OCT NIBJ: The strengths and struggles of a Gen Z entrepreneur

Joyceta Chacon, now 20, knew she wanted to become a nail technician after spending time with her aunt, who worked in a nail salon. Today, Chacon runs her business, Joyful Nails, within the Inkish Body Art and Beauty salon in Post Falls.

“I felt very inspired seeing her run her own business,” Chacon said. “I just knew that was something I wanted to do.”

At 19, Chacon graduated from the Academy of Cosmetology in Post Falls with her cosmetology license. Inkish Body Art and Beauty was the first salon Chacon contacted, and the all-female staff welcomed her and her nail business. Through the support of her coworkers and the salon’s customers, Chacon has gradually built her own clientele.

“Building my own clientele was a really big struggle at first because I didn’t go to high school, so I didn’t know a lot of people,” Chacon said. “It can move quickly, just not as quickly as you want it to.”

Chacon is one of many Gen Z entrepreneurs pursuing an alternative career path.

Intuit’s 2026 Entrepreneurship Survey found that 43% of Gen Z adults surveyed plan to start their own business, compared with 39% of millennials and 27% of Gen X respondents.

A Fortune article published in April, titled “With entry-level jobs vanishing, Gen Z grads are ditching corporate America,” found that many Gen Z adults are turning to entrepreneurship and alternative career paths amid a shrinking entry-level job market.

“It’s such an easy thing to get your foot in the door,” Chacon said. “Instead of going to college, a lot of young women would rather go to cosmetology school because it’s cheaper. They grow up going to a salon every once in a while, and I think that inspires a lot of people.”

Chacon gained most of her marketing skills through trial and error and by observing her peers in the cosmetology industry. She builds her clientele by encouraging clients to refer three additional people in exchange for a discount. She also promotes her business by posting regularly on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook.

“Social media is a very big help. It’s a great way to reach a lot of different people,” Chacon said. “With TikTok and Instagram, I reach a younger audience.”

Chacon finds that young people tend to be drawn to her business, and many of her clients are younger.

“Younger clients might feel more comfortable with a younger worker,” Chacon said. “When they’re almost the same age as me, it can be really fun and easy to talk to them.”

Although she enjoys working with clients of all ages, she finds that older and younger clients tend to have distinct preferences. Her personal interests overlap more often with clients closer to her own age.

“With younger people, they want more design-based nail sets, which I think is really fun,” Chacon said.

Chacon’s age gives her an advantage in content creation and appealing to a younger clientele, but she said she often struggles to be taken seriously.

“Since I’m still on the newer side of things and I’m young, they don’t really respect rules like my late policy or canceling at the last minute,” Chacon said. “It can get very frustrating.”

Chacon said she is grateful for the support of the Inkish salon staff and her peers in the cosmetology community. She has ambitious plans for the future and hopes to return to cosmetology school. Her dream is to provide full hair and makeup services for weddings.

“I would love to own my own salon,” Chacon said. “I would love to have that space for other workers to come and work for me.”

To learn more about Chacon’s business, visit inkishjoyceta.setmore.com.

    Joyceta Chacon paints a client's nails at Inkish Body Art and Beauty Salon.
  

    Inkish Body Art and Beauty salon sign.