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After 45 minutes, 10 perfectly sculpted nails hand over the fee, plus a tip.
Instinct and concentration transform the 47-year-old Vietnam native into an artist.
"He's the best and super quick," said customer Candice Meredith.
Nguyen did not come to the job easily.
A daring escape from Saigon landed him on the shores of Malaysia then Florida. He has been a busboy, welder, U.S. Navy seaman and now a Tulsa nail salon owner.
"I appreciate people in the U.S. who welcome us," Nguyen said. "I want them to know our Vietnamese story. I hold back the tears when I think of all the generous people here."
Nguyen has owned California Nails at 8181 S. Harvard Ave. for more than 10 years. Several of his former employees now own salons.
Of the 88 nail salons in Tulsa County, 80 are owned and operated by Vietnamese immigrants.
"We take good care of our customers and work hard," Nguyen said. "Vietnamese people wonder what they will do if they come here and don't know anybody. You can do nails."
Minimal English-speaking ability is needed to be a nail technician, and many immigrants can quickly find work with a Vietnamese salon owner.
Vietnam has schools training people who plan to emigrate to the U.S., Nguyen said.
The schools keep the standards of each state to teach students, who then get certification once they arrive. It is known as the skill set for the first generation of immigrants, Nguyen said.
"I feel lucky to have a job I like to do," Nguyen said. "This is a job we can do and do it well. We learn very fast."
'Building a foundation' -- Nguyen is a natural storyteller, taking an hour to detail his life's path beginning with a cloak-and-dagger escape from Saigon in 1981.
Using a system of secret codes, he left his home at night, hid in an attic for days and later shared a small transport boat with 40 people. An escapee from a concentration camp shared a sprig of ginseng as they fought oceanic waters for eight days to reach Malaysia.
After the U.S. verified that Nguyen's father had worked for the American military, he gained refugee status.
With the help of U.S. Catholic Charities, he moved to Pensacola, Fla. His first job was a busboy at a Chinese restaurant, where he started learning English.
He went through a welding training program for refugees and ended up in Mississippi with other immigrant workers.
As a welder, he burned his face severely, broke his nose and worked nearly every day. He didn't understand workers' rights to medical care and days off.
After the job ended, he and three friends, who refer to themselves as brothers, opened a fish market in Chicago. It lasted about a year.
A television advertisement reminded him of his uncle's belief that boys become men with military service.
"It said, 'It's not a job, it's an adventure,' " Nguyen said. "I always wanted to prove something, and that sounded like it."
After five years in the U.S. Navy, he used the GI Bill to earn an accounting degree. In 1987, Nguyen became a U.S. citizen.
While looking for accounting work in California, he was asked by a friend who owned a nail salon to watch the shop for a month. Nguyen's English fluency and financial knowledge led to handling the salon's customer relations and books.
After a sister found work in a Tulsa nail salon, he moved to join her with a brother and his mother. Several siblings remain in Vietnam. An older brother died on the ocean in 1988 while trying to escape.
"I miss him dearly," Nguyen said. "He understood me best."
Nguyen and his sister own separate salons and employ mostly Vietnamese immigrants.
His wife, Annie, works in the salon, and they have three boys -- ages 9, 6, and 5 months.
"I work real hard so it will be easier for my sons," Nguyen said. "I don't get quality time with them so they will be able to get quality time with their children. I'm building the foundation they can stand on."
Recently, Nguyen passed his real estate tests and certifications. He wants to help Vietnamese people become homeowners.
"We are Americans," he said. "But I want my sons to know where we came from and how hard it was for us."
'Working for your life' -- When Nguyen is not sculpting nails, he oversees the shop and talks with customers. Every salon has at least one person fluent in English, he said.
The nail technicians wear masks when filing and drilling to avoid breathing nail dust. It is not mandatory, but common sense, Nguyen said.
"I tell them they are working for your life, but you are not working to kill yourself," Nguyen said. "Be hygienic and make sure you are perfectly safe."
Nguyen said caring for employees is good for business.
"If someone is here not happy or has stress, I say, 'Go home, take a vacation to appreciate your job,' " Nguyen said. "If people are not happy, they will not do a good job.
"I want to have a relaxing environment and have customers know we will take good care of them."
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Ginnie Graham 581-8376
ginnie.graham@tulsaworld.com
To see more of the Tulsa World, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.tulsaworld.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Tulsa World, Okla. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
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