Strength, Not Length : Interest in Healthy Nails Grows, And So Do Sales for Treatment Products

WHEN Olympic runner Florence Griffith Joyner trimmed her 6-inch, star-spangled fingernails to make it easier to grab the relay baton, function won over form again. But even at a more manageable length, the runner’s flamboyant fingernails have been discussed almost as much as her fleet feet.

That’s because America continues its fascination with nails. But with the exception of Griffith Joyner’s high-profile handful, strength, not length, is the hot topic in the nail industry. In fact, most well-known glamour models, such as Estee Lauder’s Paulina Porizkova and Lancome’s Isabella Rossellini, sport short nails that verge on the stubby, yet appear healthy and well-groomed.

Jessica Vartoughian, who operates the celebrity-filled Jessica’s Nail Clinic on Sunset Boulevard and manufactures nail-care products, says women wear long nails “as a psychological crutch--it means their insecurities are showing. Now, however, women are developing more confidence in themselves and their appearance.”

America’s manicure mania led to $750 million in sales of nail-care products last year, and projections are that this year that number will jump to $875 million. Nail color still represents the greatest proportion of sales, but treatment products that promise strength and resiliency represent the greatest growth area. According to a 1988 Drug Store News / Gallup Consumer Survey, 29% of American women use some form of treatment; examples are cuticle creams, brush-on strengtheners, ridge-fillers and instant thickeners.

Experts such as Vartoughian blame the growing need for treatment on the extensive use of artificial nails. “Wearing artificial nails damages the natural nails and causes them to be brittle, to peel and to weaken,” she says.

Sharon LeVan, senior vice president of marketing at Max Factor, agrees. She notes that “the false-fingernail market has slowed down tremendously, and the basic nail-care business is booming.” The Gallup survey indicates that of the women who used artificial nails in the past year, 42% are using them less frequently, and only 24% are using them as often as they did in the past. And, of women using treatment, 33% report that they are using more.

The success of treatment products such as Factor’s 2nd Nail, Revlon’s Calcium Nail Gel, Barielle’s Clearly Noticeable Nail Thickener, Develop 10 and La Salle 10 have manufacturers rushing to introduce new products to take advantage of the boom.

Combining strengthening ingredients and color is the newest concept. Sally Hansen’s Hard As Nails has been available in colors for years, but it was among the first generation of hardening products that simply protected the nail surface. The newest, like Colour Grow from Nadia Cosmetics, combine base coat, top coat, strengthener, hardener and color. Vartoughian, who owns Los Angeles-based Nadia, says the product was developed because “there are many women who don’t have the time for a professional manicure.”

This fall, the fashionable hand will have trim nails, colored in intense shades ranging from bronze to burgundy to berry. The white-tipped French manicure continues to be the classic, tailored look. And Florence Griffith Joyner’s Dragon Lady style gets a gold medal for dash.

Model: Erica Todd / L.A. Models; manicure by Jessica’s Nail Clinic