When Priscilla started her nail salon, Paixão.Co, in 2015, she set out to solve two major problems. First, she wanted to provide clients with the

best services while upholding the highest standards in nail hygiene and sanitation. As a result, her salon was recognized as the “Best Nail Salon”
in city from the moment it opened.

Second, having once been an aspiring nail tech herself, she made it her mission to hire and mentor newly graduated beauty school students, equipping them with everything she learned about the business. However, she quickly realized a deeper issue—many of these talented young women were struggling to succeed, not because of a lack of passion, but because their training had failed them.

The subpar education they received from beauty schools left gaps in their technical skills and business knowledge, making it even harder for them to build a stable career. Determined to change this, Priscilla researched the nationwide state of nail education and uncovered a widespread problem—most beauty schools lacked the resources, structure, and updated technical curriculum needed to properly train nail techs.

She saw firsthand how this impacted not only the students but also the schools themselves, as they struggled to hire and keep nail tech instructors and build successful nail programs.

That’s when it clicked…

"I realized my salon was more than just a business—it was a vehicle to empower young women and help them find their self-worth through nails. But to truly change the industry, I had to restore the foundation of training itself."

Fueled by this mission, she founded Diamond Nail Tech Academy, the only nail tech academy in New Mexico, to provide high-level training that sets students up for real success. Now, she is on a mission to help beauty schools elevate their nail programs, salon owners to offer experience training to their team, all in an effort to close the training gap, and give aspiring nail techs nationwide the education they deserve.