brands selling at-home manicure kits. Three years later, category leaders are more than doubling sales as economic challenges permanently alter consumers’ nail care habits.

In This Article

© 2026 The Business of Fashion. All rights reserved. For more information read our Terms & Conditions

More from Beauty
Analysis and advice on the fast-evolving beauty business.
view more
Latest News & Analysis
Unrivalled, world class journalism across fashion, luxury and beauty industries.

The Industry That Eats Its Young

Small fashion labels have always been shortchanged by their wholesale partners. A wave of high-profile bankruptcies has turned a structural injustice into an existential crisis. There is a better way to do business, writes Imran Amed.


The Zara-Fication of John Galliano

Fashion’s enfant terrible is trading exclusivity for the mass market. Is it the ultimate fashion coup, or the final surrender of prestige?


The Impact of War on Fashion’s Supply Chain

Textile hubs are already feeling the cascading risks of the conflict in Iran as Washington ramps up forced labour probes to revive tariffs, while decarbonisation in fashion’s factories might finally have a standard to go off of.


VIEW MORE
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
CONNECT WITH US ON